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The Orioles know how to draft.
The 2019 class, the first in the Mike Elias era, produced a Rookie of the Year Award winner and a runner-up with a combined 36.5 bWAR in their careers, plus some key trade pieces. In 2020, they found another All-Star. The 2021 draft brought another Rookie of the Year runner-up and 2022 produced the highest-ranked prospect in baseball. You get the point.
A down 2025 at the big league level was, of course, disappointing, but it did bring some benefits. At the trade deadline, Baltimore was able to reload a farm system that had been running thinner than usual due to promotions and trades. Tonight, the O’s reaped another reward: a high draft pick.
Entering the evening, Baltimore had the fourth-best odds at landing the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft. All non-playoff teams are eligible for the Draft Lottery, and three teams with a worse winning percentage than the Orioles were ineligible based on past drafts. The O’s benefited.
So, at pick No. 7, Baltimore has another golden opportunity to add to their impressive draft record. Here’s a quick rundown of some of the (very early) top players in next year’s draft class.
Shortstops, shortstops and more shortstops
We’re still months away from getting a true picture of what the 2026 draft class will shape up to be. But as we currently stand, the four top prospects in the class, according to MLB Pipeline, are all shortstops.
Roch (there’s another one?) Cholowsky is the leader in the clubhouse after mashing 23 home runs to go along with his .353 batting average during his sophomore season at UCLA. Perhaps most impressive, though, is the fact that he has struck out just 64 times in his 118 college games. That’s a rare combination of plate approach and power at a premium position.
Grady Emerson and Jacob Lombard both hail from the high school ranks. Pipeline notes that it’s hard to find a flaw in Emerson’s game, and his grades would reflect that, as he earns a 55 or better on each tool’s 20-80 grading scale. Lombard is the younger brother of Yankees prospect George Lombard Jr. and, you guessed it, the son of former big leaguer George Lombard.
Justin Lebron is the final member of the quartet and has long been viewed as the potential No. 1 overall pick. The Alabama product has a plus grade just about everywhere, hitting for average and power, stealing bases, and playing solid defense for the Crimson Tide.
The outfielders
Only time will tell how this draft class will shake out, but as we currently stand, it seems like one tailor-made for the Orioles. After the shortstops take up the top-four spots in the rankings, you’ll find a duo of outfielders up next.
Drew Burress hit the ground running at Georgia Tech to say the least, mashing nine home runs in his first eight college games. Through two years, that home run total is all the way up to 44, and his .357 batting average is just as impressive. At 5-foot-9, there are some questions about his long-term projection, but he still grades well across the board, according to Pipeline.
Not to be outdone, Derek Curiel led the national champion LSU Tigers in batting average in his freshman season and hit .390 during the College World Series. What does the draft-eligible sophomore have in store for year two?
A trio of pitchers do take up spots seven to nine in Pipeline’s rankings, but if you’re a recent history buff, you’d know a pattern when you see one. Interestingly, though, recent O’s pick Caden Bodine’s batterymate, Cameron Flukey, might just be the best college arm in the class.
If all goes according to plan, the Orioles could find themselves at the midway point of the 2026 season competing for a playoff spot and deciding who to take with the No. 7 pick in the draft. There are worse scenarios.
