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Today we release a late summer update to the 2026 class, our fourth and final update of the year. This update has the class expanding from the Top 225 to the Top 250. While there will be two other small updates to this class before they move on to their next destinations, this is the most movement that the Class of 2026 will see for their remaining months in high school. Below we highlight a few players that our staff had an opportunity to gather evaluations on this spring during the high school season.

2026 Rankings Stories:

Rankings Risers

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+ Will Yow - SS - St. Anne's Belfield - Virginia

There may not be a bigger riser up draft boards and up the national rankings more so than Will Yow. The Future Games alum and now Virginia commit has taken massive jumps across the board. He has always had a near elite run tool, but it has only gotten better, and the other tools to go with it have continued to improve. Legitimate sub 6.2-6.3 runner consistently what has turned in multiple sub 6.2's late summer and this fall on a number of occasions, most notably his 6.15 at the Procase in August. He moved from #19 to #6 in the last update and now moves from #6 to #2 in this update. In addition to his continued ascent in the Virginia/DC rankings, he continues to soar up the national ranks, now settling inside the Top 100. His combination of physical size, present tools, in-game production that he showed this fall, positional versatility and potential value, and the projection he has remaining make him one of the more intriguing follows entering the spring than there has been in a few years.

Our staff had a chance to see James a fair bit at the 17U National Championships. Lean athlete with twitchy strength in his actions. The swing is shorter on the backside and creates good length through the zone out front. It is above average bat and hand speed with some doubles power from gap to gap and has a little more from pull side gap to the line. Easy mover than can find a different gear when he wants. Has shown some feel for bat to ball, while the quality of contact still has some jumps to make. Defensively it is well above average arm strength and has the footspeed and range to stay at short. Off platform throws come naturally and tends to make the hard plays look easy. Similar to Yow, James has the tools and athleticism to stay there, but also has a chance to make an impact at other defensive positions as well. The now UVA commit may be the best athlete in this VA/DC class, as well as one of the best athletes in the 2026 class as a whole.

‘26 Bryant James
- @UVABaseball // @_thedirtbags

2/3 on the day. Worked into a full count in 2nd AB and laced an elevated FB down the line for a 2B. Collected a single to shallow CF in final AB.@ksallday19 @PrepBaseballVA | #17uNat25 pic.twitter.com/QkiEaeyfMJ

— Cole Ledger (@LedgerPBR) July 19, 2025

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+ Bryce Stanford - RHP - Briar Woods HS - Longwood

The Longwood commit is flying up the rankings, moving from unranked to #63, to now inside the Top 50. A huge credit to the work and development of his ability on the mound. From last spring sitting in the low 80's when we saw him to now sitting in the upper 80's and touching 89-90, there may not be an arm in this class that has made a bigger jump in their overall tools than Stanford. His pitchability, strike throwing, and movement patterns were always at the forefront of Stanford's profile, but the stuff was always a touch light. The spin absolutely plays and the 5-7 mph jump have really made him a different type of arm on the mound. He could very well be one of the best high school arms in the state this spring.

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+ Evan Denton - RHP - Abingdon HS

While we have followed Denton's development and abilities at a bit of a distance, this fall we had a chance to see the now Abindgon arm up close and personal. Denton was at the Mid-Atlantic State Games and showcased some of his arm talent on the mound. The fastball sat mostly mid-upper 80's and got up the 90.4 mph. It is a ride and run fastball that had up to 22.2" IVB and averaged 19" IVB, while getting up to 17" HM. It was a slow build-up delivery, lower hand break, longer arm action, and throws from a slightly higher than three-quarter slot. There is plenty of arm speed while maintaining fairly normal effort. Control over command profile and shows two secondary pitches, both with average feel for the zone. The physical makeup to go along with the arm speed and raw arm talent makes him an interesting case for a future projection arm, especially when it comes to the potential for future velo.