The 2026 MLB Draft in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is scheduled to begin at 12:00 p.m. CDT on July 11 and last through July 12. Round 1 of the Draft will be streamed on NBC and Peacock, and the remainder will air on MLB Network and be streamed on MLB.com and Peacock.
The Twins have the third overall pick in the draft. There's a crop of four players who stand out from the rest of the pack, meaning Minnesota will most likely pick whoever is available from that group.
Power ranking top 4 candidates for the Twins' 2026 MLB Draft first-round pick
1) SS Roch Cholowsky - UCLA
It had seemed Cholowsky would undoubtedly go No. 1 in the draft to the Chicago White Sox, but recent buzz suggests he could fall to the Twins. If that happens, Minnesota should be ecstatic. Cholowsky, MLB Pipeline's No. 1 draft prospect, hit .329/.448/.624 with 52 home runs and 167 RBI in 178 games across three collegiate seasons. In addition to his strong offensive profile, Cholowsky is a plus defender with a decent arm.
2) C Vahn Lackey - Georgia Tech
Most mock drafts have the Twins selecting Lackey, who broke out with a .397/.519/.772 (170 wRC+) slash line and 20 homers this past season. However, some speculate the athletic catcher could be drafted by the White Sox or Tampa Bay Rays before the Twins have the chance to select him. He's an agile catcher with a strong, accurate arm. With Ryan Jeffers slated to be a free agent at the end of this season, Lackey could be the Twins' catcher of the future.
3) SS Grady Emerson - Fort Worth Christian HS (TX)
While it's more difficult to predict how high schoolers will pan out as opposed to college players, Emerson probably has the most upside of anyone in this draft. In 28 games during his final high school season, Emerson hit an outstanding .532/.648/1.013 with seven home runs, 50 RBI and 31 stolen bases. MLB Pipeline says he's a strong defender and a "lock" to stay at shortstop.
4) RHP Jackson Flora - UC Santa Barbara
Flora isn't viewed in the same light as the three aforementioned players, but he still could go to the Twins if the club wants a pitcher. The 6-foot-5 right-hander's fastball sits in the 96-97 mph range and frequently reaches triple digits, "with good shape, carry and armside ride,"Â per MLB Pipeline. He complements his fastball with a 78-81 mph sweeper with plenty of horizontal depth, an 86-89 mph gyro-like slider and a hard changeup with "downer splitter depth." He posted a remarkable 1.06 ERA with a 33.3% strikeout rate, 8.0% walk rate and .153 opponent batting average in 102 innings this past season.
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