Walnut Creek alumni shine at 2026 MLB Draft

It took just four picks into the 2026 MLB Draft for a former Walnut Creek Crawdad to be selected. Just 11 picks later, the next one flew off the board. Then, they kept coming.

When all was said and done, eight former Crawdads were selected by MLB organizations, including three day one picks, two in the top 15, and the fourth overall selection.

Now in his fourth summer with the Crawdads and having had the opportunity to play with many of the drafted players, senior pitcher Noah Zirkle sees how important the 2026 draft was.

"This draft cemented us as the best program around," Zirkle said. "That's the level of baseball we run around here."

The first Crawdad alum off the board was pitcher Jackson Flora, who became the joint-highest CCL alum drafted after he went fourth overall to the San Francisco Giants.

Playing for Walnut Creek right out of high school in 2023, Flora pitched 9.1 innings across three games for the Crawdads, striking out 12 batters and allowing five earned runs.

A current Crawdad who had the opportunity to sit in the bullpen with Flora is senior pitcher Ryan DeLaney, who has spent every summer since 2023 in the Creek. 

"He had a good work ethic. He showed up every day and competed," DeLaney said, before joking about how Flora delivered in college. "He was a good pitcher, obviously. Had a pretty good career. Made something for himself."

From there, he went to UC Santa Barbara, playing three years and posting a 1.06 ERA as a junior.

Next off the board for the Crawdads was catcher Ryder Helfrick, picked 15th overall by the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Also playing on the 2023 Crawdads, Helfrick played 14 games and slashed .362/.492/.489, tallying 11 RBIs as well.

DeLaney also had the opportunity to see just how special Helfrick was.

"Ryder was a gamer," DeLaney said. "He was just gritty. He was diving everywhere. He was always dirty. He played second base a couple of games, which was out of his comfort zone, but anything to get his bat in the order."

Helfrick then went to Arkansas, racking up a .944 OPS in three years before heading to the MLB.

The third Walnut Creek alum selected on day one was pitcher Carson Jasa, picked 98th overall by the Chicago Cubs.

Jasa played for the 2024 Crawdads team, pitching in eight games and striking out 52 batters. In his 39.2 innings, he put up a 4.08 ERA and 1.41 WHIP.

All of the players who spent time with Jasa reminisced on memories such as bringing up the story of him chirping while stepping off the mound against the Seagulls or throwing 98 miles per hour. Above all, every mention of Carson Jasa brings a fun outcome. 

Zirkle, however, thought of a unique experience during a playoff game.

"He finds a lizard in the dugout, and he wears the rally lizard on the bill of his cap for the entire game," Zirkle said. "Yes, he was young, he was really good, but he was the coolest guy ever."

Jasa went on to pitch for Nebraska for two seasons, tallying a 4.49 ERA and 11.9 K/9.

Also on the 2024 team was catcher Bear Harrison, selected 160th overall by the New York Yankees.

In three games as a Crawdad, he put up a .944 OPS. 

While another member of the Harrison family has already made a name for himself in the bigs, his brother Kyle, now of the Milwaukee Brewers, anyone who played with Bear quickly learned he was his own man. Zirkle was one of those people who experienced it firsthand.

"Everybody knows Bear's brother," Zirkle said. "He came here after his freshman year at Saint Mary's and everyone said 'oh this is Kyle's brother', but very quickly it became 'oh this is Bear.'"

After playing for Saint Mary's in 2024, Harrison went to Texas A&M for two seasons. In his three seasons in college, Harrison hit 30 home runs with a 1.010 OPS.

Next off the board was another member of the 2023 team, pitcher Sean Fitzpatrick, selected at 245 by the San Diego Padres. 

After playing his freshman season at Arkansas, he went to Walnut Creek before transferring to Arizona State. 

In the Creek, Fitzpatrick pitched 11 games, allowing just four runs in 28 games while striking out 37.

Of the eight players drafted over the weekend, the man who played at the highest level in the Creek might just be Fitzpatrick. Crawdads who spent time around Fitzpatrick, like senior utility man Ryan Ellis, have nothing but high praise for him. That is for good reason. 

"When he came in the game that year, you knew the game was over," Ellis said. "He just shut down. Probably the best reliever in the league that year. A lot of broken bats."

He then went on to Tempe, posting a 3.12 ERA and 1.15 WHIP in 2026.

The next former Crawdad selected in the draft was Rohan Lettow, picked at 348 by the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Also playing in the Creek after his freshman season, Lettow pitched 11.2 innings in six games in 2024, posting a 2.31 ERA and striking out 15.

Lettow might have only played in six games as a Crawdad, but his actions off the field spoke to his character more than anything else. Arriving at the Creek recovering from an injury, Lettow reaggravated the issue in his arm while pitching for the Crawdads. 

While most players would shut down for the summer, Lettow refused to, staying with the Crawdads, something manager Brant Cummings heavily admired.

"What speaks to him the most is that injured and didn't jump ship," Cummings said. "He stayed and eventually pitched for us down the stretch in the postseason."

After his summer with the Crawdads, he returned to Tempe before transferring to San Diego State for his third and final season. During his time in college, he struck out 100 batters and posted a 4.87 ERA.

At pick 368, pitcher Austin Berggren was selected by the New York Yankees, becoming the seventh Crawdad off the board.

In 29 innings as a Crawdad in 2023, Berggren posted a 4.34 ERA and struck out 29. 

Spending his 2023 season in the Creek after redshirting at Nebraska, he transferred to Miami (OH), striking out 103 with a 1.60 WHIP.

The eighth and final Crawdad alum was infielder Isaiah Lane, picked at 377 by the Minnesota Twins.

Lane only played in two games with the Crawdads in 2024. In 2026, he played at Hope International and hit .351 with seven home runs.

With a franchise record eight Crawdads being selected by MLB teams and a CCL record two top-15 selections, DeLaney thinks that the draft does a great job advertising the Crawdads.

"It puts the California Collegiate League on notice," DeLaney said. "We've had so many good players come through here. It speaks to not just the development that summer ball is, but the competition that the CCL brings."