​After establishing a standout career with Louisville’s baseball program, outfielder Zion Rose is poised to launch his professional journey as the 2026 MLB Draft gets underway today. He stands to become the 112th Cardinal to be selected under head coach Dan McDonnell, who has guided at least two players to be picked in 19 straight drafts. Following Louisville’s College World Series run last year, six Cardinals were chosen in the draft, underscoring the program’s continued track record of producing MLB-caliber talent.
Last year’s top draftee from Louisville was right-handed pitcher Patrick Forbes, who went to the Arizona Diamondbacks with the 29th overall selection. Forbes has since made five professional appearances, including four starts, logging a 2.45 ERA over 14⅔ innings pitched in his minor league career to date.
Here’s how to watch the 2026 MLB Draft unfold: The event begins with Rounds 1 through 4 at 1 p.m. today and resumes with Rounds 5 through 20 at 11:30 a.m. Saturday. The NFL-style broadcast schedule features NBC’s coverage of the first 10 picks, with streaming on Peacock. The next 30 selections will be shown on MLB Network and Peacock. Remaining coverage can be accessed on MLB.com and streamed via MLB.TV (subscription required) and MLB+.
Among local prospects highlighted by MLB Popster’s Top 250 list, Kentucky’s Tyler Bell appears at No. 10 as a shortstop, while Zion Rose is listed at No. 30 as an outfielder for Louisville. Other regional standouts include No. 166 Jaxon Jelkin, a right-handed pitcher from Kentucky, and No. 199 Grayson Willoughby, a right-handed pitcher from Trinity High School who is a Kentucky commit. Rounding out the local representation are No. 223 Lucas Moore, an outfielder from Louisville, and several players associated with major league organizations including the St. Louis Cardinals, Arizona Diamondbacks, Atlanta Braves, Houston Astros, San Francisco Giants, Kansas City Royals, Tampa Bay Rays, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Colorado Rockies.
For more local coverage, reach Louisville beat writer Alexis Cubit at acubit@gannett.com and follow her on X at @Alexis_Cubit. This article originally appeared in the Louisville Courier Journal with a focus on the timing and television details of MLB Draft 2026, along with Kentucky-area prospects.