Also worth noting the Lebron slide.

Lebron is sliding. He has the physical tools, athleticism and defensive upside to be a top-five overall pick in this class, but there have been too many questions. After a strong start to the season, he struggled to hit consistently in conference play. He’s also been more error-prone this season than any of his previous years with Alabama. Someone will take a shot at the upside potential Lebron provides, but that could wind up happening later than we expected at the start of the season.

43 minutes ago, DirtySox said:

Also worth noting the Lebron slide.

This could be an interesting guy to try to push down and pay to play, depending on how far down he goes, and how much they save with Roch.

1 hour ago, southsider2k5 said:

This could be an interesting guy to try to push down and pay to play, depending on how far down he goes, and how much they save with Roch.

Would they be able to? He doesn’t have the leverage a high school kid does.

2 minutes ago, Lukakke Appling said:

Would they be able to? He doesn’t have the leverage a high school kid does.

No shot. There's no way a guy with his upside who was a 1.1 consideration is floated all the way to 41.

2 minutes ago, Lukakke Appling said:

Would they be able to? He doesn’t have the leverage a high school kid does.

It totally depends on how much they save on Roch, and how much LeBron is looking for. If the Sox can save a couple of million on the Roch deal, plus they have about another million in their 5% overage, they could push their #41 pick somewhere in the neighborhood of $5.5 million if they committed all of those dollars to one guy. That's about the slot value of the 14th pick. Does he fall far enough to where that is more than he could get in slot value from his drafting team?

Well, that is the question.

1 hour ago, southsider2k5 said:

It totally depends on how much they save on Roch, and how much LeBron is looking for. If the Sox can save a couple of million on the Roch deal, plus they have about another million in their 5% overage, they could push their #41 pick somewhere in the neighborhood of $5.5 million if they committed all of those dollars to one guy. That's about the slot value of the 14th pick. Does he fall far enough to where that is more than he could get in slot value from his drafting team?

Well, that is the question.

Someone will draft him ahead of the Sox and he doesn’t have much leverage to turn down a slot deal.

5 minutes ago, Lukakke Appling said:

Someone will draft him ahead of the Sox and he doesn’t have much leverage to turn down a slot deal.

That's fair. I mean he can throw out a crazy number and try to scare teams off, threaten not to sign with them etc, but yeah, they have to believe he will go back for his senior year.

On 4/12/2026 at 11:55 AM, DirtySox said:

Holy schit - Best defensive play I’ve seen from Roch. More of this on the SS please. That Lachey kid is electric too.

Our team really deserves the top three picks in this fucking draft. That should be our competitive balance handicap. 🤣

Picking out some questions from Carlos' draft chat today.

DH

8 hours ago

It's still early but do you see talent tiers forming at the top of the draft?

Carlos Collazo

2 hours ago

I think it's Cholowsky in a tier of his own, followed by Emerson/Lackey/Flora in the next tier. I would personally have Emerson in a tier of his own as well, but I doubt that will be the consensus. Beyond that group of players I think the next tier is pretty wide actually. That was the sentiment I got when reporting for our most recent mock. Some teams don't believe there's a significant talent drop from the 6-10 range to the 25-30 range, for example.

Anonymous

3 hours ago

how does this years draft stack up vs last year and the year before?

Carlos Collazo

2 hours ago

A better 1-2, maybe a better 1-2-3, than the top of last year's class. The college arms from a year ago were much better than this year's group. This year's class doesn't have a Seth Hernandez, but there are more high school arms who fit in the first round than a year ago. Last year's high school shortstop depth was better. The 2024 college hitters at the top seem like a separator for that class compared to both 2025 and 2026. It do like the overall depth of the 2026 class in rounds 2+ better than both 2024 and 2023. It feels like the 2026 hype we had preseason has not fully materialized though.

Kiley mock through pick 13 with some interesting notes on Emerson.

Midway through college and high school baseball seasons, the 2026 MLB draft picture is starting to come into focus.

We're getting to the part of the spring when players are falling into consensus tiers for evaluators, and when I see MLB crosscheckers and scouting directors, they ask me when my first mock is coming out. This year's class has a clear No. 1 player followed by a pretty clear next-best prospect and then the potential shuffling picks up at No. 3, with several college players and a few standout prep prospects all in the mix to go in the top 10 picks.

1. Chicago White Sox: Roch Cholowsky, SS, UCLA

This already seems to be down to Cholowsky and Grady Emerson. I think Cholowsky has a notable lead, but it isn't a slam dunk just yet.

Since almost everyone in baseball has the same report and outlook for Cholowsky, this pick then comes down to exactly what you think Emerson's potential is and if he's a quick mover. Some evaluators think Emerson has higher upside and if you think he'll also move quickly (Konnor Griffin debuted as a 19-year-old, Jackson Holliday at age 20, Kevin McGonigle at 21) then he could also look like a superior prospect in the minors within a year or so.

If he's both things and he comes at some bonus savings vs. Cholowsky, you can logically justify picking Emerson. Some teams I've spoken with see this decision as close enough to really dig in and the White Sox might be one of those teams.

We'll learn a lot more in the coming weeks; I heard a big White Sox scouting contingent, including GM Chris Getz, was in to see Emerson this week.

2.) Rays - Grady Emerson

3.) Twins - Vahn Lackey

4.) Giants - Jackson Flora

5.) Pirates - Jacob Lombard

6.) Royals - Liam Peterson

7.) Orioles - Justin Lebron

8.) Athletics - Eric Booth Jr.

9.) Braves - Chris Hacopian

10.) Rockies - Drew Burress

11.) Nationals - Ryder Helfrick

12.) Angels - Cameron Flukey

13.) Cardinals - Jared Grindlinger

Edited 5 hours ago5 hr by DirtySox

Here's Kiley's scouting report on the top 3 tiers of guys. He has them as 60/55/50 accordingly.

60 FV

1. Roch Cholowsky (21.3), SS, UCLA

Cholowsky is still the top prospect in the draft for the vast majority of teams. He's an above-average hitter for average and power with a good approach and an above-average glove at shortstop who has been productive for three college seasons (1.081 OPS and 44 homers in 154 career games) after getting multimillion dollar interest out of high school in the loaded 2023 draft class.

If you were going to pick nits (scouts are as good at this as anyone), he's not the long, lean type of athlete you'd prefer and you could argue he has a bunch of above-average to plus tools, but no plus-plus, standout ability. Dansby Swanson and Alex Bregman are the names that come up most often as comparable players. The downside for Cholowsky is basically a really solid 2-3 win player who never has that breakthrough season, but there's legit 5-win upside, which would make him a franchise player. It's really hard to pass on that high of a floor with perennial All-Star upside.

You don't see this kind of prospect every year, so the top two players in this draft make it a great year to be picking really high. That said, the depth beyond that is lacking a bit, so it's a tough break if you're picking later in the top 10.

55 FV Tier

2. Grady Emerson (18.4), SS, Fort Worth Christian HS (TX), Texas commit

Emerson has been the top prep prospect in this draft class basically since anyone has been paying attention. The track record of that kind of prospect, especially when it's a left-handed hitting shortstop, is quite good. Scouts have Emerson as an above-average to plus hitter with above-average to plus power, along with a solid approach and feel to get to power in games. At this age and as a shortstop, that puts him right on the borderline of future star, depending on what side of that standard report you land.

He isn't the size of Corey Seager (Emerson is listed at 6-2, 180 pounds), but there are some evaluators who think Emerson's upside could be a player of similar value. With how quickly polished elite high school position players can move through the minors (Griffin, Holliday, McGonigle are the three I noted above in the mock), you wouldn't be doing your job as a scout if you didn't take a long look at putting Emerson at the top spot on your list; you can certainly imagine how that could be a common opinion a year from now.

50 FV Tier

3. Vahn Lackey (21.0), C, Georgia Tech

This is the tier that runs roughly 40 through 120 on a minor league prospect top 100 ranking, for reference. Lackey has been a revelation this year, posting a 1.274 OPS heading into this weekend's series with tools to match: an above-average runner with a plus arm who will stick behind the plate and has above-average power, pitch selection and bat control as a hitter.

There's not a 70-grade tool, he's new to being this elite, and catchers often take non-linear developmental roads, but Lackey is very easy to pick for any team no matter their preference in prospect style.

4. Jackson Flora (21.1), RHP, UC Santa Barbara

Flora was a common pick-to-click this spring because of his combination of lively stuff, clean arm action and a loose, projectable frame. He made the leap this spring with improved strike quality while still sitting 94-98 and hitting 100 mph, with an above-average changeup, and slider that's almost a sweeper at 83-87 mph.

He could be in a big league rotation pretty quickly and every team is looking for rotation depth; Flora is also a fit for almost every team.

5. Justin Lebron (21.7), SS, Alabama

Lebron is hard to rank because he still has above-average power, plus speed and an above-average glove at shortstop (a rare combination in college) but his in-zone miss rate and overall feel to hit have continued to be below average.

Some teams look more for traits than polish in position players because they think they can teach/mold a swing and approach more than others; Lebron fits well with a team like that.

6. Chris Hacopian (21.9), SS, Texas A&M

Hacopian has a track record of strong contact and strong production with plus raw power. The hesitations are that he's more of a third baseman than shortstop, he's not an elite athlete, he's older than the other college position players in this area of the draft (which empirically does matter), and his flatter swing plane means his power production doesn't match his exit velos right now. Translation: There's a pretty high floor but a more limited upside.

Edited 5 hours ago5 hr by DirtySox

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/48503248/2026-mlb-draft-rankings-update-mock-draft-top-prospects

this pick then comes down to exactly what you think Emerson's potential is and if he's a quick mover. Some evaluators think Emerson has higher upside and if you think he'll also move quickly (Konnor Griffin debuted as a 19-year-old, Jackson Holliday at age 20, Kevin McGonigle at 21) then he could also look like a superior prospect in the minors within a year or so.

If he's both things and he comes at some bonus savings vs. Cholowsky, you can logically justify picking Emerson. Some teams I've spoken with see this decision as close enough to really dig in and the White Sox might be one of those teams.

We'll learn a lot more in the coming weeks; I heard a big White Sox scouting contingent, including GM Chris Getz, was in to see Emerson this week.

Edited 2 hours ago2 hr by caulfield12

Posted literally 2 above yours.

But can anyone trust Getz to make the right call?

Picking Emerson buys him another year or two (as GM) taking a high school product to patiently wait out his full development arc.

Whereas Roch would be almost universally expected to be on the 2027 Sox at some point...especially if Colson slides backwards.

The pressure to "save the franchise" would be pretty intense, not unlike what Gordon Beckham faced back in the late 2000s.

2 hours ago, DirtySox said:

Here's Kiley's scouting report on the top 3 tiers of guys. He has them as 60/55/50 accordingly.

Fine just woke up after climbing a mountain all day in China and got too excited there was finally some real intrigue at the top of the draft.

Maybe it's the same prospect fatigue that pushed down Rodon to #3 when he was the consensus top pick out of NC State that year.

Trea Turner also started to blossom in reports ... not unlike Gasparino emerging this year as a late first/early second round guy.

Turner was already #10-15 when that season started, however.

Maybe the Troy T. comps are also scaring off some...Bregman and Swanson (more speed) also great players but not quite Top Ten in the game superstars like Witthe Jr., Elly de la Cruz and potentially Griffin.

Finally let's not forget McDaniel pushed Braden all the way down from Top 50-60 last year to 189 coming into 2026.

Edited 2 hours ago2 hr by caulfield12

Public posturing to see if they can wrangle savings out of their top pick by creating the "fake out" impression they're seriously considering Emerson instead?

Any 4D chess with the Sox just scares the hell out of me thinking they will only outsmart themselves and end up with two decent players while yet another team ends up with a superstar.

Saw it happen once already with Kolek and Aiken.

Ofc in the end Houston eventually won that one in the following draft.

Edited 2 hours ago2 hr by caulfield12

3 hours ago, DirtySox said:

Here's Kiley's scouting report on the top 3 tiers of guys. He has them as 60/55/50 accordingly.

My thought has always been that the tiebreaker to the Sox would be how fast they could move through the system, and then bonus asking price. I have to imagine that the Sox see Roch on a Gordon Beckham kind of timeline, and with the desire to try to rescue the fanbase, that would come into play. If people really think Emerson could be under two seasons away, I wonder if that factors in the other way if his ask is appreciably different from Roch's.

3 minutes ago, southsider2k5 said:

My thought has always been that the tiebreaker to the Sox would be how fast they could move through the system, and then bonus asking price. I have to imagine that the Sox see Roch on a Gordon Beckham kind of timeline, and with the desire to try to rescue the fanbase, that would come into play. If people really think Emerson could be under two seasons away, I wonder if that factors in the other way if his ask is appreciably different from Roch's.

Rushing up Sale Crochet Vaughn Madrigal another side of this as well.

TA was the one they were most patient with as a MS juco selection. Arguably biggest position player success story.

Then you have Griffin Wetherholt Cags McGonigle flying up to the big leagues and making instant impacts as well.

(Bazzana not so much.)

Edited 1 hour ago1 hr by caulfield12

Emerson has been my guy for weeks so I would be A ok with the White Sox picking that kid. You just have to hope they can and trust their development process.

9 minutes ago, SoxAce said:

Emerson has been my guy for weeks so I would be A ok with the White Sox picking that kid. You just have to hope they can and trust their development process.

I feel with how bad they look this year, you can afford to be a bit more patient. If they believe Emerson can be a superstar, then go for it. Each time I watch Roch, I just don’t see an offensive star in the majors (ie: Dansby)

4 minutes ago, fathom said:

I feel with how bad they look this year, you can afford to be a bit more patient. If they believe Emerson can be a superstar, then go for it. Each time I watch Roch, I just don’t see an offensive star in the majors (ie: Dansby)

I'd be pretty happy with a Dansby outcome if they get the Cubs version. He's been worth 4-5.5 bWAR each of the last 4 seasons, and 3.3-6.6 fWAR in the last 5.

Edited 1 hour ago1 hr by almagest

10 minutes ago, almagest said:

I'd be pretty happy with a Dansby outcome if they get the Cubs version. He's been worth 4-5.5 bWAR each of the last 4 seasons, and 3.3-6.6 fWAR in the last 5.

Good player, but I’ve never thought of him as a superstar. I will be perfectly fine if they take Roch though.

24 minutes ago, fathom said:

I feel with how bad they look this year, you can afford to be a bit more patient. If they believe Emerson can be a superstar, then go for it. Each time I watch Roch, I just don’t see an offensive star in the majors (ie: Dansby)

I'm coming around to this as well. If they think both Emerson and Roch have similar floors, but Emerson has more upside, swing for the fences. Especially if you view Grady as a polished fast-mover.

Part of me wonders if Getz overcorrects into the prep bat after seeing what Konnor became. Especially after playing the GM card and taking Hagen.