2026 MLB Draft

[cardsfantx]

At #114, the cards pick Dee kennedy

[phins]

And now they got Dee Kennedy!

Holy [expletive]. I love this draft!

[cardsfantx]

Dee Kennedy this round would fit nicely.

Got him a round later!

[phins]

MLB Draft is a puzzle. Have to see the money pieces all fit together.

They got a bunch of names I'd have wanted rounds higher so overall I love this.

[cardsfantx]

And now they got Dee Kennedy!

Holy [expletive]. I love this draft!

Fangraphs had him as a 2nd round talent at 57

MLB had him at 79

And we picked him at 114

[heyzeus]

This is a must read thread. Thanks y’all. What’s Kennedy’s profile?

[phins]

This is a must read thread. Thanks y’all. What’s Kennedy’s profile?

A guy who does everything well, but nothing elite. He's short, but put together. Has a nice arm, good speed, and is a pull and lift hitter. He can absolutely be an above average SS at the big league level and could be a good 3B'man or 2B'man.

Was a former Texas player who transferred to Kansas State and was leading my WAR model for most of the year (he didn't win the WAR title because his team didn't get to play as many extra games as Daniel Jackson and Georgia etc.).

He didn't hit on the Cape and swings and misses breaking balls a ton. His underlying data isn't as good as his performance in that respect, but this is a 2nd round player all day to my eyes and I'm really excited with getting him here.

[phins]

I swear on the heavens above I had not seen this until after the draft was over. FanGraphs had Kennedy going 38th in their mock draft. Which, they say, is from "dope" from within the industry.

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/2026-mock-d ... he-day-of/

[phins]

Another from FanGraphs where I am absolutely aligned:

miratutti: How far off is Condon’s swing from Emerson’s? As far as HS LHB are concerned, are they close to being 1A and 1B?
1:10
Eric A Longenhagen: It’s just about how much juice there is, Emerson has some and Condon is more vanilla.

[cardsfantx]

From ESPNs winners of the draft so far…

Who is the one player you'd like to plant your flag in as the biggest steal of this draft?

I've been stumping for Trevor Condon for almost a year as a very high floor and high probability big leaguer from the high school class. He also fits in a similar category as a previous "plant my flag" guy from the 2023 draft: Kevin McGonigle.

I wouldn't expect that outcome if I were a Cardinals fan, but both players were plus hitters with real defensive value but shorter stature; Condon is a plus runner, intense personality, has strong pull/lift traits in his swing already, and is a strong center field defender. He could just be a low-end starter but this sort of player is often underrated at this stage. The list of shorter position players who blew past their projections to make All-Star teams is quite long now.