The first day of the 2026 MLB Draft has concluded, and the elite 2026 Texas Longhorns recruiting class can be found throughout the first four rounds.

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To no one’s surprise, elite infield prospect Grady Emerson went in the first three picks, being selected second overall by the Tampa Bay Rays.

Emerson has one of the best pure hit tools in the draft, if not THE best over the last two years, and possesses the potential to stick at shortstop and add power in the minors. If it all comes together, we may be looking at a Gunnar Henderson-level prospect.

Texas had little to no hope that Emerson would ever make it to campus. He’ll make nearly $10 million from his signing bonus, but what happens after him is very interesting.

The consensus second prep player expected to go in the draft was LHP Brody Bumila, at least for 95% of this draft process. But earlier this week, it was announced that Bumila had a UCL injury on his left elbow, the second injury to his throwing arm in as many years.

This morning, prep LHP Brody Bumila shared an MRI with MLB teams that revealed a UCL injury in his left elbow, per sources.

The 6-foot-9 Texas commit had an internal brace procedure in 2025 and came back this spring regularly hitting 100+ mph.

— Kiley McDaniel (@kileymcd) July 6, 2026

Bumila may need Tommy John Surgery, which brought a lot of question marks to his draft stock. In June he was a consensus top 30-40 pick with a high slot value in the draft, but after the injury news, will his stock and value drop enough for him to make it to campus?

It definitely felt possible after the results of tonight, as Bumila fell all the way into the third round to pick 89 to the Texas Rangers. The slot value is just above $900,000, though he’ll likely be offered north of $1 million to sign with the AL West squad.

In fact, it’s been reported that Bumila may receive first-round money despite his late selection by the Rangers. Odds of him making it to Austin remain low.

Lefty Brody Bumila, the #Rangers‘ 6-foot-9 third-rounder, told reporters in Massachusetts he was offered first-round money. He also needs elbow surgery for the second time and will have it next week with Dr. Keith Meister. Hit 100 mph this season.

— Jeff Wilson (@JeffWilsonTXR) July 11, 2026

Following Bumila was Cooper Harris, and it wasn’t long after. Harris was selected with the 106th pick of the MLB Draft by the Washington Nationals, a spot where he will likely earn a signing bonus north of $800K. Harris was a major threat to be selected in the first three rounds, which Texas avoided, but it is still significant draft capital to overcome if Texas hopes to get the talented righty on the 40 Acres.

Beau Peterson was the next to go, this time in the competitive balance portion at the end of the fourth round. The Houston Astros used pick 133 on the hyper-talented lefty hitting third baseman with a slot value of $569,000.

He’s a player Texas would absolutely love to bring to campus, and there had been some buzz around Texas’ chances improving going into the draft, but that is still a solid draft position and potential signing bonus for a player of Peterson’s caliber to earn out of high school.

That was it, though, for the Texas prep players. Important names like Hayes Holton, James Jorgenson and especially Trey Rangel were not selected on the first day, a strong sign for the Texas freshman pitching class that could be special if those three names, among others, make it to campus.

Rangel is one of the best prospects still available in this draft, and top projections had him as high as a third-round pick.

Instead, he’ll have to wait till day two, and with uncertainty comes a chance for Texas pitching coach Max Weiner and head coach Jim Schlossnagle to convince him to come to Austin.

These four prep players headlined the draft for Texas, but there were three other expected selections from the college level, as well.

Carson Tinney was the first off the board, going at pick 43 to the Minnesota Twins. It took a surprising amount of time to hear Aiden Robbins’ name next, but he was taken by the New York Mets at pick 92, just to have division rivals Philadelphia Phillies take RHP Ruger Riojas just 8 picks later to round out the top 100.

Relief arms like Thomas Burns and Haiden Leffew were not selected, and those two names alongside the three pitchers mentioned above will be the focus of Day 2 of the draft for Longhorn fans.