This collegiate outfielder could be a perfect draft pick for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The MLB Draft is about 24 hours away, and with that, the Pittsburgh Pirates have one of the top picks in the 2026 draft.
There's no clear-cut favorite for who Pittsburgh might select in the first round. The Pirates have some decisions to make with the No. 5 overall pick.
Should they continue their elite pitching development and select an upside arm, or continue their focus odd adding offense as they did in the offseason by taking one of the high upside position players?
ESPN's Kiley McDaniel believes the Pirates will go with the second route and select Georgia Tech outfielder Drew Burress in his final mock draft.
"This one could be a curveball. The belief all spring is that the Pirates seek a quicker-moving college player if they don't get the high school hitter they want," wrote McDaniel.
"According to the late info I'm getting, the Pirates would like a college position player here as they're somewhat flush with young pitching. Burress likely goes No. 7 if he doesn't get selected here, so this isn't the reach that some might think it is, and I think this would be for some savings."
If the Pirates are in search of a college position player who could quickly move through the organization, as McDaniel suggests, then Burress could be a perfect fit for Pittsburgh.
The 21-year-old is listed at 5 feet 9 inches, 185 pounds, with incredibly quick hands.
All of this comes out to a player with some very encouraging power potential. The power is real with Burress. MLB Pipeline gave him a hit grade of 55/80 and a power grade of 60/80.
During his time at Georgia Tech, Burress logged a .357/.484/.720 slash line with 60 home runs during his three collegiate seasons. He even had a four-home run game in 2024 as a freshman.
A dream scenario for the Pirates would be if Georgia Tech catcher Vahn Lackey or UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky falls to No. 5. That does feel like a likely scenario, though, considering who is picking ahead of Pittsburgh.
Still, Burress has the potential to be the offensive outfielder from this draft, and the Pirates should be elated if they get the opportunity to select him on Saturday afternoon.
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