The Tampa Bay Rays 2026 draft is starting to take shape with the announcement of the Competitive Balance picks (below) and the upcoming draft lottery to be conducted on Dec 9.
Here’s where the Rays odds stand today, per mlb.com:
White Sox (.370) — 27.73%Twins (.432) — 22.18%Pirates (.438) — 16.81%Orioles (.463) — 9.24%A’s (.469) — 6.55%Braves (.469) — 4.54%Rays (.475) — 3.03%Cardinals (.481) — 2.35%Marlins (.488) — 1.85%D-backs (.494) — 1.51%Rangers (.500) — 1.34%Giants (.500) — 1.01%Royals (.506) — 0.84%Mets (.512) — 0.67%Astros (.537) — 0.34%Rockies (.265) — ineligibleNationals (.407) — ineligibleAngels (.444) — ineligible
The Rockies are ineligible from getting into the draft lottery due to their participation in each of the last two seasons, while the Nationals and Angels cannot participate in consecutive years while also being “payors” into MLB’s revenue sharing mechanism.
Following these picks will be reverse order of win percentage for both the end of the first round, followed by a litany of other picks that can be awarded or lost through various events in the off-season, heading into Competitive Balance Round A, and then reverse order of winning percentage again for Round 2, followed by Comp Round B. This year the Rays were awarded a pick toward the end of Round B.
Of note: Competitive Balance picks are the only draft selections that are tradeable assets, something the Rays engaged in just before the 2025 draft, when the team traded the 37th pick of the 2025 MLB draft to the Baltimore Orioles for right-handed reliever Bryan Baker, a polarizing decision in baseball front office circles given the timing. The Rays had previously acquired another Comp selection later in the 2025 draft.
The MLB Draft Lottery will be conducted Dec. 9 during the Winter Meetings.
