2026 DRAFT PROSPECTS - Five Possible 3rd Round Mets Picks

 

Five Possible 3^rd Round Picks - MLB

Jason DeCaro       RHP  North Carolina

6' 5"    230

Scouting grades: Fastball: 50 | Curveball: 50 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 50 | Overall: 45

As a New York high schooler, DeCaro reclassified from the 2024 Draft to '23 and got an early jump on his college career at North Carolina. He looked like a potential 2026 first-rounder when he cracked the Tar Heels rotation as a 17-year-old freshman, but scouts aren't sure what to make of him because his stuff leveled off last spring. His feel for pitching has allowed him to thrive in college and make the U.S. Collegiate National Team each of the last two summers.

While DeCaro gets outs, he doesn't miss a lot of bats or land his secondary pitches in the zone consistently. His fastball has ordinary velocity (91-94 mph, peak of 97) and shape but generates weak contact. His low-80s changeup has significant fade that fools hitters, while his tight low-80s slider and upper-70s curveball are merely average.

DeCaro keeps batters off balance by sequencing his pitches well and he throws consistent strikes from an upright delivery. Unless he improves the velocity and quality of his arsenal, he profiles more as a durable high-floor starter than someone who will pitch in the front half of a rotation. He's extremely young for a college junior (20 years, three months on Draft day) but doesn't have a lot of projection remaining in his strong 6-foot-5 frame.

 

Mason Edwards 

LHP, Southern California

6' 2"      190

Scouting grades: Fastball: 50 | Curveball: 55 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 50 | Overall: 45

Edwards is a Los Angeles area native who attended Palisades High School, earning back-to-back league pitcher of the year honors as well as consecutive first-team all-city nods in 2022 and 2023. After heading just a stone’s throw away to Southern Cal for college, the left-hander served as a swingman type for the Trojans, amassing just over 70 innings combined. A strong fall showing and the expectation of him potentially leading the weekend rotation in the spring has the scouting industry’s interest piqued.

In many ways, Edwards fits the prototype of a college lefty with a feel for pitching. He has a solid three-pitch mix and knows how to use it effectively. While his fastball typically sits in the 91-93 mph range, he can touch 95. There is some carry and “darkness” to his heater, leading to a 30-percent miss rate on the pitch in 2025, according to Synergy. He’ll throw his slurvy breaking ball around 80 mph, and the curve flashes as a plus pitch with excellent spin. He has good feel for an above-average changeup with good fade that also can miss bats.

Teams will like that Edwards will just be turning 21 immediately after the Draft. The fact that his strike-throwing has improved since he got to campus won’t hurt, either, as he showed excellent command during his work this fall. He has all the ingredients needed to be a solid starting pitcher. If he can show his stuff can hold up over a full spring in the rotation, he’ll float up Draft boards.

 

Andrew Williamson

OF, Central Florida

6' 0"    195

Scouting grades: Hit: 50 | Power: 50 | Run: 55 | Arm: 55 | Field: 50 | Overall: 45

The nephew of long-time big leaguer Sean Rodriguez, Williamson has been a member of the starting outfield at Central Florida pretty much since the start of his freshman year in 2024. That first season was fairly nondescript, but an MVP turn in the wood bat Cal Ripken League that summer led to a big step forward as a sophomore with the Knights. He finished the 2025 season with an 1.110 OPS, 13 homers and 13 steals, putting him in position to join former UCF teammate Antonio Jimenez, a third-rounder of the Mets last year, as an early-round selection.

Williamson is a strong and compact left-handed hitter who gives off some Alek Thomas or Nate McLouth type vibes. He has the chance to hit, with some power, showing a solid overall approach that led to small strikeout and high walk rates in '25. There’s a little hitch in his swing at the start, with a drop in his hands and a barrel tilt that can affect his timing, leading some to worry a little bit about his hit tool. But he has a quick swing with plenty of bat speed, and he’s shown he can get to his solid raw pop in games, particularly to his pull side.

An above-average runner who didn’t get thrown out in 13 attempts to steal a year ago, Williamson played center as a freshman but moved to right field last year and is likely to stay in a corner in 2026. He has the arm to profile well there, but a team interested in taking him could very well give him the chance to play up the middle, which would raise his profile.

 

Rookie Shepard

SS, Faith Lutheran (NV)

6' 0"      185

COMMITTED - Miami

Scouting grades: Hit: 50 | Power: 45 | Run: 55 | Arm: 50 | Field: 50 | Overall: 45

Over the last two years, the Southisene family had a stranglehold on the “best player from Nevada” mantle, with Tate going in the first round last year and Ty a fourth-round pick in 2024. In 2026, the baton is being taken up by another high schooler in Shepard, an athletic infielder who has jumped on the radar by showing off his skills at MLB events like the Breakthrough Series and the High School All-American Game, to go along with showcase stops like Perfect Game National and the Area Code Games.

Listed at 6-foot and 190 pounds, Shepard is a compact and toolsy left-handed-hitting middle infielder with some thump. He’s shown off strong bat-to-ball skills with an advanced approach at times, though some evaluators liked him better as a sophomore than during his junior year, and he did struggle with some swing-and-miss on secondary stuff over the summer.

Shepard runs well and can steal a base, and his plus athleticism has allowed him to play a number of positions capably as an amateur. His arm is probably a little shy to man shortstop long-term at the next level, but the Miami recruit has good enough hands and actions to stay on the dirt at second base, while also showing acumen to play center field.

 

Anthony Murphy

OF, Corona (CA)

6' 0"      190

COMMITTED - Louisiana State

Scouting grades: Hit: 45 | Power: 55 | Run: 55 | Arm: 55 | Field: 60 | Overall: 45

In 2025, California prep power Corona High School saw three players get taken in the first 32 picks of the Draft. Murphy was arguably the best offensive performer on the team that saw right-hander Seth Hernandez and shortstop Billy Carlson go in the top 10 and Brady Ebel go No. 32 overall, with the outfielder hitting over .400 and slamming 11 homers as a junior. Murphy raised his profile at MLB Develops events like the Hank Aaron Invitational and Breakthrough Series, while shining at MLB’s High School All-American Game and winning a gold medal with Team USA at the WSBC U-18 World Cup in Japan.

A strong, physically mature right-handed-hitting outfielder, Murphy’s two standout tools are his raw power and his defense. He has at least plus raw pop and has shown he can get to it in games in high school, but there are questions about his hit tool moving forward. He likes to change his swing and fiddle with his setup a lot, and there’s been a good amount of swing-and-miss and chase as a result, though there’s some conviction that finding consistency in his mechanics should allow him to find the barrel enough.

A plus runner, Murphy is considered by some area scouts to be one of the best defensive outfielders they’ve seen in recent memory. He can play center field and if he slows down and moves to right, he has more than enough arm for the spot. All of the LSU recruit’s tools play up because of his full-throttle, hard-nosed play, giving more confidence he’ll maximize his ability as a pro.