The 2026 MLB Draft begins on Saturday, July 11, at 10 a.m. PT, but it’s going to be a far quieter time than normal for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Teams start with a base of 20 picks in the annual Draft, and they can add or lose them as a result of trades, signings and free agent losses. The Dodgers have already been penalized multiple draft picks for their free agent signings and had their first pick moved back.
That means the Dodgers have only 16 selections in the 2026 MLB Draft, with no first-round pick and no compensation-round picks.
The Dodgers would have picked 30th overall in the first round, but their first selection was dropped 10 slots as a penalty for exceeding the second surcharge threshold of the Competitive Balance Tax during the 2025 season.
The Dodgers also signed both Kyle Tucker and Edwin Díaz during the offseason, and both players rejected qualifying offers from their previous teams. That further penalized the Dodgers four more of their selections.
To sign Diaz, the Dodgers surrendered their second- and fifth-highest selections in this year’s Draft. To sign Tucker, the Dodgers then forfeited their third- and sixth-highest selections.
That means the Dodgers were penalized with their second-, third-, fifth-, and sixth-round picks for signing the two free agents. However, the Dodgers still have a second-round pick because their first-round pick moved back into the second round.
The Dodgers were forced to give up those picks to sign the players after surpassing the third competitive balance tax threshold last season.
This is the first time the Dodgers have ever signed two players with a qualifying offer attached to them in the same offseason. They previously gave up draft compensation to sign Shohei Ohtani (2024), Freddie Freeman (2022), Trevor Bauer (2021) and AJ Pollock (2019).
After losing four picks and not having a first-round selection, the Dodgers have the smallest bonus pool in MLB by a significant amount.
The Dodgers have just $3,951,900 available to sign their draft selections. The next lowest club is the Toronto Blue Jays with $5,543,100, and every other team except the New York Mets ($6.7 million) has at least $7.3 million available.
The Pittsburgh Pirates have the most available money with $19,130,700, and the Tampa Bay Rays are right behind them with $19,009,300. They are the only two clubs to exceed $17,592,100 (Chicago White Sox).
Day 1 of the Draft consists of rounds 1-4, Prospect Promotion Incentive Picks, two Competitive Balance Rounds and a handful of compensation picks, totaling 135 selections. Day 2 of the 2026 MLB Draft gets underway Sunday, July 12, at 8:30 a.m. PT and ends at 4:45 PT.
Dodgers Draft picks 2026
Round 2: 40th overall ($2,504,200)
Round 4: 132nd overall ($575,300)
Round 7: 223rd overall ($260,300)
Round 8: 253rd overall ($218,500)
Round 9: 283rd overall ($201,700)
Round 10: 313th overall ($191,900)
Round 11: 343rd overall
Round 12: 373rd overall
Round 13: 403rd overall
Round 14: 433rd overall
Round 15: 463rd overall
Round 16: 493rd overall
Round 17: 523rd overall
Round 18: 553rd overall
Round 19: 583rd overall
Round 20: 613th overall
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