Which 2026 Draft picks will reach the Majors quickest?

Now that the 2026 Draft is in the books, the question becomes: When will we see these players in the big leagues?

Timelines to the Majors can vary. No one from the 2025 class has reached The Show yet, but six players from the 2024 Draft debuted there before the first anniversary of their selection.

On the latest episode of the MLB Pipeline Podcast, Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo alternated picking four recent draftees whom they thought would be the fastest to the Majors. After all, what's more fitting than a draft of a Draft?

Cole Carlon, LHP, Blue Jays
Pick: No. 39 overall (Draft No. 26)

The skinny: The Arizona native was the second-ranked college lefty in the class thanks to a double-plus slider and his workhorse 6-foot-5 frame. Carlon only transitioned to starting this spring but had an excellent junior season.

Mayo: "He will be developed as a starter, there's no doubt in my mind, but I expect the Blue Jays to be able to hit the reset. This, after all, was a team that was inches away from winning the World Series last year. His 70-grade slider may be the best slider in the entire class. It's an 87-88 mph short, hard, cutter-like slider. He throws it a lot. He can manipulate it. Let's say he's in Double-A in the second half of the year. They can shorten him up, and that slider alone will get big league hitters out out of the bullpen."

Jackson Flora, RHP, Giants
Pick: No. 4 overall (Draft No. 4)

The skinny: Flora is the latest potential ace out of UC Santa Barbara, following former teammate Tyler Bremner, who went second overall last year. At 6-foot-5 with impressive control and a fastball that touches triple digits, Flora is the top pitching prospect in the 2026 class.

Callis: "He's got the complete package. You've got an overwhelming fastball that he commands well. He's got a slider and a recently added kick-change that missed bats when guys try to sit on the heater. He throws plenty of strikes. He's got a durable build. The Giants need pitching."

Roch Cholowsky, SS, White Sox
Pick: No. 1 overall (Draft No. 2)

The skinny: Cholowsky is the top college shortstop prospect in more than two decades thanks to plus-or-better tools across the board, save for 45-grade speed. The right-handed hitter has a keen eye at the plate with many avenues to success in the big leagues.

Mayo: "There might be the possibility that he makes an appearance in the Arizona Fall League, which would be exciting for all of us. That would put him on a path to start the year in Double-A. I don't think he's up by late April, but he could be up by June. He's the one guy on this list that I could see being pre-All-Star break. Now if I had to pick a date, I probably would still pick the second half to err on the side of caution, but I do think that the path is there for him to get to Chicago ahead of the All-Star break."

Drew Burress, OF, Athletics
Pick: No. 8 overall (Draft No. 7)

The skinny: Burress burst onto the scene at Georgia Tech by homering nine times in his first seven games and has continued producing at a high level. The center fielder can tap into impressive power from an open stance and has a disciplined approach.

Callis: "Drew Burress' flaw, as it were, is that he's 5-foot-9 and hits right-handed -- he's not bigger and hits left-handed. But in terms of tools, they're solid-to-plus across the board. I just think this guy is going to hit the ground running in the Minors, and I'm not saying he has Nick Kurtz's bat, but Jacob Wilson got to the big leagues very quickly. Nick Kurtz got to the big leagues very quickly. I don't think they're going to be very afraid to get Drew Burress to the big leagues very quickly either if his bat proves that it's ready."

Cal Randall, RHP, Cardinals
Pick: No. 146 overall (Draft No. 218)

The skinny: Randall found plenty of success as a reliever at UCLA thanks to a dominant fastball that played up because of his low release and extension that creates interesting angles. He has a little-used slider-cutter hybrid as well but throws his heater 89 percent of the time -- with a 36 percent whiff rate.

Mayo: "Randall is really interesting because he is all fastball. It sits 97 mph. It flirts with triple digits. He's obviously going to have to find a more consistently effective secondary pitch, and he's going to have to throw a few more strikes, but that fastball alone is a ticket to a fast track. Maybe you start him in Double-A, and then if he's dominating, you do not waste any time, and I think could very much see him impacting the Cardinals' bullpen next year."

Grady Emerson, SS, Rays
Pick: No. 2 overall (Draft No. 1)

The skinny: Konnor Griffin, the top high schooler drafted in 2024, made his MLB debut after just 127 Minor League games. Could Emerson, the first prep player taken in 2026, move that quickly? The Texas native has a 65-grade hit tool from the left side and virtually no flaws in his game.

Callis: "I do think when you have an elite-talent high school player, those guys can move very quickly. I think he's the best hitter in the entire Draft. I think he's an advanced defender. I think there's going to be power, there's gonna be speed. I just think the guys who are potential superstars move at their own timetable. He'd probably be more early 2028, but I do think he's that kind of talent who could just come out, tear up pro ball and really push the envelope as to when the Rays bring him to the big leagues."

• Subscribe to the MLB Pipeline Newsletter

Jarren Advincula, 2B, Angels
Pick: No. 45 overall (Draft No. 48)

The skinny: The Angels have earned a reputation for moving their prospects quickly, and first-rounder Jared Grindlinger -- a two-way prep prospect who's one of the youngest players in the Draft -- is a bit far away. But Advincula is an advanced college bat who won the Cape Cod League batting title after his freshman year at California and went on to hit .434 as a junior at Georgia Tech.

Mayo: "He's one of the best contact hitters in the entire class. There's not a ton of impact, but he never strikes out. He's got an incredible approach at the plate, there's enough pop for him to not have the bat knocked out of his hand, so I think it's going to transfer. He showed he can hit with wood, so I think he's going to hit, and he can run."

Taylor Rabe, RHP, Royals
Pick: No. 30 overall (Draft No. 40)

The skinny: Rabe is an athletic 6-foot-5 righty with one of the best fastballs in his class. Another point in his favor is his control, as he ranked fourth in NCAA Division I with a 7.0 K/BB ratio. The South Carolina native worked back from 2024 Tommy John surgery, and after beginning the season as a piggyback starter, developed into the No. 1 starter on a Mississippi team that made it to the Men's College World Series.

Callis: "The Royals really need pitching. So when he's ready, he's going to get the opportunity. He had some of the best combination of stuff and strikes in all of college baseball. He's up to 100 [mph] with really good command of his fastball. His slider and cutter came on late in the year. So I think this is a perfect convergence of talent and opportunity in Kansas City for Taylor Rabe."