2026 MLB Draft

[Seattle or Bust]

Swing reminds me of Paul O'neill.

[GL_Storm]

Here is the Baseball America writeup on Ace Reese.

24. Seattle Mariners
Pick: 3B Ace Reese

BA Draft Rank: 12

Reaction: The Mariners have to be a little bit surprised to have Reese still be on the board at this pick. There are a lot of scouts who are big believers in what Reese does in the batter’s box, though the widespread concern is that he’s likely ticketed for first base. There are some similarities here to Andrew Fischer, another lefthanded-hitting, SEC slugger who the Brewers drafted 20th overall last year.

Scouting Report: Reese is a prototypical lefthanded slugger and one of the most imposing position players in the class. He spent one season at Houston before transferring to Mississippi State for the 2025 and 2026 seasons. With the Bulldogs, he cleared the 20-homer threshold in both years, and in 2026 he hit 12 home runs in conference play to rank second in the SEC. He’s a career .327/.419/.665 hitter with 52 home runs and 49 doubles in 167 games.

At 6-foot-4, 220 pounds, Reese has a pro body with lots of strength, and he takes vicious lefthanded hacks with great bat speed and easy plus raw power. He has an open, slightly crouched stance at the plate with an uphill bat path that’s geared to get the ball in the air to the pull side. It’s a swing that should allow him to easily tap into his power with a wood bat, though there are some questions about the sort of pure hitter he’ll be. Reese is an aggressive hitter who can be coaxed out of the strike zone—with a tendency to chase secondaries down in particular—and his overall contact skills point to more of an average pure hitter at the next level. Even if he has more of a power-over-hit profile, he could have the hitting skills to fit in the middle of the big league lineup.

Reese played third base for Mississippi State, but he’s a limited athlete whose actions might be a better fit in left field or at first base. He’ll need to improve his footwork, hands and throwing versatility to stick at the hot corner in pro ball.

[D-train]

Ace Reese is a 6'5", 220-pound left-handed hitting third baseman (INF) from Mississippi State whom the Seattle Mariners selected with the 24th overall pick in the first round of the 2026 MLB Draft.

Background and College PerformanceReese transferred to Mississippi State from Houston and had an outstanding two-year run there as a power-hitting corner infielder. He posted back-to-back 20+ HR seasons (one of only three players in program history to do so, alongside legends like Will Clark and Rafael Palmeiro). In 2026, he hit around .328-.341 with 24 HRs, high RBIs/runs, and solid walk rates, while showing the ability to drive the ball to all fields with plus raw power and bat speed.

Scouts love his offensive upside: a compact, leveraged lefty swing with plus power potential (often projected as a .260-ish hitter with 25-30 HR pop in the big leagues). He makes contact well for a power guy but has some swing-and-miss concerns (K-rate around 21-22% in college).Positional Outlook: Third Base or First Base?This is the main question with Reese. He played almost exclusively third base in college (started 57 games there as a sophomore, for example) and has a solid arm, but his defense is a significant concern for scouts.

He's a below-average athlete with limited range, quickness, and footwork at the hot corner. His hands and actions need work, and at 6'4"/220 lbs, he's already a big-bodied player whose body may continue filling out.
Most scouting reports project him as a tweener who has a chance to stick at third short-term but is more likely to move off the position long-term due to fringe athleticism and range.

Common landing spots if he moves: First base (where his size and power fit perfectly) or possibly left field/corner outfield. Many evaluators see him as a future 1B/LF type whose bat will carry him regardless.

The Mariners' system has some infield depth, but corner spots (especially 1B) have been a need area. Reese's profile aligns with the common path for big, power-oriented third basemen who shift inward as pros (think players like Andrew Vaughn or similar power-first profiles).Bottom line: He'll likely start his pro career at third base to see what he can handle, especially given his college reps there. But the consensus is he'll have a better long-term fit at first base, where his power bat plays up without defensive demands holding him back. His offensive ceiling makes him a high-upside pick either way.

He's a classic "buy the bat" first-rounder. Keep an eye on his defensive development in the lower minors.

Problem is we have fuck face at 1B for another 4.5 seasons. seems way too long for Reese to stew in the minors...

[GL_Storm]

Pick #65 is OF Jake Brown, L/L from LSU.

Here's the MLB Pipeline blurb on him:

Scouting grades: Hit: 50 | Power: 55 | Run: 55 | Arm: 55 | Field: 55 | Overall: 50

Brown rated as Louisiana's top 2023 prep prospect ahead of fellow left-handed pitcher Kade Anderson, who was recovering from Tommy John surgery but would go on to become the No. 3 pick in the 2025 Draft after starring at Louisiana State. Though pro teams preferred Brown on the mound, he became a full-time outfielder at LSU after turning down the Rangers as a 16th-rounder. He batted a team-high .385 at the College World Series last June as the Tigers won their eighth national title, then showed improved pop this spring before a broken right hamate ended his season in mid-April.

Brown has a smooth left-handed stroke and repeatedly barrels balls. After making a concentrated effort to drive balls in the air more often as a junior, he looks like he'll provide 20-25 homers per season. He has traded some contact to get to more pop, and he still needs to figure out how to solve southpaws.

With solid to plus speed, Brown can steal an occasional base. Though he has played mostly right field for the Tigers, some evaluators believe he has the quickness and instincts to patrol up the middle. He has a strong arm that delivered fastballs up to 94 mph and bat-missing low-80s sliders in high school.

[GL_Storm]

Here's Brown's B-Ref page: https://www.baseball-reference.com/regi ... own-014jak

There's a lot to like statistically.

[D-train]

Based on the 1st two picks M's brass must be getting sick of this dogshit offense as well..

Two near team bats added to the pipeline.

[GL_Storm]

[D-train]

Another great pic.

[GL_Storm]

Here's Baseball America's blurb on Jake Brown:

Ht: 6'2" | Wt: 205 | B-T: L-L

School: LSU. Committed/Drafted: Rangers ’23 (16). Age At Draft: 21.5.

BA Grade/Risk: 50/Average

Adjusted Grade: 40

Brown was a standout pitching prospect with Sulphur High in Louisiana, but converted to hitting full-time with LSU and transformed himself into a top-three-round position player in the 2026 class. Now a 6-foot-2, 205-pound outfielder and lefthanded hitter, Brown boasts a career .302/.396/.551 collegiate line, with 28 home runs and 20 doubles. He was in the midst of a breakout 2026 season, with 16 home runs in 41 games, but broke his hamate in mid-April and was done for the year. Brown showed a solid offensive approach with bat-to-ball skills in his first two seasons at LSU, then added more strength and flashed bigger power and speed tools in 2026. At 6-foot-2, 205 pounds, Brown has solid present strength and physicality, with above-average raw power that he’s started to tap into more frequently—especially to the pull side. While he has a chance for an average hit tool, there are some questions. Brown crushes righthanders, but he has notable platoon splits and struggles against lefthanders in college, and his respectable overall 16.9% strikeout rate balloons to 24.4% against conference pitching. He’s an above-average runner who will turn in plus times, and should be a strong defender in either outfield corner. He’s played right field in deference to better center field defenders at LSU, but many scouts think he has the speed and defensive instincts to play center field in pro ball. He was trending toward first-round territory early in 2026, but his pure hit questions probably make him a better fit in the 2-3 round range.

Scouting Grades: Hit: 45 | Power: 50 | Speed: 55 | Field: 55 | Arm: 55

[rockycola]

Seattle Mariners, 3rd Round, Pick #101

RHP - Nathan Taylor - Cincinnati - 6'5" - 230#'s