Last year's draft was a good showing for the Atlanta Braves, and they're seeing the fruits of that great 2025 draft already. Prospects like Briggs McKenzie and Tate Southisene are doing amazing jobs in their first full professional seasons.
The 2026 MLB Draft is quickly approaching, and the Braves will have another great talent pool to pull from this year. Atlanta will have the ninth pick in the first round of this year's draft, and they'll hope to choose an impact player. As stated above, there's a lot of great talent available. The Braves were heavy on taking position players in the previous draft. That was a pretty decent departure from their normal pitching-heavy draft strategy. Is it possible they continue that in 2026? Yes.
However, with the recent issues surrounding the starting rotation, they could also return to their roots of focusing on pitching. So that leaves the question of who the heck will the Braves draft first in 2026?
There are a lot of talented position players in the pool available, but there's one that stands out a little more than others in the top 10 prospect rankings. That prospect is the perfect choice for the Braves as their first pick. The only issue is that he may not be available once the Braves are on the clock.
Drew Burress would be an incredible pick for the Braves in the 2026 MLB Draft if he's available
College baseball fans will know just how great the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets were this season, even if they faltered in the regionals. Outfielder Drew Burress was a massive part of the team's success, and he's on track to be a first-round pick because of it.
The right-hander has a nice, quick, and powerful swing with great plate discipline. Burress has the ability to hit the ball to all fields and has shown the ability to make mid-season adjustments when needed. Burress put up an impressive .358/.473/.657 slash line during his Junior campaign. He had 91 hits, including 22 doubles, three triples, 16 homers, 60 RBI, and a 1.130 OPS over 61 games.
Drew Burress broke Jason Varitek’s home run record at @GTBaseball and I got the chance to ask ‘em about it. Pretty cool. pic.twitter.com/mVYAYn1DVl
— Jared Carrabis (@Jared_Carrabis) June 28, 2026
That's a pretty damn good stat line and worth taking a chance on. More impressively, he walked more than he struck out. Burress had 49 walks to 43 strikeouts. That's absolutely elite plate discipline. Burress also has great baseball IQ and has great speed to utilize on the bases and in the outfield. He could become a very good everyday center fielder for any team.
Adding him to the outfield for the Braves, even if it is in a corner spot, would be very fun to watch. He has a plus arm to add to his great range as well. All of this to say, if he's available, the Braves absolutely have to snatch him up.
That likelihood is, unfortunately very low, and Burress is currently slated to go to the Orioles as the seventh pick in the latest mock draft. Atlanta is listed as drafting left-hander Gio Rojas from Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida.
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