Seven Former Rox Picked in 2026 MLB Draft

(KNSI) – Seven former St. Cloud Rox players heard their names called in the 2026 MLB Draft, joining a list of more than 100 fellow Rox to be selected. Tyson LeBlanc, Kade Lewis, Brady Ballinger, Marcus Kruzan, Dallis Moran, Weber Neels and JP Robertson all added their names to the list between Saturday and Sunday.

LeBlanc joined the Rox in 2025 after two years at LSU-Eunice, where he played for Rox field manager Nick Studdard. The shortstop was a vital piece of the 2025 Rox squad that posted the best record in the Great Plains, batting .345 with 51 hits in 41 games. After his summer in St. Cloud, LeBlanc moved on to the Kansas Jayhawks, where he was named the 2026 Big 12 Baseball Tournament Most Outstanding Player and earned All-American honors from multiple outlets. He became the highest-drafted position player in Kansas program history when the Detroit Tigers took him 61st overall.

Lewis, a member of the 2024 Rox, grew up just down the road in Sartell, where he graduated from Sartell High School and was named the 2022 St. Cloud Times Player of the Year. He began his college career at Butler, where he was the BIG EAST Freshman of the Year, before joining the Rox in 2024 and collecting 13 hits. Lewis transferred to Wake Forest for the 2025 season and took another step forward in 2026, leading the Demon Deacons with a .354 batting average. The Cleveland Guardians selected him 123rd overall.

Ballinger, another former Jayhawk who played for the Rox, was taken by the Detroit Tigers with the 216th pick. Ballinger spent the 2025 season in St. Cloud, showing patience at the plate with 25 walks and driving in 15 runs in 19 games. He started his college career at Southern Nevada before earning All-Big 12 honors, All-American honors and an invitation to a USA Baseball Collegiate National Team training camp during his time at Kansas.

Kruzan, a two-year member of the Rox, was selected 371st overall by the Milwaukee Brewers. Over his two seasons in St. Cloud, Kruzan pitched 30.1 innings and struck out 38 batters. He was a 2025 All-Summit League First Team selection at the University of St. Thomas before transferring to the University of Minnesota, where he made 12 starts for the Golden Gophers this spring.

Moran, who pitched for St. Cloud in 2024, was chosen 474th overall by the St. Louis Cardinals. He threw 8.2 innings with 10 strikeouts for the Rox that season, then struck out 43 batters over 28 innings for Stetson University this spring.

Neels, selected 556th overall by the Arizona Diamondbacks, drove in 15 runs for the Rox in 2023. He wrapped up his fourth year at the University of Minnesota by earning a spot on the 2026 Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year midseason watchlist and hitting .337 for the Golden Gophers.

Robertson, an All-Star with the Rox in 2025, heads to the San Francisco Giants organization after being selected 598th overall. He made 11 starts for St. Cloud that summer, including one in the postseason, and led the Northwoods League with 59 strikeouts in the regular season. Robertson was a key piece of an Ole Miss pitching staff that reached the Men’s College World Series in 2026, striking out 49 batters over 22 appearances this spring.

The seven newest draft picks add their names to the long line of talented players who have come through St. Cloud on their way to professional baseball.

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