As the 2026 MLB Draft played out, several early surprises created a scenario where it seemed like a wealth of position playing talent was going to still be on the board for the Yankees to choose from. Bo Lowrance, Daniel Jackson, and Cole Prosek were three names that had traction with Yankees fans online. With all those options on the board I expected the Yankees to grab a position player in the first round, but they took advantage when a highly ranked pitcher was unexpectedly still available with the 35th
overall pick.
University of Arkansas pitcher Hunter Dietz was the highest-ranked prospect still on the board as the Yankees made their first pick of the draft, and the team jumped at the chance to bring him into their pitching development system. The 6-foot-6 lefty from the University of Arkansas battled injuries during his first two seasons in college but broke out in a big way this past season. Dietz led the SEC in quality starts during the 2026 season while striking out 131 batters in 85.2 innings.
One player comparison that will excite Yankees fans is with Cam Schlittler, as Dietz’s large frame and big velocity should give him a similar tool set to work with as the Yankees had with Schilittler when he joined the organization.
The Yankees then followed up with Canadian prep left-hander Sean Duncan, who is considered one of the most polished high-school pitchers in the draft. Duncan is a Vanderbilt commit, but it is widely assumed that he will sign after being taken in the second round. Yankees fans will have to wait a while to see him in action as it was reported in June that he will need Tommy John surgery, but with a long track record of being one of the top pitchers in his age group, there are not many concerns that he will return to form after his recovery.
With these two picks the Yankees bolstered the left-handed pitching depth of their farm system. In order to get these two talented left-handed pitchers, the Yankees passed on several other areas of weakness within their farm system but quickly turned to start addressing those needs. They used their third- and fifth-round picks on college catchers, which is not surprising as their farm system currently does not have a catcher ranked among the top-30 prospects by either MLB.com or Baseball America.
In the third round the Yankees grabbed Brendan Brock, an exciting prospect with the rare tool of elite speed for a catching prospect who just played a big role in the University of Oklahoma’s national championship run. Brock is athletic enough that scouts also see him as a legitimate option anywhere in the outfield if the Yankees choose to go that way.
Two rounds later, the Yankees grabbed Texas A&M’s Bear Harrison. The younger brother of Brewers pitcher Kyle Harrison, Bear has a career .445 on-base percentage in three years of college, peaking with a .495 mark this past year. He has also produced outstanding exit velocities during his career showing the potential to be a solid power hitter as he moves into the professional ranks.
Another fun pick came in the eighth round when the Yankees selected Luke Pettitte as a two-way player from Dallas Baptist University.
Andy Pettitte’s son took advantage of his year recovering from Tommy John surgery to put up big numbers including 16 home runs while serving as a full-time designated hitter. It is more likely that we will see Pettitte on the mound when his arm is recovered, as Baseball America credits him with some of the best command in the 2026 draft class.
The other storyline to follow now that the picks are complete is signability. In the age of NIL, only a handful of college teams can compete with a solid signing bonus and improved minor league pay, but it is a different environment than in many previous years. The Yankees selected four high-school players and will likely have to be creative to sign all of them away from their college commitments. Sixth-round pick Andrew Gonzalez was moving up draft boards as his strong left-handed power from the caught the attention of a very well-funded Texas Tech program. Further down in the draft, the Yankees selected outfielder Lee Garris and shortstop William Cutshall. Garris is coming off a Virginia state championship for his high school team and was expected to head to James Madison University before being drafted by the Yankees with the 398th overall pick. Cutshall was planning on starting at the University of Mississippi in the fall and may be one of the toughest picks to keep from going to campus.
The Yankees put together a very solid draft, bringing in a mix of exciting arms and talented position players. Over the course of two days, they drafted players who will slot as their top or second-best left-handed pitching prospect. They also picked up two players who will rank as the best catching prospects in the organization for now. Around that they selected a blend of solid performance, and potential upside. In the coming weeks, we will get to see many of these players take the field for the first time as Yankees prospects.
In case you missed it, check out Pinstripe Alley’s full draft coverage!
- Round 1: Hunter Dietz
- Round 2: Sean Duncan
- Round 3: Brendan Brock
- Round 4: Paul Gutierrez-Contreras II
- Rounds 5-10
- Rounds 11-15
- Rounds 16-20
- Draft Day 1 review
- Overall Yankees draft review
- Draft signing tracker
