Single Post

Three weeks into the 2026 college baseball season, and no pre-draft rankings yet, Hobbs!? Again, my mother, calling down to the basement from the kitchen as I watch a third rerun of Breaking Bad Season 3, Episode 12 (Half Measures) while eating a fourth meatball Hot Pocket. As I burn my chin on steamy marinara, I turn my visage to my laptop screen and realize I have been finished for six weeks but forgot to hit send, and now have compiled seven missed text messages from Truss. So, away we go, unveiling the top-five college prospects for the 2026 MLB Draft, without bias, and without groupthink, to give you an idea of who you really should be looking at for first-year player drafts despite all the hullabaloo out there.

1. Roch Cholowsky, SS, UCLA

As the consensus No. 1 pick in the upcoming draft, Cholowsky is set to become the first collegiate shortstop to go 1:1 since Dansby Swanson came out of Vanderbilt in 2015. Hive mind nearly led me to stray from consensus here, but Cholowsky has already produced one major superstar moment this season with a game-tying, two-run shot in the ninth vs. No. 4 Mississippi State, and is slashing .341/.448/.909 on the season. The 6-foot-2 junior has already popped seven homers and four doubles while drawing as many walks (6) as strikeouts (6), and comes equipped with plus hit and in-game pop tools on top of a 60-grade arm and glove. He may never swipe 20-25 bags, but should provide enough legs to be the top collegiate choice in first-year player drafts. However, don’t let the ‘perts convince you there’s a generational gap here at No. 1 and No. 2, because the next name is worthy of the top slot as well.

2. Jackson Flora, RHP, UC Santa Barbara

If someone is to put a college player other than Cholowsky at No. 1 right now, it has to be Flora and his plus-plus heater. Also sporting an above-average breaking ball and change-piece, the 6-foot-5 righty has fanned 21 batters against four walks in 18.0 innings across his first three starts for a perfect 3-0 record, 1.00 ERA, .169 BAA. Flora has always been a solid college arm with ERAs of 3.60 and 3.83 in his first two seasons, but he is taking a major leap in year three in his second full campaign as a starter. Recently showcasing his full repertoire across 7.0 innings of one-run ball and 10 strikeouts vs. Utah, Flora filled up the zone with a 64% strike rate. Passing on Cholowsky is tough, but a pitching-needy dynasty team might want to seriously consider Flora. At the very least, it will make March-June in college baseball a fun watch.

3. Cameron Flukey, RHP, Coastal Carolina

The disclaimer on Flukey is that the Coastal ace is missing the first eight weeks of the 2026 season due to a stress reaction in his ribs. He remains at No. 3 due to the sheer fact that his injury is not arm-related, as there is no reason to believe the stress reaction stemmed from any type of overcompensation stemming from his throwing arm. When Flukey is on the hill, many scouts consider him to be the best arm in all of college baseball. After working to a 5.73 ERA and .242 BAA as a true freshman in 2024, the 6-foot-6 hurler broke out with an All-American performance as a sophomore last season: 7-2, 101.2 IP, 18 G, 17 GS, 3.19 ERA, .209 BAA, 24 BB, 118 K. He was dominant and shined on the biggest of stages, rising to the occasion as the Chanticleers made a run all the way through the College World Series Finals. Topping out at 98 MPH, Flukey’s 60-grade heater is paired with a plus deuce that he mixes in with an average slider and change. Don’t let his injury fluke ye’.

4. Aiden Robbins, OF, Texas

As the most surprising name on this list, Robbins sits at No. 21 on Baseball America’s top-100 college prospects for the 2026 MLB Draft and isn’t ranked at all in MLB Pipeline’s top 100. Playing last year at Seton Hall, Robbins hit .422/.537/.652 with six homers, 19 doubles, and 20 steals, and then bashed six homers in 101 at bats while slashing .307/.391/.545 in the Cape Cod League. Now at Texas, the 6-foot-2 outfielder is batting .404/.463/.787 with four long balls and three steals through 12 games, and has already hit for the cycle. He will rocket up draft boards if he continues to perform against SEC pitching come mid-March, and his past track record shows that is more likely than not.

5. Justin Lebron, SS, Alabama

Projecting as a true shortstop with a plus arm and glove, the biggest question about Lebron is how his in-game power projects with the wooden bat – especially as he sees consistently-better-located breaking balls for S&M outside of the zone. He got off to a torrid start last season, mashing the majority of his 18 homers in the first half of the campaign, but petered off at the end to conclude with a .314/.471/.824 batting line. That wasn’t good enough for SEC Player of the Year, but it has Lebron at No. 3 overall on MLB Pipeline’s draft board behind only Cholowsky and prepster Grady Emerson. He had just nine plate appearances in the Cape Cod League this past summer (.111/.111/.111) and is off to a .314/.471/.824 slash with eight homers already in 2026, so the ceiling is arguably louder than most prospects who find themselves at this spot.

Just Missed: Liam Peterson, RHP, Florida; Gavin Grahovac, INF, Texas A&M, Ace Reese, 3B, Mississippi State; Derek Curiel, OF, LSU; Drew Burress, OF, Georgia Tech