Miami bolstered its farm system with a pitcher-heavy haul, headlined by Florida State’s Trey Beard and Stanford slugger Rintaro Sasaki, as the club prioritized arms and infield depth.
The Miami Marlins added 21 young prospects, 14 of them being pitchers, with the conclusion of the 2026 MLB First-Year Player Draft.
Gulliver Prep prospect Jacob Lombard headlines Miami's draft haul, as he was the 14th selection in the first round. The Marlins are part of the Lombard baseball history, as the shortstop is the son of Detroit Tigers bench coach George Lombard Sr. He is also the younger brother of George Lombard Jr., who is in the New York Yankees farm system.
MarlinsRoundtable also highlighted the other four players selected on Day 1 of the MLB Draft. On Day 2, Miami made 16 selections (Nos. 147, 176, 205, 235, 265, 295, 325, 355, 385, 415, 445, 475, 505, 535, 565, and 595).
Trey Beard, LHP, Florida State
Beard kicked off Day 2 for Miami and continued the pitcher-heavy draft approach. He had a stellar lone season at Florida State, earning multiple accolades and making 14 appearances.
The left-hander made the Tallahassee Regional All-Regional Team and Third Team All-ACC. Beard allowed 41 runs (34 earned) on 61 hits with 97 strikeouts and 24 walks with a 1.25 WHIP while holding opponents to a .236 batting average across 68 innings.
Cole Selvig, RHP, Minnesota
Selvig started in all 14 appearances at Minnesota. He finished the year with a 5-2 record, 5.21 ERA and 58 strikeouts in 67.1 innings. The right-hander led the Gophers in wins, innings pitched and total appearances.
Eric Guevara, SS, Auburn
Guevara appeared in 62 games for Auburn and had a .332 batting average. It was his second straight season batting over .300. He had a breakout hitting year, recording 78 hits (50 runs), 13 home runs and 55 RBI.
Rintaro Sasaki, 1B, Stanford
Sasaki appeared in 54 games for Stanford, batting .262 with 47 runs scored, 11 doubles, 16 home runs and 47 RBI. He recorded 13 multi-hit games and 12 multi-RBI contests, including driving in five runs against Notre Dame.
Nic Tolbert, 3B, Oktaha High School
Tolbert joins Lombard and Wessley Roberson as high school prospects drafted by the Marlins. He also plays a much-needed position Miami could attempt to bolster at the trade deadline.
The third baseman committed to Wichita State and was the 4th overall middle infielder in Oklahoma, but 191st in the nation, according to Perfect Game.
Zach Peters, RHP, VCU
Peters was the start of another pitcher-heavy selection by Miami. He was the first of eight straight, starting from the 10th round.
The right-hander made 25 appearances out of the bullpen for VCU. Peters finished the season with an 8-1 record with 88 strikeouts and 13 runs (10 earned) across 53.2 innings.
Fabio Bundi, RHP, Monterey Peninsula
Bundi appeared in 15 games, starting 13 of them, last season for Monterey Peninsula. He finished the season with an 8-2 record with 101 strikeouts and 25 runs (21 earned) across 86 innings pitched.
Bane Barker, RHP, Sandalwood High School
Miami added its fourth high school prospect with Barker. He remains in-state and was the 88th overall prospect in Florida and the 232nd-ranked right-hander in the nation.
Connor Benge, RHP, LSU
Benge made 17 relief appearances for LSU, posting a 1-1 record and a 6.75 ERA in 16 innings with 13 walks and 15 strikeouts. He also limited batters to a .196 batting average when he was on the mound.
Tyler Kapa, RHP, Virginia
Kapa made 25 relief appearances for Virginia and finished with a 2-2 record, a 2.70 ERA and 11 saves. His 11 saves led the ACC and ranked 14th nationally.
Colin Linder, RHP, Arizona State
Linder made 20 appearances, starting seven, for Arizona State and finished the season with a 4-2 record. He struck out 62 batters and allowed 33 runs (30 earned), seven home runs and had a 5.40 ERA over 50 innings.
Peter Buursema, RHP, Georgia Tech
Buursema made 10 appearances, starting four for Georgia Tech last season. He finished with a 0-2 record with 29 strikeouts, 15 runs (14 earned) and a 6.20 ERA over 20.1 innings.
Duke McCarron, RHP, Saint Joseph's
McCarron was the last of eight straight pitcher selections by the Marlins. He made 15 appearances for Saint Joseph's, striking out 67 batters, allowing 48 runs (41 earned) and had a 4-3 record with a 5.27 ERA.
Jatniel McCloud, OF, Amarillo College
McCloud appeared in 53 games for Amarillo College and batted .423. He recorded 70 hits for 12 home runs and 40 RBI, including 12 multi-RBI performances.
Jackson Mitchell, RHP, SUNY Binghamton
Mitchell made 16 appearances with six starts and went from bullpen closer to weekend starter mid-season. He earned Second-team America East All-Conference selection with a 3-1 record, 4.22 ERA and struck out 51 batters in 49 innings.
Joey Lawson, RHP, Bishop Verot High School
Miami ended its draft haul just like it started, selecting an in-state high school prospect. Lawson committed to North Carolina and plays multiple positions: first base and catcher.
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