​Day One of the MLB Draft is Saturday, July 11, starting at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time (12:00 p.m. Central) and will air on NBC, Peacock, and MLB Network, covering rounds 1 through 4. Day Two, which takes place for rounds 5 through 20, will be streamed on MLB.com at 11:30 a.m. Eastern Time (10:30 a.m. Central). Don’t expect any names from today’s draft to appear on Day One, but here are the players I anticipate getting drafted sometime before the end of round 20. Note: This year’s draft coverage is going to be, in a word, weird. The schedule isn’t straightforward, so here’s the rundown as a guide: 1:00–2:30 p.m. – Picks 1–10 (NBC and Peacock). 2:30–4:30 p.m. – Picks 11–40 (MLB Network, MLB.com, MLB TV, MLB+. 4:30–7:45 p.m. – Picks 41–135 (MLB.com, MLB TV, MLB+). 11:30 a.m.–7:30 p.m. – MLB.com, MLB TV, MLB+. Now, onto the draft preview.
Note: As in the last two years, there are currently no Diamond Dores players I or any draft expert projects as first-rounders. This is a problem, though I’d be surprised if Brodie Johnston isn’t a first-round pick next year. It’s quite possible none of them go in the first round, though I could see Holcomb as a candidate in Round 4. For 2026, here are the notable numbers and a snapshot of the scouting view.
Holcomb posted a standout 2026 line: .352 batting average, .434 on-base percentage, and .621 slugging, with 19 doubles, 40 or so extra-base hits, 14 home runs, 54 RBI, and 6–8 stolen bases. That performance has made him a buzz-worthy name for many draft projections. MLB.com’s scouting report rates him with a Hit grade of 40, Power 55, Run 50, Arm 55, Field 50, and an Overall grade of 40. The report highlights his unusual combination of size and versatility: at 6-foot-5 and 245 pounds, he played five different positions and even starred as an all-state tight end at Foundation Academy in Winter Garden, Florida, before choosing to pursue baseball at Vanderbilt.
Holcomb’s physical tools are eye-catching: raw power well above average, capable of driving the ball to all fields from the right side. However, he can be overly aggressive at the plate, often chasing pitches and struggling to make consistent contact, especially against quality velocity. While a 30-home-run ceiling exists, his wood-bat performance in the Cape Cod League (two seasons) has been modest, with a slugging percentage around .388, suggesting he may need to refine his approach to maximize his power in the pros. His athleticism is solid, and he shows enough speed to run and occasionally steal bases. Defensively, he can play multiple positions, including corner outfield spots and center field, with average-to-above-average range. His arm strength projects well enough for third base, though his defense there can be a bit stiff, and first base remains a viable option in the future. The projection for him places him in the middle rounds, roughly around Rounds 5–10. On MLB.com’s Top 250, he’s listed around 226, with ESPN placing him higher, around 189.
The conventional expectation for a player with Holcomb’s combination of size, power potential, and 2026 numbers is a first-round discussion in many years, given the intensity of his tools. Still, there are questions—primarily swing-and-miss concerns that cropped up in 2024 and 2025, and questions about whether his contact quality can translate to consistent production against professional pitching. There’s also the question of how his defensive position will evolve at the major league level, given his size and the stiffness noted at third base. Those factors often push him toward the later portion of the top 100 or into the middle rounds, depending on how teams weigh the upside versus the contact risk. While a first-round pick is not out of the question, especially if he continues to show progress in the coming collegiate season, the safer expectation is that he’ll be a strong draft candidate somewhere in the mid-to-late rounds.