The Phillies will have to wait longer than usual to make their first move in the 2026 MLB Draft, and the reason is tied directly to the Competitive Balance Tax rules.
Because Philadelphia went over the highest surcharge threshold, its first pick was pushed back 10 spots. That leaves the Phillies at No. 36 overall. They were one of five clubs hit with that penalty, along with the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees, New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers.
That slide means the Phillies are set to draft outside the top 10 for the eighth straight year. It’s a stretch that reflects how well the club has stayed in the mix at the big-league level. Before that run, Philadelphia had gone five straight drafts with a top-10 pick, and two of those selections became key pieces of the roster.
Aaron Nola was taken No. 7 overall in 2014 out of Louisiana State University. Then in 2017, the Phillies used the No. 3 pick on Alec Bohm, a third baseman from Wichita State University.
No. 36 will also mark Philadelphia’s latest draft selection since 2012, when the club picked right-handed pitcher Shane Watson out of Lakewood High School in Lakewood, California. The following year, the Phillies selected Watson’s teammate, shortstop J.P. Crawford, with the No. 16 overall pick.
Last year, Philadelphia went with another arm, taking right-handed pitcher Gage Wood from the University of Arkansas in the 2025 MLB Draft. Wood has already moved to the top of the organization’s prospect list, passing shortstop Aidan Miller, who has been sidelined for the entire 2026 campaign so far because of a back injury.
Given the state of the major league rotation and the thinness of the minor league pitching depth, it would not be a surprise to see the Phillies lean on arms early and often in 2026. Andrew Painter was sent back to Triple-A Lehigh Valley after a rough big-league debut, and the organization still does not have much help waiting in the system. With the Phillies clearly in win-now mode, adding pitchers who could be closer to helping at the highest level makes plenty of sense.
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