The Phillies opened Day 1 of the 2026 MLB Draft with a pick that took some getting used to, but by the end of the night they had built a class that looks heavy on upside and pitching help.
At No. 36, Philadelphia stayed in its comfort zone and took Tyler Spangler, a high-school shortstop from De La Salle HS in Concordville, CA.
He’s a 6'3'' left-handed hitter who missed his senior season because of a back injury, which naturally raised some concern given Aidan Miller’s back issue this year. Still, Spangler showed enough at the MLB Draft Combine to calm that down.
The profile is all about the bat: advanced zone awareness, clean barrel contact, and a swing and movement pattern that drew Corey Seager comparisons. He’s also been described as a young Cal Ripken Jr. type because of the size, instincts and what MLB.com called a “throwback approach.”
The Phillies also like the confidence. Spangler is a Stanford commit, and the bat looks like the carrying tool, even if third base may be his long-term home.
The second-round choice was the one that left the most room for debate. With pick No. 64, the Phillies took Caden Bogenpohl, an outfielder from Missouri State, and the raw power is easy to see.
The 6'6'', 245-pound left-handed hitter broke Ryan Howard’s freshman home run record at Missouri State with 20 homers in 2024, and the Yordan Álvarez comparisons came quickly because the power can look like a 60 or 70 grade. But the production trended the wrong way after that, with 13 homers as a sophomore and 6 as a junior, along with declines in batting average and slugging percentage.
The source also notes that Aiden Robbins was still available, and that Bogenpohl had a tremendous private workout with the Phillies and was nearly the pick at No. 36.
So the organization clearly saw something it liked.
Then came the arm that stood out most. At No.
100, Philadelphia grabbed Ruger Riojas, a right-hander from Texas, and this was labeled the steal of the day. Riojas impressed in the SEC this spring with a mix of multiple pitches, multiple arm slots and elite athleticism on the mound.
He can work with five-plus pitches and shape his fastball in different ways depending on the matchup. The projection here is real: a mid-rotation big leaguer with enough personality to be a fan favorite if he gets there.
The Phillies kept leaning into pitching with their next two picks. At No. 128, they selected Deven Sheerin, a right-hander from LSU.
He was LSU’s go-to bullpen arm down the stretch and flashed a mid-to-upper 90s fastball that has touched 100 from a low three-quarters slot. At 6'5'' and 255 pounds, with a cross-fire delivery, he creates the kind of funk that can lead to swings and misses and weak contact.
The upside is a high-leverage reliever who could move quickly.
At No. 135, the Phillies took Jaxon Jelkin, a right-hander from Kentucky who turned 24 nearly on draft day and was one of the biggest wild cards in the class. He went 8-3 in 17 appearances as Kentucky’s Friday night starter in 2026 and earned All-SEC honors.
There were character questions after his dismissal from Houston early in his college career, but the stuff is loud: mid-90s velocity, reports of triple digits in the fall, a low 90s cutter and a sweeper/slider type breaking ball. The comparison that came to mind was a young Rick Porcello, and the source sees frontline starter traits if the maturity concerns are behind him.
Put together, it was a Day 1 that gave the Phillies a potential cornerstone in Spangler, a big-power gamble in Bogenpohl, and three arms in Riojas, Sheerin and Jelkin that attack a clear organizational need. The final grade: B+.
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