The 2026 MLB Draft is a week away and MLB.com writer Jonathan Mayo has released his latest mock draft as draft day nears. The Pittsburgh Pirates are sitting near the top with the fifth overall pick, and Mayo projects that they’ll take one of the top high school players with that selection.
The Pirates are currently projected to draft outfielder Eric Booth Jr. from Oak Grove High School in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. Booth is ranked as the sixth best prospect in this year’s class and is the top prep school outfielder. Perhaps the Pirates find lightning twice by drafting a top high schooler out of the state of Mississippi like Konnor Griffin.
Booth is a standout in this class for several reasons, one of which is his athleticism. His speed was on full display a year ago when he ran the fastest 60-yard dash at East Coast Pro showcase (6.33 seconds). Despite having a more compact frame (6’0” 207 lbs) he has some decent power at the plate. He’s projected to be a 20-25 home run hitter by the time he makes the major leagues, plus he’s got good bat speed and already impressive natural strength for a 17-year-old. Booth’s power has already been on display as he won the Home Run Derby at the Perfect Game All-American Classic last summer.
After a successful summer Booth has shot up prospect rankings and is being viewed now as possibly the best outfield prospect in the class. His raw athleticism has jumped off the pages as he was given a 70 run grade to go along with a 50 arm grade. The Vanderbilt commit is being looked at as an exciting hitting prospect too, garnering plenty of attention for his low strikeout rates and reliability at the plate. Booth was given a 55 hit grade with 50 power. As a defender there’s certainly some fine tuning that needs to take place within his development but he was still given a 50 arm grade and a 55 field grade.
The Pirates are once again picking in the top five picks of the draft, and they have not been afraid to take top prep talent in recent years. Just a year ago they took the best high school pitcher in Seth Hernandez with the sixth overall pick, and the aforementioned Griffin was taken ninth overall in the 2024 MLB draft. To this point both of those draft picks are paying off as Hernandez is dominating the minor leagues right now, while Griffin has been one of the top contributors in Pittsburgh since making his debut in April. A player like Booth could be another success story for the Buccos.
The MLB Draft will begin on July 11, at the Philadelphia Convention Center starting 1 p.m. ET.
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