Here are the top tools in the 2026 Draft class

The top-rated talent in the 2026 Draft has the best all-around tools, and that's no coincidence.

Based on MLB Pipeline's scouting grades on the Draft Top 250 Prospects list, evaluated on the 20-80 scouting scale where 50 represents big league average, Texas high school shortstop Grady Emerson's five tools add up to 295. He's a well above-average hitter with plus defense and arm strength to go with solid power and speed. Alabama shortstop Justin Lebron can match that total, though he comes with some questions about his hitting ability that will knock him down a bit in the Draft.

It's also not an accident that the consensus top mound prospect also has the best combination of three pitches and control based on our grades. UC Santa Barbara right-hander Jackson Flora is the only arm whose total reaches 235, the product of a plus-plus fastball to go with a solid slider, changeup and strike-throwing.

Below, we identify the best individual tools in the 2026 Draft crop. The standouts include the two strongest contenders for the No. 1 overall pick (Emerson and UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky), another position player who should go in the top 10 (Mississippi prep outfielder Eric Booth Jr.) and a trio of pitchers who could sneak into the late first round (Arizona State left-hander Cole Carlon, Southern California southpaw Mason Edwards and Mississippi right-hander Taylor Rabe).

Best hitter: Grady Emerson, SS, Fort Worth (Texas) Christian HS (65 grade)
If the White Sox opt for Emerson over Cholowsky with the top choice, hitting ability could be the deciding factor. Emerson pairs a beautiful left-handed stroke with advanced swing decisions and repeatedly barrels balls to all fields. Gatorade's national high school baseball player of the year, he batted .508/.634/.915 as a senior and struck out just five times in 161 plate appearances.

Also in the discussion: Jarren Advincula, 2B, Georgia Tech; Roch Cholowsky, SS, UCLA; Chris Hacopian, 2B, Texas A&M.

Best power: Myles Bailey, 1B, Florida State (65 grade)
The 6-foot-4, 255-pound Bailey exudes power at the plate, and he has so much bat speed and strength that he can mishit balls and still drive them out of the park. He generated the best exit velocities in college baseball this spring as a sophomore and slashed .363/.582/.913 with 13 homers in 26 games before a severe right ankle injury ended his season.

Also in the discussion: Daniel Jackson, C, Georgia; Ace Reese, 3B, Mississippi State; Carson Tinney, C, Texas.

Best high school power: Dominic Santarelli, 1B, St. Joseph Academy, Kenosha, Wis.

Fastest runner: Eric Booth Jr., OF, Oak Grove HS, Hattiesburg, Miss. (70 grade)
Eric Booth Sr. spurned the Blue Jays as a 34th-round pick in 1993 and became a record-setting kick returner at Southern Mississippi. His son is the fastest player in the 2026 Draft, running the quickest 60-yard dash (6.33 seconds) at the East Coast Pro showcase last August and regularly getting from the left side of the plate to first base in little more than four seconds.

Also in the discussion: Justin Lebron, SS, Alabama; Lucas Moore, OF, Louisville; Luke Williams, SS, Franklin Regional HS, Murrysville, Pa.

Strongest arm: Cole Koeninger, RHP/SS, Keller (Texas) HS (65 grade)
A legitimate two-way prospect, Koeninger projects better as a starting pitcher than a power-hitting shortstop for most clubs. But his arm stands out in either role, producing fastballs that reach 97 mph on the mound and clocking throws as hard as 95 mph across the infield.

Also in the discussion: Will Brick, C, Christian Brothers University HS, Memphis, Tenn.; Ryder Helfrick, C, Arkansas; Rocco Maniscalco, SS, Oxford (Ala.) HS.

Best defender: Roch Cholowsky, SS, UCLA (65 grade)
Though Cholowsky is an advanced hitter with 30-homer upside and plus arm strength, his best pure tool is his defense. He's not the fastest shortstop but has a quick first step and smooth actions that give him plenty of range to both sides, and he has the arm, athleticism and body control to execute any throw from any angle.

Also in the discussion: Ty Head, OF, North Carolina State; Ryder Helfrick, C, Arkansas; Aiden Ruiz, SS, The Stony Brook (N.Y.) School.

Best fastball: Carson Wiggins, RHP, Arkansas (80 grade)
Wiggins missed the entire 2026 season recovering from internal brace surgery, but scouts still remember his fastball fondly. He averaged 98.7 mph and touched 102 with late hop and carry on his heater as a freshman, and he reached triple digits in bullpen workouts this spring.

Also in the discussion: Brody Bumila, LHP, Bishop Feehan HS, Attleboro, Mass.; Thomas Burns, RHP, Texas; Cal Randall, RHP, UCLA.

Best curveball: Mason Edwards, LHP, Southern California (60 grade)
Edwards led NCAA Division I with 167 strikeouts -- 32 more than the second-place finisher -- and a 43 percent K rate, in large part thanks to a low-80s spike curveball he delivers from a high arm slot. Opponents went 10-for-127 (.079) with nary an extra-base hit and 87 strikeouts against his bender.

Also in the discussion: Carson Bolemon, LHP, Southside Christian HS, Simpsonville, S.C.; Julian Garcia, RHP, St. John Bosco HS, Bellflower, Calif.; Tegan Kuhns, RHP, Tennessee.

Best slider: Cole Carlon, LHP, Arizona State (70 grade)
No Division I pitcher racked up more strikeouts with an individual offering than the 106 Carlon did with a wicked mid-80s slider that tops out at 90 mph. He has quality feel for his tight slide piece and can use it to get misses in the strike zone and feeble chases off the plate.

Also in the discussion: Lucas Nawrocki, LHP, Aledo (Texas) HS; Liam Peterson, RHP, Florida; Carson Wiggins, RHP, Arkansas.

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Best changeup: Wes Mendes, LHP, Florida State (60 grade)
Mendes' changeup features pedestrian velocity, sitting around 80 mph, but its huge fade neutralizes right-handers and pairs well with a low-90s fastball with nice armside run. Hitters went just 6-for-65 (.108) with 32 strikeouts against his cambio this spring.

Also in the discussion: Trey Beard, LHP, Florida State; Jared Grindlinger, LHP/OF, Huntington Beach (Calif.) HS; Aidan Knaak, RHP, Clemson.

Best specialty pitch: Joseph Contreras, RHP, Blessed Trinity HS, Roswell, Ga. (forkball) (60 grade)
After José Contreras parlayed his forkball into a World Series ring and an All-Star Game berth, he taught his signature pitch to his son. Joseph ranks as Georgia's best high school pitching prospect this year and though he can reach 98 mph with his four-seam fastball, his top weapon is a 77-81 mph forkball that dies at the plate.

Also in the discussion: Hunter Dietz, LHP, Arkansas (cutter); Taylor Rabe, RHP, Mississippi (cutter), Cade Townsend, RHP, Mississippi (cutter).

Best control: Taylor Rabe, RHP, Mississippi (60 grade)
Rabe began this season as a piggyback reliever and ended it as the No. 1 starter on a College World Series club, ranking fourth in NCAA Division I with a 7.0 K/BB ratio while compiling a 5 percent walk rate and throwing 68 percent of his pitches for strikes. He pounds the zone with his three best pitches: a mid-90s fastball that climbs up to 100 mph, an upper-80s cutter and a mid-80s slider.

Also in the discussion: Ben Blair, RHP, Liberty; Carson Bolemon, LHP, Southside Christian HS, Simpsonville, S.C.; Logan Reddemann, RHP, UCLA.