Day One of the MLB Draft is Saturday July 11th (1pm ET; 12pm CT) on NBC, Peacock, and MLB Network, and will be rounds 1 through 4. Day Two (rounds 5-20) is on MLB.com at 11:30am ET; 10:30am CT. Don’t expect to hear any of these names on Day One, but here are the current players I expect to get drafted at some point before round 20 wraps up.
*Note: Coverage of this years draft will be, in a word, weird. Best to just paste in this nonsense here:
Saturday, July 11: Rounds 1-4
• 1:00-2:30 p.m. – Picks 1-10 (NBC and Peacock)
• 2:30-4:30 p.m. – Picks 11-40 (MLB Network, MLB.com, MLB TV, MLB+)
• 4:30-7:45 p.m. – Picks 41-135 (MLB.com, MLB TV, MLB+)
Sunday, July 12: Rounds 5-20
• 11:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. (MLB.com, MLB TV, MLB+)
Anyway… onto the draft preview:
*Note: Like the past two years, there are no current Diamond Dores players either I or any draftnik project to be first rounders. This is a problem, but I would be pretty shocked if Brodie Johnston isn’t a first rounder next year.
Current Players Who May Hear Their Names Called on Day One (Rounds 1-4):
Very likely none, though I could see Holcomb in round 4 as a possibility.
Current Players Who May Hear Their Names Called on Day Two (Rounds 5-20):
#26 Jr. OF Braden “The Hulk” Holcomb
2026 Stats: .352/.434/.621 with 19 2B, 403B, 14 HR, 54 RBI and 6-8 steals.
Here’s his MLB.com scouting report:
Scouting grades: Hit: 40 | Power: 55 | Run: 50 | Arm: 55 | Field: 50 | Overall: 40
Though Holcomb was an all-state tight end at Foundation Academy (Winter Garden, Fla.), he preferred to use his physicality on the diamond. He spurned interest from pro teams out of high school to attend Vanderbilt, and he was the Commodores’ best hitter (.352/.434/.621) this spring. There aren’t many college players who can match his size (6-foot-5, 245 pounds) or history of playing five different positions.
Holcomb’s strength gives him well-above-average raw power, and he can drive the ball out of the park to all fields from the right side of the plate. But he doesn’t maximize his pop because he’s way too aggressive, chasing all types of pitches, struggling to make contact on offerings on and off the plate and not catching up to quality velocity. He has 30-homer ceiling but has slugged just .388 with wood bats in two seasons in the Cape Cod League and might not make enough contact to do damage in the Majors.
Holcomb has sneaky athleticism with average speed, and he’ll flash solid run times and steal bases on occasion. He covers enough ground to get the job done on the outfield corners and played a surprisingly adequate center field when he saw action there this spring. He has the solid arm strength for third base but is a stiff defender there, while first base is a viable option.
Range: Rounds 5-10.
MLB.com Top 250 Ranking: 226.
ESPN Top 250 Ranking: 189.
Prediction: To be honest, a guy with The Hulk’s physical tools and 2026 numbers should be a top 100 prospect chosen in the first three rounds of any draft. In fact, those 2026 numbers scream first round pick, don’t they? I suspect his swing and miss concerns from 2024 and 2025, as well as his defensive position (corner OF or IF, basically) are the reason he’s not ranked as highly, but, frankly, that’s pretty dumb. He’s not some plodding big man with the cement feet of a first baseman/DH. That boy can move, and has a RF arm. Again, I think MLB teams are grossly undervaluing his skillset. That said, I expect Holcomb to still be drafted somewhere around round 5 on Day Two as long as a team matches his signing bonus demands. With NIL money as an option, I’d hazard a guess that if MLB teams don’t offer Holcomb at least 5th round slot value (basically $400k-$550K), Vanderbilt will find a way to keep his power bat in the lineup. In the pre-NIL days, I’d list Holcomb as a 99.999% likely to sign, but now, there is at least a chance he returns.
Chance He Signs With an MLB Team: 90%.
*Note: Braden Holcomb is the only current player ranked in either the MLB top 250 or ESPN top 250, and this has never before happened in the Tim Corbin era. Oof. 2026 truly was a cursed season.
#39 Jr. RHP Connor “The Spice” Fennell
2026 Stats: 4-2; 4.96 ERA; 10.76 K/9
Range: Rounds 11-20.
MLB.com Top 250 Ranking: N/A.
ESPN Top 250 Ranking: N/A.
Prediction: Frankly, I’ve expected Connor Fennell to be wearing a Vanderbilt uniform as a senior since he first took the mound in 2025. He’s the classic “college senior starter,” as he can flat out pitch, and is a whale of a competitor, but doesn’t light up the radar guns. If anything, MLB teams have focused even more on velocity in recent years, and poor man’s Aaron Nola types (movement and precision pitchers who struggle to reach 90 mph) aren’t even in most systems any more. I’d bet The Spice is still our Friday Ace in 2027, and spends all offseason trying to get 1-2 more mph out of his arm in the pitching lab to give him a shot at being a senior draftee next year. If things go right, he could have a senior year like Cal State Fullerton’s Thomas Eshelman in 2015 or any number of senior South Cackalacky soft-tossers in 2010 or 2011.
Chance He Signs With an MLB Team: 20%.
#44 Jr. C/DH Colin “Bar Rescue” Barczi
2026 Stats: .263/.341/.576 with 4 2B, 403B, 11 HR, and 28 RBI.
Range: Rounds 11-UDFA.
MLB.com Top 250 Ranking: N/A.
ESPN Top 250 Ranking: N/A.
Prediction: Barczi demonstrated light tower power, but injuries kept him from catching for most of 2026. Recent reports are that Bar Rescue just underwent surgery to repair a torn labrum. This means he will not be catching in 2027, but he should be able to hit. As such, it’s probably better for him to have an MLB team pay for his rehab, but if they don’t want to, I’m sure he’ll be welcomed back to DH for the Diamond Dores. Don’t expect him to be able to do any more than that, though.
Chance He Signs With an MLB Team: 50%.
#77 Jr. RHP Alex “The Kranz” Kranzler
2026 Stats: 3-3; 6.18 ERA; 11.13 K/9
Range: Rounds 11-UDFA.
MLB.com Top 250 Ranking: N/A.
ESPN Top 250 Ranking: N/A.
Prediction: The Kranz would probably have preferred to be draft eligible last year, as 2026 was a rough one. Partially because we were short on starting pitching candidates and partially because Corbs tries to give obvious reliever-only pitchers the chance to start in their junior years (see Nick Maldonado et al) so as to, in theory, bump up their draft stock. He’s a reliever and will always be a reliever, despite being able to throw a grab-bag full of different pitches. Luckily for The Kranz, relief pitching is starting to be valued a bit more highly by MLB teams, and further, he has an MLB reliever arm. While he’s not going to be selected Saturday, I’ll stake my claim that whether or not he’s a late round pick on Sunday, he will pitch in a major league bullpen by 2031. If he’s undrafted and/or teams just don’t hit his number, we will gladly welcome him back to the back of our pen in ‘27.
Chance He Signs With an MLB Team: 70%.
Players With No Eligibility Remaining Who May Hear Their Names Called on Day Two (Rounds 5-20) or Sign as an UDFA:
Mike Mancini and Logan Johnstone.
*Note: You can listen to The Tennesseean beat writer Aria Gerson’s thoughts on the draft and the transfer portal additions here if you want.
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