Rangers select top left-handed pitching prospect in Rojas at No. 16

Gio Rojas, MLB Pipeline’s No. 8 Draft prospect, is considered both the best high school pitcher and the best left-handed pitcher in this year’s class. MLB Pipeline ranked Rojas the second-best pitching prospect in the Draft, behind only UC Santa Barbara’s Jackson Flora. That's why the Rangers were happy to select Rojas at No. 16 in the 2026 MLB Draft on Saturday.

Rojas, who just turned 19 years old in June, touts a hoppy fastball that has plenty of life, not to mention velocity -- he can touch 98 mph. The high-spin heater pairs well with his low-80s sweeping slider, which generates plenty of horizontal movement thanks to his three-quarters arm slot. Both pitches grade out as a 60 on the traditional 20-80 scouting scale. Rojas’s third pitch, a changeup, profiles as an effective offering, too.

The 6-foot-4 lefty just capped off a sensational senior season at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. Rojas pitched to a 0.58 ERA across 72 innings with 124 strikeouts last year, fueling the program’s sixth consecutive Florida Class 7A State championship. He tossed 6 2/3 scoreless innings in a 12-strikeout gem in the decisive championship game.

That’s not the first time that Rojas has shined on a big stage. Last year, he steered Team USA to a gold medal at the WBSC U-18 World Cup. He did not allow a run across 11 innings of work, headlined by a complete game shutout in a Super Round victory over Korea. Rojas earned All-World Starting Pitcher honors for his performance.

While Rojas has an offer to play collegiately at the University of Miami, he’s expected to bypass that opportunity after becoming the first first-round Draft pick out of Marjory Stoneman Douglas HS. It is, though, a program with plenty of prominent baseball alumni, including longtime Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo (2007), Phillies pitcher Jesús Luzardo (2017) and Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony (2022).