One of my favorite times of the year is the NCAA Baseball Tournament. The Road to Omaha and the Greatest Show on Dirt is one of the best fan experiences in baseball. If you have never been, add it to your bucket list. Go when your school makes it, or better yet, adopt a few mid-majors each year and bandwagon your way into some of the best memories the sport has to offer. I’m not a paid spokesperson for the College World Series, though, so let’s move on.
The Yankees selected six players in the 2026
MLB Draft who appeared in this year’s NCAA Tournament. As a fun fact to drop on your friends later, that’s actually two more tournament participants than high school players the Yankees drafted. So, how did those six future Yankees perform when the lights were brightest?
We’ll go alphabetically, which means we start with the national champion. Brendan Brock logged 29 starts behind the dish and 37 starts in the outfield or at designated hitter for Oklahoma over the season. He was selected 99th overall after helping guide the Sooners to the College World Series title. Before hearing his name called, Brock tore through the NCAA Tournament, batting .457 with a .576 on-base percentage, 21 hits, 10 walks, 13 RBIs, and three home runs.
Once the Sooners reached Omaha, he continued to produce, hitting .400 with eight hits and a .520 on-base percentage. Brock’s biggest postseason moment came in the Atlanta Regional when he went 3-for-5 with two home runs, four RBIs, and three runs scored against Georgia Tech. He also delivered a key home run against Georgia in the College World Series semifinals.
Next up is Blake Cyr, a shortstop/outfielder from Florida whom the Yankees selected in the 18th round with the 548th overall pick. A middle-of-the-order bat, Cyr hit .286 during regional play with four hits, one home run, and three RBIs. His signature moment came in Florida’s tournament opener when he launched a game-tying three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh inning. The Gators hosted a regional and advanced to the regional championship game before falling one win short of the Super Regionals.
Diego Castellanos spent the spring wearing the #5 jersey and patrolling the outfield for Saint Mary’s before becoming the Yankees’ 14th-round selection. Castellanos caught fire in the Los Angeles Regional, batting .417 (5-for-12) with two doubles and two RBIs. He recorded back-to-back multi-hit games, including a perfect 3-for-3 performance against the host school UCLA. Saint Mary’s was eliminated before reaching the regional final.
The Yankees’ first selection of the draft, left-hander Hunter Dietz out of Arkansas, made one postseason start. Although he was charged with the loss, Dietz struck out a career-high 14 Kansas hitters in the Lawrence Regional. It was a fitting finish to a breakout season in which Arkansas’ Friday-night ace went 7-4 with a 3.57 ERA and 131 strikeouts over 85.2 innings. The Razorbacks failed to advance to the Super Regional round falling a second time to the hosting Jayhawks.
Bear Harrison, selected in the fifth round, was the starting catcher for Texas A&M. During NCAA Tournament play, Harrison slashed .250/.444/.500 with three hits, four walks, and a home run. His postseason was really an extension of the consistency he displayed throughout the year. Harrison set a Texas A&M program record after being hit by a pitch 23 times and finished the season with a 32-game on-base streak both of which he added to in the postseason. The Aggies were eliminated during regional play.
That brings us to Dean Toigo, the Yankees’ final selection of the draft. Before being chosen 608th overall, Toigo roamed the outfield in the desert for Arizona State. He turned in a solid postseason, highlighted by a multi-hit performance in the Sun Devils’ elimination-game victory over South Dakota State in the Lincoln Regional. Arizona State earned an at-large bid as the No. 3 seed but saw its season come to an end before advancing beyond the opening weekend.
A national champion, a handful of standout performances, and several players who already proved they can perform on college baseball’s biggest stages. College success guarantees nothing in professional baseball, but the Yankees will certainly hope a few of these postseason performers eventually help create October memories in the Bronx.
