Matt Johnson
The San Francisco Giants have the fourth overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft in a class where there are three clear blue-chip prospects. With all three of those targets expected to be off the board, there’s been a lot of speculation regarding who the Giants will draft in 2026.
ESPN‘s Kiley McDaniel wrote that the “buzz” around Major League Baseball is that San Francisco has outfielder Eric Booth Jr. rated above shortstop Jacob Lombard. With the fourth overall selection, as of now, McDaniel believes that Booth will be the pick.
That’s not the dream draft-day scenario president of baseball operations Buster Posey and the Giants front office are hoping for. Ideally, the team would love if one of UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky, Georgia Tech catcher Vahn Lackey or high school shortstop Grady Emerson falls to the No. 4 selection.
No one around the league realistically expects that to happen. With the first overall pick, the Chicago White Sox are deciding between Lackey, Emerson and Cholowsky. Right behind them, the Tampa Bay Rays will snag either Emerson or Lackey, with the last of the three being snagged by the Minnesota Twins third overall.
Some might point to the positions played by the Giants’ top prospects as a factor in the decision. After all, Josuar Gonzalez, Luis Hernandez, Jhonny Level and Gavin Kilen are all shortstop prospects. However, shortstops are often the most athletic players on the field and see the highest rate of being moved to another position, so that doesn’t seem to be influencing the Giants’ rationale ahead of the MLB Draft.
Lombard, 18, is a standout at Gulliver Prep High School in Florida who stands at 6-foot-3 and is largely a consensus top-10 prospect in the 2026 draft class. Booth, age 18, is a star outfielder for Oak Grove High School in Mississippi, with speed and defense as two of his primary calling cards.
Neither is projected to be a quick riser up the minors, as their hit tools and plate discipline remain significant works in progress that will need years of development. Less than 24 hours out from San Francisco being on the clock with the fourth pick, it does appear that Booth is trending toward being the selection if the top three picks unfold as everyone expects.
