The Cincinnati Reds have selected shortstop Justin Lebron out of the University of Alabama with the 18th overall pick in the 2026 Major League Baseball Draft.
Justin Lebron Scouting Report
Height: 6′ 2″ | Weight: 190 lbs.
Bats: Right| Throws: Right | Position: Shortstop
Highest Ranking: 8 (ESPN)
The player with arguably the highest upside in the entire draft, Justin Lebron has some explosive tools to work with. He has plus raw power, plus speed, and he has plus defensive tools. But there are concerns about his ability to hit. And that showed up in college, too.
IN the 2026 season Justin Lebron hit just .277 and had 27 walks with 56 strikeouts. His numbers were much worse than that once he got into SEC play where he hit just .229 in conference play. The low average in college and his downright poor strikeout-to-walk ratio leaves many evaluators with serious concerns about what you can expect to see him to against professional pitchers.
If everything goes right you could see a lower average, but still productive offensive player who hits for plenty of power and steals a lot of bases (he had 42 steals in 43 tries this season for Alabama). That would be coupled with quality defense at shortstop. Overall that’s an incredibly valuable player.
Justin Lebron Stats
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I’ve long held the rule of never draft a hitter who doesn’t walk more than they strikeout in the 1st round as the track record of those types of players becoming quality big league hitters is incredibly low. Lebron had more than twice as many strikeouts as walks as a junior – so he wasn’t remotely close to meeting the criteria I tend to like to see.
This is a pure upside pick. And the upside is high. Real high. But the downside is really low, too. Cincinnati took a guy who didn’t exactly hit all that well in college this season. That means that they need to develop him. The track record for that isn’t exactly sparkling.
You can click here for full coverage for all of the 2026 Cincinnati Reds Draft picks.
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