MLP 2026 is in the books, so time to look at next year. As NFL teams know, you start preparing for next year as soon as the Super Bowl ends. For all 20 MLP teams, it is time to look at your roster, figure out who is being kept and dropped, and think about how you want to draft in 2027 to get the best team you can. It is especially important this coming year, as so many good players will be available and there is a new system with a cap and a floor on player acquisition costs.

 

Before we get to each team, a few notes. First, this is all based on current best information on the 2027 rules. There are likely to be some additional tweaks to the rules between now and the draft in April 2027. Second, thanks to Erik Tice, GM of the California Black Bears, who has kept track of the keeper status and player acquisition costs of each player and provided it for use here. Third, smart teams will be watching players very closely in PPA events between now and the 2027 draft. Some players who currently do not look worthy of being a keeper may improve enough for their current team to change their mind and keep them next year. Finally, the contract status of players will be important for 2027. Some players currently on MLP rosters will not likely play MLP in 2027, and as contract status changes constantly, we are using best current information here. With all that said, let’s look at each of the 20 teams and what they can do to improve for 2027.

 

 

Current roster: DJ Young, Brandon French, Wyatt Stone, Nicole Conard, Abigail Hutton, Aiko Yoshitomi. The three men are all eligible to be kept, Young for $4000, French for $1000, and Stone for $18,000. Current rule is you can only keep up to two of the same gender. Stone for $18k is a likely keeper. If Carolina only spends to the floor ($500,000), then they probably keep French as he often plays with Stone, and they can spend their money on the women’s side. If they spend to the max ($1,000,000) then they should keep Stone and spend on the other three starting spots.

 

 

Current roster: Jonathan Truong, Michael Loyd, Cam Chaffin, Daria Walczak, Alexa Schull, Allison Phillips. All six are eligible to be kept. Like Carolina, the strategy for Phoenix depends on how much they want to spend. Truong at $85k is potentially good enough to start on a good team, if Phoenix spends big on the other three spots. Chaffin is a player to watch over the next seven months in PPA tournaments to see if he should be kept at $35k. Barring greatly improved performance by the other four, none will be kept. Like a lot of teams, Phoenix will want to budget their money toward drafting women, so keeping Truong and Chaffin is a possible play.

 

 

Current roster: Cason Campbell, Connor Mogle, Chris Crouch, Paula Rives, Martina Frantova, Mya Bui. Campbell ($3000), Crouch ($5000), and Bui ($20,000) can be kept. The only possible keeper (at this point) is Bui. Florida basically needs to start over and figure out a strategy for 2027. They will be at a disadvantage having no valuable keepers at low cost. Florida is just not in good shape, so expect them to be toward the bottom again next year.

 

 

Current roster: Len Yang, Brandon Jacobson, Blaine Hovenier, Genie Erokhina, Kiora Kunimoto, Ella Yeh. All six players are eligible to be kept, with Yang the most expensive at $35,000. Hovenier is one of the best bargains out there, at $10,000. Kunimoto has good potential and low cost at $11,000. Erokhina is a decent veteran, also at $11,000. This team has a ton of options, and if they are willing to spend to the max, they could turn around and be a very good team in 2027. They could keep Hovenier and Kunimoto and break the bank to bid on Anna Leigh Waters or Ben Johns. Or they could keep Hovenier and Kunimoto and try to get two top 10 players like Hayden Patriquin and Tyra Black. Or they could keep Hovenier and Yang and bid big for two top women. This team could be very good next year, with the right GM and if they spend to the cap.

 

 

Current roster: Tama Shimabukuro, Tyler Loong, Yuta Funemizu, Etta Tuionetoa, Allyce Jones, Vicki DiMuzio. Tuionetoa and Jones cannot be kept. Depending on what is bid for them by other teams, Utah could think about exercising their right of first refusal on one of them. Under the proposed rule, each team could one time choose during the draft to match the price bid for a player they dropped, and thereby keep the player. For example, if Tuionetoa is dropped and another team bids $150k for her, Utah would have a short time to decide if they want to pay $150k and keep Tuionetoa. Utah is very likely to keep Shimabukuro ($125k) and either Funemizu ($4500) or Loong ($2000), and then use the leftover money to bid big on two women. Funemizu is a very good right side men’s doubles player, but is limited in mixed doubles. Loong is cheaper and a little more valuable all around. I would keep Shimabukuro and Loong, and bid big for the two best women I could get.

 

 

Current roster: James Delgado, Anderson Scarpa, Anouar Braham, Estee Widdershoven, Isabella Dunlap, Rika Fujiwara. Braham ($10k), Widdershoven ($10k), and Dunlap ($1000) can be kept. Braham is fast improving. If he continues on his current path, I expect by next year he will be one of the best bargains among all keepers. Dunlap is another one who by next year may look like a great bargain. This is another team, like Bay Area, that has a ton of options and great potential, if they will spend to the cap. If they keep Braham and Dunlap, they could add two players like Patriquin and Black or Eric Oncins and Catherine Parenteau or Gabe Tardio and Parris Todd. Another option is to keep only Braham and spread the money across three good players. That would probably erase the chance to get two top ten players, but they could instead try for three top fifteen type players.

 

 

Current roster: Jack Sock, Greg Dow, Yates Johnson, Lacy Schneemann, Lina Padegimaite, Alex Walker. Sock is a likely keeper at $105,000. Yates Johnson can be kept for $7000. None of the other four can or will be kept. Orlando is another team (there are many like this) which will spend its money on the best women it can get. Keeping Johnson at his low price is an option, freeing up more money to spend really big on two women. Or they could drop everyone and think about using their right of first refusal on Sock, depending on how the bidding goes.

 

 

Current roster: Dylan Frazier, Pablo Tellez, Joey Wild, Sahra Dennehy, Zoey Weil, Jalina Ingram. Frazier can be kept for $170,000. Weil is a keeper at $10,000. Dennehy is a possible keeper at $35,000. California has interesting options. Weil is a no brainer keeper. She is one of the best bargains on any team. Dennehy would normally be kept, but if California keeps Dennehy and Weil, it takes them out of the bidding for any other starting women. Now, California could keep Weil and Dennehy and big huge for two top men. With most teams focused on bidding big for women, California could have the luxury of going the other direction and bidding big on men. If they bid to the cap, they very likely could get two of Patriquin, Tardio, Staksrud, Alshon, or Oncins. As a fallback, they have right of first refusal on Frazier. Or they could keep Frazier and Weil and bid big one on man and one woman, albeit with a little less money. Some really good options here for California.

 

 

Current roster: Zane Navratil, John Lucian Goins, AJ Koller, Jamie Wei, Elsie Hendershot, Emma Nelson. Navratil and Koller cannot be kept. Goins improved a lot as the year went on, so he is a likely keeper at $25,000. Hendershot ($28k) and Nelson ($21k) have great potential. The question for Chicago is, do you keep all three and just big huge for one man (Ben Johns) or do you keep Goins and Hendershot and bid big for one man and one woman? Another option would be to keep Goins and Hendershot, bid huge for Waters or Bright, and then grab a bargain man, as there will be several likely available as the draft goes along. Another team with many options and great potential, if they bid to the cap.

 

 

Current roster: Roscoe Bellamy, Clayton Powell, Gabe Joseph, Zoey Wang, Callie Smith, Liz Truluck. Wang is the only one who cannot be kept. Bellamy at $10k seems like an easy keeper. Powell is young and improving, and cheap at $11k. Truluck at $1000 is a bargain. But, the more players you keep, the fewer options you have. For example, if you keep Bellamy, Powell, and Truluck, you are only bidding for one open starting spot. Under current rules, you cannot add a third man or a third woman until every team has two men and two women. So if you keep three players, you are really only bidding for one player. Las Vegas probably keeps Bellamy and Truluck and bids big for one man and woman starter.

 

 

Current roster: Armaan Bhatia, Will MacKinnon, Rafa Lenhard, Meghan Dizon, Cailyn Campbell, Naomi Nguyen. All can be kept. Bhatia and MacKinnon are $40k each, a good price for solid if not spectacular players. Dizon is $85k, Campbell $65k. Campbell probably has the most value, as an upside female. SoCal has a lot of choices; they need to determine which players they really want to target and how much they want to spend. If they only want to spend toward the $500k floor, then they keep Bhatia, MacKinnon, and Campbell, and pay big bucks for the best woman player they can get. If they are spending more toward the $1m ceiling, I would likely drop MacKinnon too, and try to add a very good second man to pair with Bhatia. If handled right, this is another team that could make a big jump in 2027.

 

 

Current roster: Jay Devilliers, Jaume Martinez Vich, Donald Young, Mari Humberg, Jessie Irvine, Keilly Ullery. Humberg is the only starter who can be kept, at $90k. Look for this team to be completely different in 2027. Humberg is a good deal at the keeper price. This is a team likely to spend a fair amount on men; as we have discussed, good male players will be plentiful in the draft. Atlanta needs to add a solid second female (either Kawamoto would be a good choice) and then try to add two top men. If they are willing to spend to the cap, this team could be pretty good in 2027.

 

 

Current roster: Eric Oncins, Nico Acevedo, Rafa Hewett, Lea Jansen, Kaitlyn Christian, Layne Sleeth. Acevedo ($10k) and Jansen ($105k) are keepers. Acevedo is one of the best bargains in the whole league. Texas has a clear plan in the 2027 draft; spend their remaining $885k and get the best woman player they can and then spend the rest on the best male player they can get. If available, Waters and Bright are obvious targets. Getting Oncins back would be a reasonable move, look for them to potentially match any bid for Oncins. Keeping Acevedo and Jansen at their keeper prices arguably puts Texas in the best position of any team going into 2027.

 

 

Current roster: Dekel Bar, Tyson McGuffin, Casey Diamond, Tina Pisnik, Sofia Sewing, Tammy Emmrich. McGuffin ($65k) and Sewing ($80k) are the only potential keepers. Sewing will definitely be kept. McGuffin is interesting. At $65k, he is reasonably priced, and he is a versatile player. He may well be better than anyone else they can get at that price. Like Texas, Palm Beach is in pretty good position, as Sewing is a huge bargain at $80k. Palm Beach is likely to pursue a strategy similar to that of Texas. Like Texas, Palm Beach if it spends to the cap can be a top contender in 2027.

 

 

Current roster: Ben Johns, Max Freeman, Connor Garnett, Catherine Parenteau, Jade Kawamoto, Samantha Parker. Freeman is the only possible keeper at $80k. His price is reasonable enough that they probably will keep him, to devote assets for other spots. LA’s big decision will be whether to exercise their right of first refusal on Johns. If the first refusal right is restricted to one player per team, LA has to decide if it should use it on Johns on one of the women. The price bid on Johns is likely to be very high, and with the new cap, spending a ton on a male player is a questionable strategy. Parenteau at say $400k might be a better deal than Johns at $600k. The problem for LA is that there are some teams that could afford to spend very big on Johns and have a very good team (California being #1 on that list). LA is a team likely to take a step or two back in 2027.

 

 

Current roster: Andrei Daescu, CJ Klinger, Alex Crum, Parris Todd, Tyra Black, Judit Castillo. Castillo ($45k) and Crum ($9k) are eligible to be kept. Castillo is an interesting potential keeper. They could draft a better #2 female, but would have to spend quite a bit more. Columbus is probably better off keeping Castillo and allocating the savings to upgrading the other three starting spots. Like many teams, Columbus will be bidding fiercely for top players.

 

 

Current roster: JW Johnson, Augie Ge, Ivan Jakovljevic, Danni-Elle Townsend, Alix Truong, Brooke Buckner. Ge at $105k and Townsend at $180k can be kept and I expect Dallas to keep both. That would leave them $715k for the rest of the roster. Best strategy, as it is with so many teams, is to bid big for the best available female and then use the rest of their money on a left side man. Of the four teams making the semifinals, Dallas is in the best position for 2027. But, they have to make the right decisions in the 2027 draft. Their 2026 draft decisions were terrible, putting them in a big hole. Dallas has potential for 2027, but execution in the draft will be critical.

 

 

Current roster: Christian Alshon, Riley Newman, Chris Haworth, Rachel Rohrabacher, Jackie Kawamoto, Hannah Blatt. Newman can be kept for $110k; that is a no brainer. Blatt ($9k) and Haworth ($30k) can be kept. This is another team that could go after Waters or Bright. Keeping Newman and Haworth would not be the worst move. Brooklyn would then have $860k to spend on two female starters and two bench players. They would likely get two top 10-15 women. Assembling a starting four as good as they had in 2026 will be impossible, so Haworth as a keeper is worth considering. They could also look at using their right of first refusal on Rohrabacher or Kawamoto.

 

 

Current roster: Hayden Patriquin, Gabe Tardio, Hunter Johnson, Anna Bright, Kate Fahey, Angie Walker. Bright can be kept, but at what price? Her 2026 bid was $1.23m. But the new rules will allow that price to be adjusted downward. That number has not yet been set, but it is rumored to be around $600k. It certainly should not be any less than that. Fahey can be kept at $130k. Everyone else will be released. Keeping Fahey is a no-brainer. Keeping Bright at $600k is probably the right move, but painful under a salary cap. It would leave St. Louis with only $270k to spend on two starting men and two bench players. St. Louis will look very different in 2027. They need to hope other teams spend huge for women, allowing St. Louis to scoop up solid men at bargain prices. The other option would be to drop Bright, see what other teams bid for her, and then decide if St. Louis wants to match. If the bid is less than $600k, they come out ahead; but if the bidding goes above $600k, then they will regret not just making her a keeper. Because there will be several teams with cap room who should want to bid big on a top female, I expect St. Louis to keep both Bright and Fahey.

 

 

Current roster: Federico Staksrud, Will Howells, Noe Khlif, Anna Leigh Waters, Jorja Johnson, Milan Rane. Khlif can be kept for $50k, and New Jersey will exercise that right. Johnson can be kept at the same price the league will set on Bright, say $600k. I think New Jersey will release Johnson, figuring the bidding on her will be below $600k due to the cap. In addition, New Jersey needs cap room as I predict they will match whatever is bid for Waters. The problem for New Jersey is that there are several teams which will have cap space to put in a huge bid for Waters. Orlando, SoCal, Las Vegas, Chicago, Palm Beach, and Texas all can likely bid $700k to $800k for Waters and still have decent talent around her. If New Jersey is forced to spend $700k+ on Waters, the rest of their squad will not be very good. Being able to keep Khlif for only $50k is a big factor in New Jersey’s favor. That is why they preferred to send a lot of money to Orlando for Staksrud, rather than less money but include Khlif.

 

 

The 2027 MLP rosters will look very different from 2026, but in a good way. So long as the cap stays in place at $1m, teams can no longer afford to assemble an all-star team. They will have to make strategic choices on where to spend the limited dollars. Some teams will choose to only spend at the floor, and those teams will lag in the standings. But, I think with teams knowing they can spend $1m and not be outspent, we will see at least half the teams be willing to spend to the cap. This will create a fierce bidding war for the top 10 men and top 10 women, especially the women. The best 20 players will be spread across the league, rather than all 20 being on the top 5 teams. If a team can get two top 20 players, they will be doing well. One or two teams might be able to get three very good players; but the days of all four starters being stars is over. Skill in drafting is going to be a huge factor. It was always important, but spending money was more important. Even teams drafting poorly were good so long as they were willing to spend to make up for mistakes. Not in 2027. Snagging an Acevedo or a Hendershot at a cheap price will pay huge dividends. Personally, I am very excited for the new rules for 2027. The 2027 draft is going to be wildly exciting.

 

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