Who may the Purple Sox choose at No. 20 within the 2026 MLB Draft?
Boston Purple Sox
Specialists have differing opinions on which place the Purple Sox may goal on Day 1 of the Draft.
The 2026 MLB Draft is slated to start Saturday, two days earlier than the start of the All-Star break.
The Boston Purple Sox personal the No. 20 total choose within the first spherical. They’ve 18 extra draft picks up their sleeve between the second and twentieth rounds.
It’s powerful to say precisely what place the Purple Sox will goal with their first choice. MLB’s minor league system is way deeper in comparison with different main skilled sports activities leagues, so groups may be versatile with their preliminary choice.
Amongst six remaining mock drafts carried out by consultants, there is no such thing as a consensus as to what place pool Boston may draw from within the first spherical.
Right here’s who consultants tabbed Boston deciding on with the twentieth total choose on the eve of the draft.
The Athletic’s Keith Regulation predicted Boston to pick out 21-year-old Chase Brunson at No. 20, an outfielder from TCU.
Brunson, a San Clemente, California, native, performed three seasons for the Horned Frogs. The Toronto Blue Jays drafted him within the 18th spherical of the 2023 draft, however he opted to move to varsity.
The 6-foot-3, 200-pound right-handed hitter was an All-Huge 12 Convention honorable point out this previous season. He batted .304 in 51 video games, hitting 10 residence runs and driving in 51 runs. He drew 33 walks and was hit by pitch a staggering 19 occasions. His 11 doubles and .462 on-base share led TCU.
Brunson additionally stole 13 bases in 18 makes an attempt his junior 12 months.
He appeared in 34 video games in middle subject and 16 in proper.
“He’s an aggressive swinger however makes constant contact and drills line drives from hole to hole,” per MLB.com’s scouting report on Brunson. “He interprets the power in his 6-foot-3, 200-pound body into high-end exit velocities and 20-homer energy that performs to all fields.
“Brunson has stable pace and can discover spots to steal an occasional base. He doesn’t have traditional centerfield quickness however his instincts assist him to trace down balls within the gaps. If he can’t stay up the center in professional ball, his stable arm power will match properly in proper subject.”
Bleacher Report’s Joel Reuter tabbed the Purple Sox to choose right-handed pitcher Taylor Rabe within the first spherical.
Rabe, 21, is a flamethrower. The 6-foot-5, 200-pound Ole Miss righty’s fastball can attain triple-digits.
“His fastball-heavy strategy may very well be a crimson flag for some groups, however Payton Tolle had the same reliance on his heater popping out of faculty and he rapidly developed into among the finest pitching prospects in baseball,” Reuter famous.
The Greenville, South Carolina, native underwent Tommy John surgical procedure in his freshman 12 months in 2024 and redshirted in 2025 earlier than making 11 begins and 6 aid appearances this previous season. Rabe helped lead his group to the Faculty World Sequence because the group’s No. 1 starter.
His 3.55 ERA was the Rebels’ greatest and seventh-best within the SEC. He struck out 105 batters and featured the group’s greatest opponent batting common (.221).
Rabe allowed 15 walks, ending the 12 months with a 7.00 strikeout-to-walk ratio, good for fourth-best within the nation.
“Rabe’s fastball elicits loads of chases, empty swings and groundballs because of its mixture of velocity (averaging 96 mph, topping out at 100), carry, command and deception,” MLB.com wrote of Rabe. “Not solely does he pound the strike zone, however he’s adept at working across the edges and infrequently leaves balls over the plate to get pounded. One of many hottest faculty pitchers down the stretch, he may turn out to be a mid-rotation starter.”
CBS Sports activities: Bo Lowrance, 3B, Christ Church Episcopal College (South Carolina)
The Purple Sox have been extensively linked to Bo Lowrance within the months main as much as the draft.
CBS Sports activities’ Mike Axisa predicted Boston to finally keep on with selecting the highschool third baseman.
Lowrance, 18, is dedicated to the College of Virginia, however a first-round choice would doubtless have him decommit.
Scouts who watched Lowrance, who stands at 6-foot-5, 200 kilos, in contrast him to Freddie Freeman, in response to ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel again in Might. McDaniel stated then that Boston was Lowrance’s “most rumored and almost definitely touchdown spot.”
“Lowrance has a clean left-handed stroke and a observe report of delivering in opposition to high quality competitors on the showcase circuit. He doesn’t attempt to do an excessive amount of on the plate, making constant contact to all fields regardless of naturally lengthy levers,” MLB.com wrote. “He doesn’t elevate and pull many pitches at this level, so he’ll want so as to add power and make some changes to comprehend his 25-homer potential.”
ESPN: Ace Reese, 3B, Mississippi State
Heading into the draft, McDaniel pivoted and tabbed the Purple Sox to pick out a distinct third baseman than Bo Lowrance.
As an alternative, he mocked Ace Reese out of Mississippi State to Boston.
Reese, 21, is a real left-handed energy hitter; he clobbered 24 residence runs as a junior this previous season and drove in 74 runners throughout 62 video games. He completed the 12 months with a .336 batting common, .432 on-base share, and .721 slugging share.
The 6-foot-4, 220-pound infielder additionally walked 41 occasions and struck out 63 occasions.
“He can homer to any a part of a ballpark and kilos each lefties and righties,” MLB.com wrote of Reese, who hails from Canton, Texas. “He can get a bit aggressive at occasions however is making progress along with his swing selections and a few evaluators suppose he may turn out to be a stable hitter with 25-30 homers per 12 months.”
MLB.com questioned Reese’s match at third base, nonetheless.
“He’s a below-average athlete with restricted quickness and vary, and his arm is merely common. He has improved since fielding .889 on the sizzling nook as a sophomore however nonetheless may wind up at first base or presumably left subject.”
FanGraphs: Cameron Flukey, RHP, Coastal Carolina
FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen predicted Boston will choose a right-handed pitcher, Cameron Flukey, with No. 20.
Flukey, 21, missed a part of this previous season because of a stress fracture in his rib, however finally began seven video games for Coastal Carolina as a junior.
In these begins, the 6-foot-6, 220-pound righty posted a 4.13 ERA and struck out 31 batters, holding opponents to a .247 batting common.
As a sophomore in 2025, Flukey, an Egg Harbor, New Jersey, native, dominated throughout 17 begins. He struck out 118 batters out of 414 confronted, owned a 3.19 ERA, and held hitters to a .209 common.
Longenhagen famous Flukey’s “strike-throwing observe report along with his fastball is a lot better (in comparison with different 2026 high RHP prospects), which is one thing final 12 months’s Sox picks have struggled with.”
MLB.com graded Flukey’s fastball a 60 on their 20-80 scale.
“Flukey maintains mid-90s velocity on his heater deep into video games and tops out at 98 mph with armside run and carry.”
“As a result of the 6-foot-6 Flukey has an extended arm path and better launch level than regular, it’s simpler for hitters to see his pitches — however to not hit them,” MLB.com added. “Regardless of his measurement, he has no problem repeating his supply and offering strikes. He may add extra power to his lanky body, which could imply extra energy for his already nasty stuff.”
Sports activities Illustrated’s Ryan Phillips tabbed Boston to draft outfielder Zion Rose out of Louisville with the twentieth choose.
Rose, 21, posted some ridiculous offensive numbers as a junior for the Cardinals this previous season. In 36 video games, he batted .417 with a .491 on-base share. He hit six residence runs, 13 doubles, and drove in 47 runs, amassing 60 complete hits.
The proper-handed hitter who stands at 6-foot-1, 200 kilos, additionally stole 24 bases in 2026. He captured 65 complete luggage in his three seasons at Louisville.
“Rose is a bodily right-handed hitter whose bat pace and power produce excessive exit velocities and energy that performs from foul pole to foul pole,” MLB.com wrote. “He has superior bat-to-ball expertise, although his tendency to chase pitches cuts into his stroll totals and results in extra groundball contact than is desired.”
Rose, who’s from Chicago, Illinois, is claimed to be a poor fielder. He dedicated eight complete errors on the collegiate degree from 2024-26.
“Regardless of his quickness, he’s at greatest a fringy defender in left subject with arm power to match,” MLB.com wrote.
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