Kentucky Wildcats News: MLB Draft Recap for UK Baseball

July 13, 2026 · Yahoo Sports

PHILADELPHIA, PA - JULY 11: Commissioner of Major League Baseball Robert D. Manfred announces Tyler Bell as the tenth overall pick by the Colorado Rockies during the 2026 MLB Draft presented by Nippon Express at Pennsylvania Convention Center on Saturday, July 11, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images

Major League Baseball’s annual draft is quite a long one, consisting of 20 rounds and 615 picks over the course of two days.

This past weekend, 613 players achieved their dream by hearing their name called in the draft with quite a few of them being Kentucky Wildcats.

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On Saturday, Tyler Bell was the 10th player selected to get things started. He’s headed to Colorado, and his departure leaves a major hole in Kentucky’s infield. Going in the top 10, he’s the second-highest selection ever for the UK program.

Jaxson Jelkin was also a part of Saturday’s first four rounds, going 135th overall to the Philadelphia Phillies. Going that high means it’s more likely than not that he stays in the draft.

On Sunday, UK had several more players see their names hit the draft board.

Jimmy Anderson (Baltimore Orioles, 5th round), Robert Omidi (Detroit Tigers, 8th round), Connor Mattison (Minnesota Twins, 16th round), Cincinnati Reds (Matt Ponatoski, 18th round), and Nile Adcock (Atlanta Braves, 20th round) all achieved the goal of becoming MLB Draft picks. Anderson and Omidi will likely sign after going in the first 10 rounds, while the early buzz is that Ponatoski will make it to Lexington.

Congratulations to all! Kentucky will certainly have its work cut out in trying to fill the void left by the guys who opt to sign with their MLB teams.

Tweet of the Day

No one does the ⚫️&🔵 like us.

See for yourself on Nov. 14 https://t.co/RUqsfg4Qab pic.twitter.com/k75BlXbXfE
— Kentucky Football (@UKFootball) July 12, 2026