Minnesota Twins Fall in MLB Draft Lottery

Now a staple of the MLB Winter Meetings, the MLB Draft Lottery took place on Tuesday night. The Minnesota Twins came in with the second-best odds to land the No. 1 overall pick, and a short history of moving both directions on lottery night.

The MLB Draft Lottery was introduced just two years ago (December, 2023), and it immediately paid dividends for the Minnesota Twins. That winter, they entered the lottery with the 13th-best odds (out of 18) to land the top pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, but left with the fifth overall selection, jumping EIGHT spots.

They went on to select Walker Jenkins with that pick. He’s been one of baseball’s top prospects since that day. In 2026, he’s expected to start the season at Triple-A, but if all goes well, he could very well make his big league debut in 2026.

Minnesota Twins Drop in 2026 MLB Draft Lottery

Last winter, they weren’t so lucky, moving from the 12th position to 16th. On Tuesday, the MN Twins came in trailing only the Chicago White Sox, in their likelihood to secure the top selection, one of the few silver linings to a 92-loss season.

Unfortunately, the ping-pong balls did not bounce the Twins’ way. Instead of rising up to that top selection, they moved one spot in the opposite direction, falling from No. 2 overall to No. 3 overall.

The official 2026 #MLBDraft order 👏

(MLB x @Nike) pic.twitter.com/wqtWP8yBEE

— MLB (@MLB) December 9, 2025

Chicago retained the top pick in the 2026 MLB Draft, while Tampa Bay leapfrogged Minnesota. The Rays entered the lottery with the seventh-best odds (3.03%) of landing the top pick, jumping five total spots to No. 2.

Missing out on the top pick is disappointing, especially with UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky — an organizational gamechanger — viewed as the consensus top prospect. Instead of putting on a Twins uniform, he’ll land with AL Central Division rival, Chicago.

Several other shortstops are also projected near the top of the draft, including Grady Emerson (Texas, HS), Justin Lebron (Alabama), and Jacob Lombard (Florida, SS).

jacob lombard (gulliver prep, fl) is the top prep athlete on the board.

über defender at short. 106.8 mph exit velo. https://t.co/CBJx6CL3G4

— parker hageman (@HagemanParker) December 9, 2025

Lombard is the son of longtime baseball executive George Lombard and the brother of George Lombard Jr., a top prospect in the Yankees’ system. The elder Lombard was previously mentioned as a potential managerial candidate for the Twins before Derek Shelton was hired.

Another name to watch is Georgia Tech outfielder Drew Buress, a high-end power bat who could appeal to Minnesota if the organization believes its farm system is already flush with middle-infield talent.

The 2026 MLB Draft will take place during the All-Star Break this summer. Major League Baseball will also hold the Rule 5 Draft on Wednesday, where the Twins could be at risk of losing multiple players.