Royals take Louisville OF Rose with No. 6 pick before RHP Rabe at No. 30

With the No. 6 pick in the 2026 MLB Draft, the Royals selected Louisville outfielder Zion Rose, a standout athlete with good contact skills at the plate who has a chance to be at least an above-average hitter.

Ranked as MLB Pipeline’s No. 30 Draft prospect, the 21-year-old Rose did nothing but hit across three years at Louisville. He finished his college career with a .358/.438/.585 slash line and a 1.023 OPS in 146 games.

The offensive profile is intriguing with upside even as an advanced college hitter, but selecting him sixth overall signaled the first surprise moment of the opening round of the MLB Draft on Saturday, especially because high school outfielder Eric Booth Jr., Georgia Tech outfielder Drew Burress and prep shortstop Jacob Lombard were all still on the board when the Royals were on the clock. Ahead of the Draft, they were linked especially with those two outfielders, who immediately went to the Orioles and A’s, respectively, right after Kansas City’s pick.

But Rose’s selection potentially sets the Royals up to sign him under the slot value of $7,746,100, which could allow them to go over-slot with their Competitive Balance A selection. Without knowing how the money will play out yet, that certainly seemed to be the case when they selected Mississippi right-hander Taylor Rabe at No. 30 overall.

A Draft-eligible sophomore, Rabe has a big fastball that averages 96 mph and tops out at 100 mph with lots of swing and miss. He’s ranked No. 40 overall by Pipeline because of that fastball, his ability to pound the strike zone and the fact that he pitched his way into the No. 1 starter spot for Ole Miss’ College World Series team this year. The 6-foot-5 Rabe struck out 105 batters this season compared to just 15 walks across 76 innings for the Rebels.

This isn’t the first time that Rose went through the Draft process and its corresponding rigors. He was a decorated catching prospect out of high school in 2023, having led IMG Academy in Florida to its first-ever undefeated season. As a high school player, Rose participated in several MLB Develops youth events, including the Elite Development Invitational (2018), Hank Aaron Invitational (2019, 2022), Dream Series (2020, 2023), Breakthrough Series (2019, 2022) and the High School All-American Game (2022).

That exposure and his talent had Rose ranked as the No. 144 prospect in the 2023 Draft class, but he went undrafted due to his unwavering commitment to Louisville.

Three years later, he is a vastly improved player.

For one, Rose embraced his natural athleticism by transitioning into a full-time outfielder; he has not spent time behind the plate since his freshman season. Last season, Rose shuffled between left and center field. Even at 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds, he’s a plus runner, which helps him in the outfield and on the bases.

He is a truly dynamic player, too, with a rare combination of gap-to-gap power and plus speed. Last season, Rose was one of six players in Division I to have at least 30 extra-base hits (Rose had 32) and 30 stolen bases (Rose had 31). He was well on his way to matching that total again in 2026, but ankle and hamstring injuries limited him to just 36 games. In turn, Rose settled for 20 extra-base hits -- and a .646 slugging percentage -- and 24 stolen bases. He was only caught three times.

Rose’s offensive profile also includes little swing and miss and plus bat-to-ball skills. In his three years at Louisville, he recorded as many walks as strikeouts (69).

Despite playing in just 36 games this past season because of injuries, Rose was named a second-team All-American by Perfect Game thanks in part to a .417 batting average and a 1.137 OPS.