New 2026 MLB Mock Draft with Latest 'Industry Buzz' from ESPN's Kiley McDaniel

The battle between shortstops Roch Cholowsky and Grady Emerson to be the No. 1 pick in the 2026 MLB draft could be tightening.

ESPN's Kiley McDaniel had Cholowsky, a junior at UCLA, first in his newest mock draft ahead of Emerson, a high school standout at Fort Worth Christian.

Here's McDaniel's top 10:

Pick	Team	Player
1.	White Sox	Roch Cholowsky, SS, UCLA
2.	Rays	Grady Emerson, SS, Fort Worth Christian (HS)
3.	Twins	Vahn Lackey, C, Georgia Tech
4.	Giants	Jacob Lombard, SS, Gulliver Prep (HS)
5.	Pirates	Jackson Flora, RHP, UC Santa Barbara
6.	Royals	Gio Rojas LHP, Stoneman Douglas (HS)
7.	Orioles	Eric Booth Jr., CF, Oak Grove (HS)
8.	Athletics	Ryder Helfrick, C, Arkansas
9.	Braves	Drew Burress, CF, Georgia Tech
10.	Rockies	Liam Peterson, RHP, Florida

The draft expert reported that Cholowsky's lead on Emerson is quickly evaporating.

"The margin for error for Cholowsky is dropping to where this might just be a 50/50 coin flip," McDaniel wrote. "There's a lot of industry buzz that Grady Emerson is preferred by some key White Sox evaluators, but everyone agrees that Cholowsky would win a coin flip because he's just an easier choice with his proximity to the majors, risk profile and hype — even if his upside seems a bit lower than Emerson's."

High school prospects always carry more volatility, but Bobby Witt Jr. is an obvious example of how the gamble can pay off with a prep shortstop. The Kansas City Royals picked him second overall in 2019, and he debuted in 2022 before garnering MVP votes the following year.

CJ Abrams, another high school shortstop from the 2019 class, has grown into a valuable contributor for the Washington Nationals.

The Chicago White Sox can also afford to bet on Emerson's upside if they ultimately like him more than Cholowsky.

Colson Montgomery has had an encouraging start to his MLB career, and Caleb Bonemer ranks 15th overall on MLB.com's list of the top 100 prospects. The depth on the left side of the infield is there.

Cholowsky boasts a .329/.461/.662 slash line along with 21 homers and 59 RBI for the Bruins in 2026. MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo wrote he's as good as any college shortstop since Troy Tulowitzki in 2005.

The case for Cholowsky speaks for itself, and the White Sox fanbase probably prefers the surer thing given how badly the organization has developed home-grown talent in recent years.

Based on McDaniel's mock, nothing is set in stone.