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MLB Draft Buzz: Unprecedented Southpaws

May 6, 2026
Shooter Hunt
Vice President, Scouting

In the modern Major League Baseball draft, scarcity and projection often drive value, but few demographics blend both quite like the high school left-handed pitcher. Left-handed starting pitching continues to carry outsized importance at the Major League level, both in terms of on-field value and financial investment. Frontline southpaws are consistently among the game’s most impactful arms by WAR, with the ability to neutralize left-handed power and disrupt lineup balance over the course of a season. That impact translates directly to the market, where top left-handed starters routinely command some of the largest contracts and annual salaries among pitchers.

That dynamic has played out clearly in recent drafts. Even in years where the prep pitching demographic fluctuates in perceived strength, clubs have not hesitated to invest heavily in teenage lefties with upside. Seven-figure bonuses have remained steady, and in some cases surged, reflecting both the rarity and the ceiling associated with the profile.

Seven-Figure Bonuses to Prep LHPs (Last Five Drafts)

Draft Year

Number of $1M+ Bonuses

2021

4

2022

5

2023

3

2024

7

2025

5

The jump in 2024, followed by another strong year in 2025, points to a growing level of comfort across the industry when it comes to investing in prep left handers, even with the known risk tied to pitching development. This is less about adding inventory to a system and more about targeting potential impact arms that are not easily found through other avenues.

If early looks prove accurate, this year’s group could push things even further. Prep Baseball’s DraftHQ has evaluated an unprecedented number of top tier left-handers in this class including enough that the first round might ultimately be a record setting event. With that level of demand focused on a limited pool, the bonus landscape has a chance to move with it and reach a new high point for amateur left handers.

For front offices, the equation holds steady. High school left handed pitching carries risk and cost, but it remains one of the most desirable bets on the board.

Below, a look at each of the southpaws featured in the Top 100 prospects in the class (there are at least 10 more that will garner seven-figure value) along with a full piece on the prospect with the biggest buzz in the class: Brody Bumila

  • LHP Carson Bolemon (SC, Wake Forest)
  • LHP Gio Rojas (FL, Miami)
  • LHP Brody Bumila (MA, Texas)
  • LHP Sean Duncan (CAN, Vanderbilt)
  • LHP Jared Grindlinger (CA, Tennessee)
  • LHP Logan Schmidt (CA, LSU)
  • LHP Bo Holloway (TN, Vanderbilt)
  • LHP Lucas Nawrocki (TX, LSU)
  • LHP Spencer Evans (FL, LSU)

(all Top 100 prep prospects)

As Massachusetts natives RHP Cam Schlittler, an ascending future MLB ace for the Yankees, and Thomas White, one of baseball’s brightest young left-handed talents, continue to validate New England’s growing imprint on the mound, the conversation has widened. What was once an occasional storyline has turned into something closer to expectation: New England is not just producing “fun arms”, but rather impact, frontline talents.


Enter 2026 LHP Brody Bumila (Bishop Feehan HS, MA), a Texas recruit, whose meteoric spring rise after a lost summer, has had the scouting community frequenting Logan Airport in Boston with abundant regularity.

 Bumila is all of 6-foot-9, 245 pounds, with an athletically strong look that holds present physicality while still displaying bountiful signs of future development. Imposing with long limbs, few pitchers in recent memory show the ability to replicate movement patterns like the big southpaw, and his graceful confidence, in such, was on full display during this particular look on a cloudy, breezy, damp, and all-around gritty Saturday afternoon start that comes on the heels of prom night at Bishop Feehan High School.

 A carnival atmosphere has followed Bumila all spring as the anticipation for his starts on the diamond was bubbling over after an outrageously raucous basketball state championship run that is sure to be buzzed about in New England for decades to come. Most admirably, Bumila was stoic in his preparation in front of scouts and on-lookers, presenting a low-pulse, tunnel-vision vibe that included an effortless long toss preparation (he flashed pogo-stick-like jumping ability at one point to snare a high throw) with a mature, detail-oriented look. In short, he was more than comfortable in the spotlight.

 In a game that he also would hit two home runs, the Texas commit struck out 10 in five innings, allowing a dribbled leadoff single as the lone hit (he hit two batters), working almost exclusively at 95-97 while routinely touching 98-99 (2800+ rpm) on a sizzling fastball that featured above average command with impeccable intent to drive to glove side from a vicious, low ¾ slot. Low-pulsed with a quiet air of innate confidence, the elasticity of the all-stretch delivery provided for a loose arm stroke that whipped out effortless velocity, and a surprisingly sure development of even more to come. The fastball, sizzling to the bottom of the zone, played as a plus-pitch, generating double-digit in zone misses (14 whiffs overall). He countered with the makings of a plus changeup that tumbled with swing-and-miss effect to the arm side, and garnered gasps from the more than 50 scouts in attendance when thrown at 88 mph for a strikeout early in the outing. A true weapon, there was confidence in the pitch which helped provide more clarity as to his ability to add and subtract (the fastball varied as he almost appeared to save energy down in the order).


 The breaking ball, which featured varying shape at 74-79+, was less natural out of the hand. Struggling to replicate shape and produce spin, Bumila still found the strike zone and exhibited some feel for pitching while trying to bury late. “Lack of spin” has been a focal point for the scouting community this spring, but more along the lines of where the big southpaw situated in the first round, where he seems to have cemented himself. An above average breaking ball would have him easily in the Top 10 if not higher. Having said this, the athleticism and aptitude that he currently displays, makes it easier to envision future advancements. Likely under 100 total innings in his entire high school career, grip and pitch design are likely to provide a path to, at least, an average offering, especially if he begins to throw it harder. When considering what is a softer front side in the delivery, there are clear opportunities for quick jumps.

 Rarely does a performance outpace the hype that surrounds the build up, but Bumila was able to do just that, and this look provided a certainty to his first round selection. How high? That will be predicated on the belief of the organization in player development and the ceiling set on his professional value. However, there is a pervading “unicorn” presence to the Massachusetts native that is sure to keep scouting directors up in the nights leading up to the Draft as the ability to hit on a frontline left-hander, even when predicated on prospective breakthroughs, holds intrinsic value.

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