UCLA’s shocking postseason exit has turned what once looked like a runaway race for the top spot in the 2026 MLB draft into something much less certain.
For much of the season, the Bruins sat at No. 1 in the country and looked every bit the part. They rolled through the regular season with a 48-6 record and a 28-2 mark in conference play, and a big reason for that dominance was shortstop Roch Cholowsky.
Cholowsky put together a monster regular season, hitting .312 with a team-high 21 home runs, 60 RBI, a .636 slugging percentage and a .452 OBP. He had been the name most closely tied to the first overall pick for months, especially after his stellar sophomore year and his reputation as an elite defensive shortstop. He’s also been compared to Derek Jeter.
Then the postseason arrived, and things went sideways fast.
UCLA became the second No. 1 overall team to fall before reaching the Super Regionals. The Bruins lost their first tournament game to St.
Mary’s, beat Virginia Tech, and then dropped another game to St. Mary’s.
Cholowsky, fresh off winning Big Ten player of the year for the second straight season, went 2-for-12 across those three postseason games.
That late slump has opened the door a bit in the draft race, even if Cholowsky is still sitting at the top in ESPN’s latest two-round mock draft from Kiley McDaniel. If the Chicago White Sox take him first overall, it would be because of the upside that has kept him in that spot for so long.
Still, the field is getting tighter.
One challenger is Grady Emerson, a shortstop from Fort Worth Christian High School in Texas who was recently named the No. 1 overall prospect in the draft by MLB Pipeline. Emerson has drawn comparisons to Bobby Witt Jr.
The other name pushing into the conversation is Georgia Tech catcher Vahn Lackey. He’s viewed as a high-end catching prospect with the kind of power that could make him an annual 25-30 home run hitter if developed properly.
Cholowsky remains the projected top pick for now, but the gap that once looked wide is closing.
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For UCLA, the appeal is obvious: Martin brings experience, pedigree and a versatility that can raise the ceiling of a defense that always needs more reliable pieces in the back end. The Bruins are betting on a player who has already seen different systems, different expectations and different levels of pressure, and that kind of background can matter in a secondary where communication and trust are everything. What remains to be seen is how quickly that promise translates in Westwood, and whether Martin can turn a long, winding college path into a real impact for UCLA. [Read more 🡒]
UCLA Star Just Delivered A Massive Draft Night Statement
Even with UCLAs season ending earlier than expected, Roch Cholowsky still left the kind of imprint that keeps scouts and front offices circling. The shortstop paired elite offense with steady defense, and his run at UCLA included back-to-back Big Ten Player of the Year awards along with consecutive first-team All-American honors, a rsum that made him one of the most polished players in the country.
Draft night only sharpened the spotlight on him. For a Bruins program that spent much of the year carrying the burden of being the nations top team before falling short of the super regionals, Cholowskys rise offered a different kind of headline, one that underscored how much talent was on that roster even as the postseason slipped away. The question now is how his arrival will fit into a White Sox organization trying to turn a corner after years of frustration. [Read more 🡒]