The gap between the end of the regular season and the start of the Arizona Fall League has a different feeling in 2026 because of the MLB Wild Card Series. This year, two MLB Draft League alumnus are rostered, with the White Sox’ Sam Antonacci (West Virginia ‘22) becoming the first to start a postseason game as he led off for Chicago in Game 1 on Tuesday. In the series opener, the former Black Bear recorded a two-run single in the second inning, extending the lead to 3-0 and came around to score later in the game. In the clinching Game 2, Antonacci led off the game with a double and scored during the next at-bat.
In the same series, Logan VanWey (Trenton ‘21) was the first Draft League pitcher to take the mound in postseason action during Game 1, retiring the lone batter he faced to end the sixth inning.
This week, with the regular season over, we highlight the Major League alumnus as well as those ranked in their organization’s Top 30 rankings by MLB Pipeline.
Previous Alumni Reports: 2025 Recap | Offseason Update | Prospect Update | Opening Weeks | April 16 | April 23 | April 30 | May 7 | May 14 | May 21 | May 28 | June 4 | June 11 | June 18 | June 25 | July 2 | July 9 | July 16 | July 23 | July 30 | Aug. 6 | Aug. 13 | Aug. 20 | Aug. 27 | Sept. 3 | Sept. 10 | Sept. 17 | Sept. 24
MLB Regular Season Recap
The 2026 MLB season was a historic one amongst MLB Draft League alumni as 17 different players appeared in at least one game with 11 of those being MLB debuts, both a Draft League record.
Former players who reached the sports’ highest level for the first time include:
TJ Rumfield (COL, TRN ‘21) - MLB Debut: March 27, Opening Day. 155 G, .300/.390/.453 (.843 OPS), 16 HR, 3 3B, 30 2B, 73 RBI, 67 R
Tyler Uberstine (BOS/ATL, WIL ‘21) - MLB Debut: April 5 (BOS). G, 2.2 IP, R, 3 H, BB, 2 K
Duncan Davitt (CHW/SF, MV ‘22) - MLB Debut: April 10 (CHW). 6 G, 8 IP, 7.88 ERA, 5 K, 1.75 WHIP, .303 BAA
Sam Antonacci (CHW, WV ‘22) - MLB Debut: April 15. 140 G, .277/.370/.396 (.766 OPS), 8 HR, 4 3B, 25 2B, 81 R, 48 RBI, 20 SB
Eduardo Rivera (BOS, WIL ‘21) - MLB Debut: April 22. 4/3 G/S, 10 IP, 6.30 ERA, 10 K, 1.40 WHIP, .211 BAA
Zac Thornton (NYM, MV ‘22/WV ‘23) - MLB Debut: May 20. 15 GS, 5-6, 84.1 IP, 3.42 ERA, 63 K, 1.14 WHIP, .248 BAA
Mitch Bratt (AZ, WV ‘21) - MLB Debut: June 24. 10 GS, 1-3, 44 IP, 4.70 ERA, 30 K, 1.52 WHIP, .244 BAA
Kohl Drake (AZ, MV ‘22) - MLB Debut: July 21. 5 GS, 20.2 IP, 6.53 ERA, 17 K, 1.50 WHIP, .293 BAA
Kenny Piper (TB, SC ‘21) - MLB Debut: Aug. 3. 14 G, .222/.364/.556 (.920 OPS), HR, 4 R, 2 RBI, SB
Nate Lavender (NYM, MV ‘21) - MLB Debut: Aug. 4. 21 G, 1-0, 21.2 IP, 1.66 ERA, 26 K, 0.74 WHIP, .160 BAA
Turner Hill (SF, WV ‘22) - MLB Debut: Aug. 15. 34 G, .219/.306/.314 (.620 OPS), HR, 7 2B, 16 RBI, 13 R, 2 SB
Former players who returned to MLB for another season, debuting prior to 2026, include:
Nathan Church (STL, SC ‘21) - 142 G, .247/.290/.364 (.654 OPS), 10 HR, 2 3B, 17 2B, 53 R, 50 RBI, 10 SB
Jonathan Pintaro (NYM, FRE ‘21/22) - 22 G, 2-3, 30.2 IP, 30 K, 1.37 WHIP, .239 BAA
Jonah Tong (NYM, ‘22 FRE) - 7/4 G/S, 2-2, 30.2 IP, 3.82 ERA, 34 K, 1.24 WHIP, .211 BAA
Zach Dezenzo (HOU, ‘21 FRE/’22 MV) - 35 G, HR, 4 2B, 11 R, 3 RBI, SB
Logan VanWey (HOU, ‘21 TRN) - 10 G, 1-0, 12.2 IP, 1.42 ERA, 9 K, 0.95 WHIP, .256 BAA
Andrew Hoffmann (AZ/PHI, ‘21 MV) - 8 G, 1-0, 11.2 IP, 12 K
Position Players
2022 State College Spikes | Cubs No. 2, MLB No. 91 Prospect
Season: 125 G, .289/.403/.526 (.929 OPS), 25 HR, 3B, 29 2B, 82 RBI, 80 R, 13 SB
Elliot Lascelles (SDP, Single-A)
2025-26 Baseball Canada Junior National Team | Padres No. 5 Prospect
Season: 15 G, .321/.406/.429 (.835 OPS), 3B, 4 2B, 5 RBI, 11 R, 6 SB
2025 Williamsport Crosscutters | Mariners No. 13 Prospect
Season: 112 G, .274/.424/.566 (.990 OPS), 31 HR, 4 3B, 12 2B, 84 RBI, 93 R, 11 SB
Joseph Sullivan (HOU, Double-A)
2023 Williamsport Crosscutters | Astros No. 15 Prospect
Season: 80 G, .221/.327/.391 (.718 OPS), 11 HR, 2 3B, 13 2B, 38 RBI, 47 R, 20 SB
2023 Mahoning Valley Scrappers | Athletics No. 21 Prospect
Season: 106 G, .286/.389/.463 (.852 OPS), 13 HR, 3 3B, 26 2B, 76 R, 60 RBI, 28 SB
2023 State College Spikes | Astros No. 23 Prospect
Season: 99 G, .233/.376/.381 (.757 OPS), 13 HR, 12 2B, 44 RBI, 52 R, 17 SB
Truitt Madonna (SDP, Single-A)
2025 Frederick Keys | Padres No. 24 Prospect
Season: 102 G, .201/.324/.319 (.643 OPS), 4 HR, 3 3B, 23 2B, 46 RBI, 53 R, 16 SB
Bruin Agbayani (NYM, Single-A)
2025 Frederick Keys | Mets No. 28 Prospect
Season: 13 G, .245/.375/.321 (.696 OPS), 4 2B, 8 RBI, 13 R, 3 SB
2023 Trenton Thunder | Braves No. 29 Prospect
Season: 69 G, .264/.342/.443 (.785 OPS), 12 HR, 14 2B, 36 RBI, 52 R, 19 SB
2024 Trenton Thunder | Guardians No. 29 Prospect
Season: 75 G, .291/.363/.588 (.921 OPS), 20 HR, 16 2B, 57 RBI, 57 R, 21 SB
2022 Mahoning Valley Scrappers | Astros No. 29 Prospect
Season: 110 G, .209/.352/.312 (.664 OPS), 8 HR, 14 2B, 40 RBI, 65 R, 39 SB
Pitchers
Jack Wenninger (NYM, Triple-A)
2023 Williamsport Crosscutters | Mets No. 8 Prospect
Season: 26/22 G/S, 5-8, 4.54 ERA, 115 IP, 123 K, 1.46 WHIP, .235 ERA
2025 Trenton Thunder | Nationals No. 10 Prospect
Season: 23 GS, 2-3, 2.99 ERA, 72.1 IP, 130 K, 1.41 WHIP, .153 BAA
2021 West Virginia Black Bears | Diamondbacks No. 12 Prospect
Season (MiLB): 16 GS, 1-3, 3.43 ERA, 63 IP, 60 K, 1.14 WHIP, .219 BAA
2021 Williamsport Crosscutters | Athletics No. 14 Prospect
Season: 17/15 G/S, 41.2 IP, 51 K, .268 BAA
Eduardo Rivera (BOS, Triple-A)
2021 Williamsport Crosscutters | Red Sox No. 18 Prospect
Season (MiLB): 26/5 G/S, 7-2, 2.59 ERA, 55.2 IP, 71 K, 1.24 WHIP, .197 BAA
2023 State College Spikes | Cardinals No. 21
Season: 24/22 G/S, 5-7, 3.19 ERA, 96 IP, 143 K, 1.39 WHIP, .199 BAA
2024 Trenton Thunder | Marlins No. 21 Prospect
Season: 23/21 G/S, 10-0, SV, 1.72 ERA, 110 IP, 127 K, 0.91 WHIP, .186 BAA
2022 Mahoning Valley Scrappers | Diamondbacks No. 22 Prospect
Season (MiLB): 21/19 G/S, 3-9, 7.51 ERA, 80.1 IP, 67 K, 1.78 WHIP, .293 BAA
2025 Baseball Canada Junior National Team | Guardians No. 23 Prospect
Season: 16/14 G/S, 6.47 ERA, 57 IP, 41 K, 1.75 WHIP
Cedric De Grandpre (ATL, Triple-A)
2022 West Virginia Black Bears | Braves No. 25 Prospect
Season: 27/26 G/S, 11-7, 4.23 ERA, 129.2 IP, 162 K, 1.28 WHIP, .220 BAA
2026 State College Spikes | Cubs No. 25 Prospect
Season: 2 GS, 7.1 IP, 10 K, 6 H, ER, 5 BB
2023 Mahoning Valley Scrappers | Yankees No. 26 Prospect
Season: 46 G, 6-1, 5 SV, 2.22 ERA, 52.2 IP, 71 K, 0.87 WHIP, .172 ERA
2024 Trenton Thunder | Mets No. 27 Prospect
Season: 24/23 G/S, 4-10, 5.30 ERA, 93.1 IP, 121 K, 1.32 WHIP, .231 BAA
2023 West Virginia Black Bears | Royals No. 30 Prospect
Season: 40 G, 5-3, 3 SV, 3.42 ERA, 55.1 IP, 106 K, 1.19 WHIP, .142 BAA
Garrett Hawkins (SDP, Triple-A)
2021 Trenton Thunder | Padres No. 30 Prospect
Season: 42 G, 2-1, 2 SV, 5.47 ERA, 54.1 IP, 65 K, 1.55 WHIP, .235 BAA
Draft History
The MLB Draft League has found success in the MLB Draft through its first five seasons with 291 players drafted and another 200+ signing as free agents for a total of over 450 players placed in affiliated baseball. A complete list of MLB Draft League graduates who have moved on to the next level can be found here.
For more information about the MLB Draft League, visit mlbdraftleague.com or follow @mlbdraftleague and @draftleaguedata on X, and @mlbdraftleague on Instagram.
