Did the Philadelphia Phillies Draft Successfully?

The 2026 MLB Amateur Draft took place from July 11-12 in Philadelphia. Rounds 1-4 took place on Saturday, while the remaining 15 rounds happened on Sunday. UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky was selected first overall by the White Sox, which had been the widespread expectation leading up to the draft.

The Phillies primarily targeted college pitchers in the draft, selecting 10 of them. Six of these ten picks happened in the first ten rounds as well. The Phillies did, however, find some intriguing position players, including two college outfielders taken in the first five rounds.

Overall, the Phillies went college-heavy in the draft, with only three of their picks coming from high school. With that, the Phillies will place greater emphasis on higher-impact players to stock their farm system. These are some of the highlights from their draft this year.

With Their First Pick, The Phillies Select…

From 2020 to 2024, the Phillies selected high school players with the first pick in the draft. After breaking that trend with RHP Gage Wood in 2025, selecting him from Arkansas, Philadelphia went back to the prep ranks. With the 36th pick in the draft, the Phillies selected shortstop Tyler Spangler from De La Salle High School.

Spangler ranked #53 in MLB Pipeline’s Top 250 Draft Prospects. He received praise in his report for “excellent zone awareness” and his ability to consistently find the barrel. The defensive expectation is that he will be able to stick at shortstop and has good hands there. Spangler drew comparisons to Corey Seager, noting that both hit from the left side of the plate. 

The major concern surrounding Spangler is that he missed his senior year due to a back issue. With current top prospect Aidan Miller also dealing with a back injury, fans will certainly be a bit on edge until they see him hit the field. However, Spangler was able to attend this year’s draft combine. Over his three seasons at De La Salle, Spangler hit .376 with a 1.220 OPS in 86 games. He impressed in his junior year, batting .430 with 10 home runs in 33 games and a 1.470 OPS.

Other Day One Selections

The Phillies made four more selections on the first day of the draft. Their next pick after Spangler was outfielder Caden Bogenpohl, a college outfielder from Missouri State. Bogenpohl (Pipeline #93) received high praise for his power potential, with top-of-the-class max exit velocity (topping at 119 mph). In his freshman year, Bogenpohl broke a freshman home run record set by Phillies legend Ryan Howard, hitting 20 homers. However, he also grounds out frequently, with a 53% groundball rate that ranks among the highest in this year’s college class.

Following Bogenpohl, the Phillies selected Ruger Riojas (Pipeline #92) 100th overall in the draft from the University of Texas. Riojas is an older prospect, recently turning 23, but has quality stuff and could move through the minors quickly. His arsenal is defined by his mid-90s fastball that can touch 98 and a splitter touted in his profile as “unhittable.” 

The Phillies rounded out the first day with more college pitching selections. Devin Sheerin (Pipeline #145) rebounded from missing all of 2025 due to knee surgery, striking out 58 batters over 37.2 innings. His fastball tops out at 100 mph, and with improvements to his slider and overall control, he could become a high-leverage option in the bullpen very soon. Jaxon Jelkin (Pipeline #166) was the last pick on day one of the draft. Jelkin throws strikes and has three above-average pitches (4-seam, curveball, cutter) but tends to catch the heart of the plate. 

The Best of The Rest

The Phillies’ first selection of Day Two was UCLA outfielder Will Gasparino (Pipeline #72). Gasparino was a highly touted prospect out of high school in 2023, ranking in the Top 250 that year. He instead went to the University of Texas and struggled for two years before transferring to UCLA. There, he found success again, hitting .314 with a 1.071 OPS and 20 home runs in 58 games. 

Bo Rhudy (Pipeline #219) was drafted in the seventh round and could join Sheerin as a quick-moving relief prospect. While his fastball velocity sits below average (91-93), he creates unique deception with a low release angle and high spin. Rhudy was among the best Division I pitchers in terms of fastball chase rate (41%) and swing-and-miss (35%).

Reece Moroney was selected in the tenth round from the University of Rhode Island. Moroney was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team in 2024 and was Second Team A10 in 2025. This season, he set a program record with 90 hits and was named the conference Defensive Player of the Year.

Eleventh-round selection Drew Titsworth (Clemson) posted a 5.09 ERA in 15 games (five starts) but excelled when pitching in relief. As a reliever, he posted a 3.31 ERA and struck out 21 batters over 16.1 innings. Titsworth was masterful with runners on base as well, holding opposing hitters to a .164 average. With runners in scoring position, he bore down and held hitters to just a .154 ERA.

The Phillies’ final draft selection was another UCLA player in reliever Justin Lee. After posting a 7.22 ERA over his first two college seasons, he found success this year. Lee posted a 3.26 ERA, striking out 26 in 19.1 innings.

Was This A Good Draft?

The Phillies have struggled in recent years in the draft. In the last five years, just seven of their picks have made it to the major leagues. Three of them (T.J. Rumfield, Seth Halvorsen, and George Klassen) did not play in the majors with the Phillies. 

Like any other draft class, it will take a few years before anyone can properly evaluate the team’s draft performance. There’s a lot to like in it, however. The focus on college pitching will help fortify a farm system that needs quicker-moving arms in the minor leagues. Some of the relievers, namely Deven Sheerin and Bo Rhudy, are not too far off from helping the MLB team. 

Tyler Spangler has the potential to become a star in the major leagues. With some changes to his swing, Caden Bogenpohl may be able to tap into more of his high-power upside. Will Gasparino was a strong selection in the fifth round and could prove to be a steal. 

Overall, the Phillies found a good collection of talent both on the pitching and hitting fronts. Many of these college arms may find their way to the major league roster in the near future. The draft strategy appeared to be to strengthen their farm with players closer to being ready. If so, this class may be making an impact sooner than the ones before it.