The 2026 MLB Draft is roughly two months away, and the A’s will be picking eighth overall. In the first round of the past three drafts, the A’s have selected 2025 All-Star starting shortstop Jacob Wilson, 2025 AL Rookie of the Year Nick Kurtz, and lefty Jamie Arnold, who has drawn comparisons to Chris Sale. Not a bad track record in recently years for the A’s front office.
Earlier this week, MLB draft analyst Jim Callis released his first mock draft of the year. He had the A’s selecting Arkansas catcher Ryder Helfrick, who was praised for his stout defense behind the plate.
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This wouldn’t be the first time the A’s drafted a catcher in the first round. In 2022, the A’s selected Daniel Susac out of Arizona, who now looks to be the catcher of the future for the San Francisco Giants after they surprisingly traded Patrick Bailey to the Cleveland Guardians on Saturday morning.
Helfrick’s draft profile
Helfrick, a Bay Area native who grew up in Concord, California, has more tools than just his elite defense. He burst onto the scene in 2024 during his time in the Cape Cod League when he hit 11 home runs.
In 2025, he became the starting catcher for Arkansas, hitting 15 home runs and posting a 1.036 OPS. Now, in 2026, Helfrick has hit 15 home runs and holds a 1.031 OPS. The difference? He has walked 48 times to 39 strikeouts, whereas a year ago, he walked 32 times to 53 strikeouts.
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MLB.com highlights Helfrick’s bat speed and strength as contributors to his plus raw power. They also note that Helfrick already calls his own pitches and “excels at running a staff.” Last year, Helfrick caught for two eventual first round picks, Gage Wood and Zach Root.
This year, he is leading another impressive staff, with projected first-round pick Hunter Dietz as the ace. Right-handers Carson Wiggins and Gabe Gaeckle have a chance to go within the first couple of rounds as well.
Right pick for the A’s?
Feb 6, 2026; Fayetteville, AR, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks catcher Ryder Helfrick (27) gets ready for the pitch during the fifth inning of the Arkansas Razorbacks scrimmage at Baum-Walker Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Rojo-Imagn Images | Brett Rojo-Imagn Images
Would this selection make sense for the A’s, given their areas of needs? Absolutely. Yes, the A’s may have the best catcher in baseball on the roster in Shea Langeliers. However, the A’s farm system is deprived of talent at the catcher position.
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Right now, Langeliers is set to become a free agent after the 2028 season. Of course, the assumption is the A’s will extend him, as they should and have done with some of their core. As Jason Burke wrote previously, Langeliers holds some leverage over the A’s in those talks, because there isn’t someone ready to come take his spot. This pick would reset some of that balance.
With that being said, extension or not, if Helfrick debuts in roughly two years after being drafted, who knows the status of Langeliers defensively behind the plate? The A’s have had some of the most pitches around the zone not go their way in 2026, even with the new ABS system.
Maybe the A’s should utilize ABS challenges more, but the team’s catchers haven’t had the best run of success on those challenges either.
Drafting the best framing catcher in the class couldn’t hurt. If Helfrick continues down the path many are expecting, he could become one of the best defensive catchers in baseball when he debuts. That is valuable to any ball club, especially one that will have many young pitchers debuting in the next year or so. He could be the factor that brings them to the next level.
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The point is, if the A’s were to select Helfrick this summer, it would be a smart pick. Having the ability to DH Langeliers more down the road, as he enters his thirties, would not only improve his longevity but may also improve his bat.
So far this season, when Langeliers DH’s, in 31 at-bats, he is hitting .419 with an OPS of 1.126. Compared to when he is catching, he is hitting .310 this season with an OPS of .973. Since the sample size for the DH is small, looking at 2025, he hit .333 with an OPS of .970 in 69 at-bats. It should be noted that Langeliers has hit 10 of his 11 home runs when he is catching this season.
Langeliers has caught 3,430 innings at the MLB level, by the time Helfrick debuts that number could be around close to 6,000. Having the option to potentially improve defensively behind the plate and taking the pressure off of Langeliers physically has to be attractive to the A’s.
Overall, the addition of Helfrick would not only boost the depth of the farm system but also give the A’s the best defensive college catcher with plus tools and room to grow at the plate. A combo of Langeliers and Helfrick to run a pitching staff would be extremely beneficial to the pitchers as they tackle the challenges of a brand new ballpark.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/athletics/onsi as A’s Land Ryder Helfrick, Best Defensive Catcher in 2026 MLB Mock Draft.