Prospects go 1-2 in draft for first time ever

The 2026 DMBL draft kicked off Monday with history-making selections.

SS Konnor Griffin became just the 2nd ineligible prospect ever to be drafted No. 1 overall with Erie making the pick but then El Paso tapped SP Nolan McLean, marking the 1st time that ineligible players were selected with the first two picks of the draft.

Griffin joins 3B Rafael Devers, who was taken No. 1 by Arkansas in 2018, as the only ineligible players drafted 1st overall. The consensus #1 prospect in all of baseball, Griffin turns 20 in April and will start the season at AAA but could get called up to Pittsburgh in 2026.

McLean, 24, is ineligible but made his MLB debut last year, making 8 starts - 2 short of qualifying. The right-hander had an impressive run down the stretch for the Mets, compiling a 2.06 ERA and 1.04 WHIP in 48 innings. He's expected to complete for a spot in the 2026 rotation.

The Brindle Pups, formerly the Florida Sting Rays, selected the first eligible player at No. 3 when they chose CF Jakob Marsee.

Two more ineligibles would be selected before the 1st round ended, with SS/2B Kevin McGonigle taken by Livingston at No. 16 and SS Jesus Made to the defending champs, Green Lake, at No. 20. It's the third time in the past four years, including 2023 and 2024, that four prospects have been drafted in Round 1, matching a record set in 2014.