The Chicago White Sox are on the clock. On Tuesday, MLB held its annual Draft Lottery, and the White Sox earned the first pick in the 2026 Draft. Chicago entered the Draft Lottery with the best odds of earning the No. 1 pick with a 27.73% chance. It is the MLB team’s first No. 1 pick since 1977 when it selected Harold Baines.
The top 6 teams in the 2026 MLB Draft will be the White Sox, Tampa Bay Rays, Minnesota Twins, San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Kansas City Royals. At the end of the event, the Giants had the most significant leap from No. 12 to No. 4 overall. The biggest drop was the New York Mets, who fell to No. 27 overall.
The MLB-worst Colorado Rockies were not eligible for the No. 1 pick because they received lottery picks in the last two drafts. Colorado will draft at the No. 10 overall. The Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Angels were not eligible because they give rather than receive revenue-sharing dollars. Therefore, they cannot receive a lottery pick in consecutive years.
Washington will draft at No. 11, while Los Angeles picks at No. 12 overall. The Nationals won the lottery for the 2025 MLB Draft and selected high school shortstop Eli Willits with the No. 1 overall pick. Now, the White Sox have an opportunity at a franchise-changing selection in 2026.
