WHAT'S NEXT FOR JACKSON FLORA AS GIANTS' FIRST-ROUND PICK IN 2026 MLB DRAFT?

When Jackson Flora sat down in the dugout at Oracle Park on Wednesday, the memories started to come back. One of his favorites doesn't involve a Giants championship or big game, but rather a ball that landed near him during batting practice. Flora's family had season tickets for a few years, and one day he went early with his dad and stood in the center field bleachers as players took their swings. He doesn't remember how old he was, and he doesn't even know who hit the ball that cleared the wall as he waited. He was too small to see over the padding. But he remembers the ball rolling to him. The kid who picked it up learned how to keep score that day. When his favorite team jumped near the top of the 2026 MLB Draft order in the lottery last December, he started to dream about what that could mean. On Wednesday, Flora finally arrived, taking it all in with his parents, siblings and grandfather. "This is where I want to be," he said. The trip back home -- Flora went to Foothill High in Pleasanton before UCSB -- interrupted a stint in Scottsdale. The right-hander, taken No. 4 overall in the draft earlier this month, is working out at the organization's minor league facility, with the hope that he can take the mound for the San Jose Giants before the end of the summer. The Giants are writing nothing in pen, though. The focus right now is on getting Flora back up to speed physically after a long college season and making sure he's recovering well from workouts and bullpen sessions.

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