Matt Johnson
The San Francisco Giants were one of the biggest winners in the MLB Draft lottery last year, moving up to land the fourth overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft. While draft day is still a few months out, there’s some early intel on who the Giants want to draft in 2026.
In a mini MLB mock draft, ESPN.com‘s Kiley McDaniel reported that the Giants “would really like” to have a shot at drafting high school shortstop Grady Emerson with the fourth overall pick. While he is seemingly there top target, it appears they ahve some early fallback plans.
Heading into the season, the consensus from evaluators was that UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky would be the first overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft. Since the season has unfolded, though, Emerson is now putting himself in that mix. He’s currently projected to be drafted second by the Tampa Bay Rays.
Emerson, age 18, stands at 6-foot-2 with a left-handed swing. MLB Pipeline rates his hit tool, fielding and arm strength at a 60 on the 20-80 scouting scale with 66-grade power and speed.
“Emerson is a well-rounded prospect who is a virtual lock to remain at shortstop for the long haul thanks to plus range, actions, and arm strength. He’s a grinder in the box who takes a ton of pitches and spoils borderline offerings until opposing hurlers give in and either give him something to hit or walk him.”
FanGraphs scouting report on Grady Emerson
If Emerson is off the board, McDaniel notes that San Francisco “would be happy to get” either Georgia Tech catcher Vahn Lackey or UC Santa Barbara starting pitcher Jackson Flora.
Lackey could be an enticing option for San Francisco given it doesn’t seem to have a long-term plan at catcher. Patrick Bailey has provided Gold Glove-caliber defense behind the plate and is one of the best pitch framers in baseball, but he’s a well-below average hitter even at catcher.
Flora, a 6-foot-5 righty, entered the season as a consensus top 2026 MLB Draft prospect and has done nothing to change that this season. Across 10 starts, he sports a 0.71 ERA with a 0.84 WHIP and an 84-24 K-BB ratio with just a 4.1 H/9 across 63.1 innings pitched.
One other name to keep an eye on, per McDaniel, is high school shortstop Jacob Lombard. The younger brother of New York Yankees top prospect George Lombard Jr., he offers some of the most enticing tools among position players in the upcoming class.
