The 2026 MLB Draft is only three days away and has been previously pointed out, what happens during the 20 round draft will heavily shape the look of Ole Miss’ roster next season.
Figuring out who exactly will be drafted high enough to warrant leaving Oxford for the pros is the hard part right now. But things like ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel’s Final 2026 MLB draft rankings of the top 250 prospects can help shed some light.
Just because a player is listed in this doesn’t guarantee anything. Teams make selections for a myriad of reasons and baseball’s slot values and bonus pools complicate those decisions.
But McDaniel’s final rankings do confirm a couple of things.
First, right-handed pitchers Taylor Rabe and Cade Townsend should expect to hear their names called early enough that it won’t be much of a debate about their futures. Townsend is the highest ranked Rebel in the rankings at No. 26 and Rabe is No. 48.
“Rabe was a dramatic late riser, running his heater up to 100 mph in Omaha for the Rebels, though the low spin rates on his breaking stuff could limit his upside,” McDaniel wrote in his rankings.
Second, no Hunter Elliott in the list confirms that he’s the biggest question mark for Ole Miss in the draft. That’s the name most Ole Miss fans will be looking for. If the first 10 rounds of the draft go by without Elliott hearing his name, it’s very likely he’ll be back in Oxford for one more season.
McDaniels’ rankings also included left-handed pitcher Wil Libbert at No. 178.
An interesting note is that McDaniels gave all three Ole Miss pitchers similar Future Value grades (see explanation below). Rabe had a 21.9, Libbert a 21.7 and Townsend a 21.2.
Any Ole Miss Batters in the Draft?
Besides the Rebels who are out of eligibility, there’s one name to keep an eye out for: Austin Fawley.
The Rebels’ catcher has gone under the radar in this MLB Draft, if only because the pitching situation is much more interesting. But there’s a real chance Fawley will be drafted high and decide to go pro.
The best evidence of this is Ole Miss signing former TCU catcher Brady Dallimore. Ole Miss probably doesn’t bring him into the mix if it was confident Fawley would be returning.
In fact, it could be a sign the Rebels aren’t expecting Fawley to return for 2027.
We’ll find out soon enough. The MLB Draft is scheduled to begin at noon Saturday on NBC.
What is Future Value grades?
For those unfamiliar, Future Value grades are scouting shorthand used to project a prospect’s long-term professional value.
The grades are built on the traditional 20-80 scouting scale used across baseball. But a Future Value grade is not just an average of tools like hit, power, speed, arm strength or defense. For pitchers, it is not just a simple blend of fastball, breaking ball, changeup and command grades either.
Instead, FV is more of an overall value tier. It factors in a player’s projected tools, defensive position, age, physical projection, risk level, likely pro role and how realistic it is that he reaches his ceiling. That matters for Ole Miss fans because a college arm like Taylor Rabe or Cade Townsend can be evaluated differently than a high school signee with more projection but more risk.
In general, a 50 FV prospect projects as a solid big leaguer. A 55 FV player carries above-average regular or mid-rotation upside, while a 60 FV grade points to a potential impact player. Grades in the 45 or 40 range usually come with more risk, less certainty or a future role-player profile. The “+” grades are half-steps between tiers.
So when ESPN lists a player with a 50 FV or 45+ FV grade, it is best to read it as a prospect value tier, not an exact mathematical score. It is a way of saying how the industry views a player’s long-term upside, risk and likely MLB role.
