Baylor Baseball's Lucas Davenport, Tyce Armstrong Selected in 2026 MLB Draft

Baylor baseball had two players selected in the 2026 MLB Draft: right-handed pitcher Lucas Davenport was taken in the fifth round (No. 156 overall) by the Boston Red Sox, and first baseman Tyce Armstrong was picked in the 19th round (No. 578) by the New York Yankees.

Davenport became the highest overall selection of the Mitch Thompson Era and was Baylor’s ace, finishing the regular season with a 5-4 record, a 5.61 ERA and a stellar 68-to-14 strikeout-to-walk ratio across 61 innings pitched, while earning All-Big 12 Honorable Mention. His redshirt junior campaign was highlighted by a complete-game performance against Texas Tech on May 2, as well as a 12-strikeout showing against BYU on April 2.

As a redshirt sophomore, Davenport was one of Baylor’s go-to arms out of the bullpen, where he logged a 4.25 ERA across 42.1 frames. Prior to coming to Waco, he was Blinn College’s ace and helped lead the Buccaneers to a National Championship in 2024. He tossed a complete game against Northwest Florida State in the title game, throwing 135 pitches and striking out eight without allowing a walk.

Meanwhile, Armstrong had one of the best slugging seasons in program history as he shattered Baylor’s single-season home run record with 24 long balls, while leading the Bears in RBIs (64), runs scored (50), total bases (159) and OPS (1.210). The UTA transfer earned First-Team All-Big 12 and Second-Team All-American honors, and, in his first contest in the Green and Gold, tied an NCAA record by hammering three grand slams in a game against New Mexico State.

Armstrong totaled 18 multi-hit games and paced the Bears with 15 multi-RBI performances in 2026. He also put together a career-best 28-game on-base streak from April 2 through the season finale on May 21. Armstrong homered in 17 of Baylor’s 56 games, recorded six multi-home run performances and became the first Bear in the program’s documented history to homer in five consecutive games from April 26 to May 3.

Since Thompson took over, the Bears have had five players selected across the last four seasons, with Davenport and Armstrong joining shortstop Tyriq Kemp (Kansas City, 6th Round, 2025), right-handed pitcher Gabe Craig (Philadelphia, 6th Round, 2025) and right-handed pitcher Mason Marriott (Arizona: 6th Round, 2024).