Afternoon Edition |
April 3, 2026 |
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MLB has finalized the 2026 draft value slots, and there are several milestones in the figures, including the possibility of the league’s first $10 million bonus.
—Eric Fisher
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- At the women’s Final Four, coaches and players alike have a lot to say on the possibility of the WNBA changing draft rules to lower the eligibility age. Read the story.
- The Wooden Awards will be presented at an event in L.A., part of an effort by ESPN to make the ceremony more like the Heisman Trophy presentation. Read the story.
- After two women’s tennis players sued over rules limiting prize money, the NCAA is considering a rule change to remove prize money limits. Read the story.
- The NBA’s 65-game rule is in the spotlight again, as Cade Cunningham and Anthony Edwards are both ineligible for season-long awards including All-NBA. Read the story.
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The slot values for the upcoming 2026 MLB draft are now set, and there is another chance at history this summer.
The league has finalized the overall draft bonus pool at $358.7 million this year, up 2.5% from a year ago. That bump, tied to overall league revenue, is smaller than the 4.8% lift last year and the 8.7% one in 2024. Still, there are several milestones within the new slot figures.
- The White Sox, holding the No. 1 pick after winning the draft lottery in December, will have a record $11.35 million slot value for that pick, up from a $11.08 million slot value to start the 2025 draft.
- The Pirates have the most overall money to work with, and the team’s total draft bonus pool of $19.1 million is an MLB record. In addition to having the No. 5 pick, Pittsburgh will also select at No. 34 by gaining a competitive-balance choice, and at No. 51 as compensation for failing to sign 2025 second-round choice Angel Cervantes. The Pirates’ total pool beats the prior league record of $18.3 million, set by the Guardians in 2024.
- The two-time defending champion Dodgers, not surprisingly, have the league’s smallest bonus pool at $3.95 million. The club’s first pick won’t happen until No. 40, as it was dropped 10 slots for exceeding the second level of the league’s competitive-balance tax. The Dodgers have also surrendered selections in the draft’s second, third, fifth, and sixth rounds after signing free agents Edwin Díaz and Kyle Tucker.
While the slot values provide guidance for the signing bonuses, and there are penalties for extreme overspending beyond a team’s overall bonus pool, the deals are not entirely locked in like NFL and NBA rookie-level contracts.
As a result, MLB clubs routinely go above and below the slot values. Last year’s No. 1 draft choice, shortstop Eli Willits by the Nationals, ultimately signed for an $8.2 million bonus—in turn saving Washington nearly $3 million with that below-slot deal and allowing them to reallocate some of that money to other deals.
The overall MLB signing bonus record remains $9.25 million, held by 2024 selections Chase Burns (Reds) and Charlie Condon (Rockies). Ethan Holliday, picked at No. 4 last year by Colorado, had 2025’s largest bonus deal at $9 million, a league record for a high school player.
This year’s MLB draft will be held July 11–12 in Philadelphia as part of the 2026 All-Star Game events. The consensus top available talent, and the likely choice by the White Sox, is UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky. With the new structure in place, it’s quite possible he could sign for a record bonus, complete the first such deal to reach eight figures, or both.
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A softball game between the Stetson Hatters and Florida Gators on Wednesday was briefly paused as players, coaches, and spectators looked skyward. About an hour south at Kennedy Space Center, the Artemis II rocket launched on a mission to the moon. Stetson posted on X/Twitter the moment Florida’s Madison Walker pointed to the rocket in the sky, turning everyone’s attention and causing play to pause.
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“You look everywhere and you see the shot. And then the inbox is all filled.”
—UConn’s Braylon Mullins on the reaction to his game-winning shot against Duke in the NCAA men’s basketball quarterfinal. Mullins, whose agent is handling his social media right now, said he’s holding off on NIL opportunities until the Huskies’ season ends.
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Kansas men’s basketball ⬆⬇ Coach Bill Self announced Thursday night he would return for his 24th season, after saying he’d meet with family to discuss what comes next following the Jayhawks’ second-round NCAA tournament loss two weeks ago. Self has had multiple health scares in the past three seasons. That said, Kansas is also losing its third-leading scorer in forward Flory Bidunga, who will declare for the NBA draft while maintaining college eligibility and entering the transfer portal.
Konnor Griffin ⬆ The Pirates shortstop, ranked as 2026’s No. 1 MLB prospect by ESPN, is set to make his major league debut Friday afternoon against the Orioles. Griffin signed a nine-year, $140 million contract with the Pirates on Thursday, the largest contract for a player yet to make an MLB debut. The previous record was set just Tuesday with the Mariners’ top prospect Colt Emerson, who signed an eight-year, $95 million deal.
FC Barcelona Femení ⬆ The squad defeated archrival Real Madrid 6–0 on Thursday in the UEFA Women’s Champions League quarterfinal, eliminating Madrid from the competition. Alongside the win, the Barcelona women also drew a crowd of 60,067 at the Camp Nou stadium—the largest men’s or women’s crowd at the venue since it reopened in November after closing for two years due to renovation.
Golf fans ⬇ Spectators at this year’s Masters will miss a few familiar faces. For the first time since 1994, neither Phil Mickelson nor Tiger Woods will be at Augusta. Six-time major champion Mickelson announced Thursday he would not be competing in the tournament, as his family deals with a personal health matter. Woods also announced he is “stepping away” to seek treatment following his recent DUI arrest.
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 | The 14-year-old wants to be an artist for the Walt Disney Co. |
 | The Bears QB has put money into sports, tech, and wellness start-ups. |
 | Taylor Zarzour is filling in for Mike Tirico on SiriusXM this year. |
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