2026 MLB Draft: June's Mock Draft

Tegan Kuhns* RHP / Tennessee / Soph.

Kuhns makes it easy to envision him starting Major League games, with a low walk rate (4.7%) while working off a fastball that has elite peripherals in the mid-90s that can get up to 99 mph at times. At 6-foot-3, it's a starter's build and he has the ingredients of secondaries that will allow him to grow without relying too heavily on the heater. Kuhns has a curveball, 76-79 mph, he trusts as well as a gyro slider that he's growing into. There were some ups and downs this past sophomore year for Kuhns, but it's almost for those same reasons why clubs are wondering if they can grab this sophomore-eligible college arm who might have blossomed into the top college arm a year from now, were he not eligible this year. He also pitched his best down the stretch for the Vols and that has made it much easier to buy into Kuhns' best-case scenarios in pro ball.

(2/27/2026)

Daniel Jackson C / Georgia / Jr.

There's not one but two Georgia-based college catchers who dominated the level this spring and neither Georiga Tech's Lackey nor Jackson entered the year as surefire drafts. One of the best storylines of the season was how these two catchers went from unheralded prep players to becoming budding first-rounders. While Lackey has a legitimate 1.1 chance, Jackson might ultimately land a little beyond the first round, although we're betting the newly crowned Golden Spikes Award winner gets plucked inside the first 30 picks.

The track record isn't here for Jackson, which is why there's some first-round restraint. His 2026 spring was truly an explosion that exceed any kind of outlandish expectations. He hit 25 homers and stole 25 bases, something no Division-I catcher has ever done before, and he also slashed the K-rate down significantly (19% in 2026). As underscored by his base-stealing abilities, Jackson is a great athlete for the position though he's not a slam-dunk pro catcher, which adds to the first-round doubts throughout the spring.

But he was just too good this year to be left out of the first round. Jackson just claimed the triple crown in the best conference in college baseball after slashing .396/.492/.837 with 32 home runs and a program record 87 RBIs. We think it'll be too hard to pass on after the first 20-plus picks go by.

Daniel Jackson is having a season for the ages 🦏

.391/.485/.813
1.299 OPS
27 HR
25 SB

A 30-30 season is possible if @BaseballUGA makes a deep postseason run as expected.

🔗 https://t.co/n9vnIMhpM9 pic.twitter.com/VXeP41w09O

— D1Baseball (@d1baseball) May 27, 2026

Chris Hacopian 2B / Texas A&M / Jr.

Few hitters in the class marry contact and impact like Hacopian. The Maryland transfer slotted into the SEC in 2026 without a hitch, and despite a spring interrupted by injuries, the underlying bat-to-ball remains elite. He makes all kinds of contact against whatever you throw at him and he's handled college fastballs particularly well, which is something he's become well-known for.

Hacopian makes it simple. It's a great approach (40:19 BB:K) with solid-average raw power and quite possibly the class' top hit tool. And even though it feels like he's pretty locked into a second base-only profile, Hacopian seems like a classic, safe early overall pick that every org would welcome into their system with open arms and one who could contribute to the big league club swiftly.

(3/1/2026)

Elliot Lascelles SS / Upper Canada, ON / 2026

Despite his Canadian roots, Lascelles has benefited from a busy summer competing against talented and older players in warm-weather states like Arizona and Florida, and that's before he's really kicked it into high gear inside of the MLB Draft League where he was named its Player of the Week on June 22.

As of June 30, Lascelles has the third-highest qualified OPS in the Draft League (1.068) with just three Ks in 33 at-bats while facing college-age pitching, predominantly. He opened the year at our Super 60 showcase where he looked like the top Canadian overall prep prospect due to a simple, line-drive-type swing that signaled a low whiff rate. Now that he's showcasing that exact same profile against quality competition, teams will be a lot more comfortable selecting Lascelles earlier than expected and we think there's a shot it could even be inside the first 50 picks.

Something the Ontario native will watch for: The Blue Jays pick first at No. 39 overall... 

(4/28/2026)

Jack Slightom RHP / Lyons Township, IL / 2026

Slightom was an obvious candidate to be a spring "pop-up" arm, and we think he would have had even more Day One buzz entering the season if not for his abilities at quarterback, where he captained his high school's program under center as a senior last fall. Despite juggling the two sports his entire high school career, Slightom hasn't looked anything other than an ace on the mound. This past spring, he was arguably the top pitcher in Illinois, finishing with a 0.31 ERA in 45.1 innings, with 87 Ks against just nine walks and he allowed only 13 hits (0.49 WHIP).

He's a 6-foot-4, 205-pound athlete with easy mid-90s velocity armed with a wipeout sweeper, 78-80 mph, and a changeup, 85-87. It's exactly how you'd draw up the ideal prep right-hander lottery ticket teams scour for in the Draft. It's a wonder too if Slightom will climb an extra level as well with his focus fully invested in baseball once he's in an MLB system, which adds to the allure here. It's not hard to forecast Slightom somewhere in the middle of the second round, or so.

(5/18/2026)

Grayson Willoughby RHP / Trinity, KY / 2026

As the ace of the 2026 Prep Baseball National Champions, Trinity High, Willoughby was constantly pitching in the Shamrocks' biggest games – and not just inside Kentucky. Trinity competed against some of the country's best programs, like Florida's 4A champs Jesuit, and he dominated. He was essentially the consensus player of the year in his state, including being named Prep Baseball Kentucky Player of the Year as well, by punching out 96 batters with a 0.67 ERA and he authored a shutout in the state championship game to help Trinity become Kentucky's first back-to-back champion in nearly 20 years.

Willoughby sits in the mid-90s but will often touch a 98-99 mph in starts this spring, and he reached the triple-digit mark most recently at the MLB Draft Combine that caught some extra attetion.

He's ripe for an organization eager to optimize some unteachable traits inside his arsenal. He gets natural arm-side run on a big fastball which helps his changeup lool like an excellent out-pitch in pro ball at times. Willoughby also throws a high-spin slider that feels a tweak away from granting him a real professional mix. These same ingredients earned a few prep righties selections inside the top-100 in the past few years.

(4/18/2026)