by J.T. Toth
Photo courtesy of MLB.com.
The MLB draft is still about seven weeks away, but as fans in the 412 scramble to see what the Pirates do at first overall, here is Draft 412’s first mock draft of the 2023 baseball season. Enjoy… and debate away.
1) Pittsburgh- OF- Dylan Crews, LSU
Pittsburgh cannot pass on Crews. Best OF draft pick since Barry Bonds.
2) Washington- SP- Paul Skenes, LSU
Perfect timing in replacing Strasburg with another future ace.
3) Detroit- OF- Wyatt Langford, Florida
Detroit lands a player who most years goes first overall.
4) Texas- OF- Walker Jenkins, South Brunswick H.S. (NC)
Best high school hitter in class adds nicely to Ranger’s prospect list.
5) Minnesota- SP- Chase Dollander, Tennessee
Dollander did not perform as well this season. He could slide past this spot, but Draft 412 thinks Minnesota takes a flyer at #5 overall.
6) Oakland- OF- Max Clark, Franklin Community HS -Indiana
Good high school athlete that Oakland will be patient with.
7) Cincinnati- SS- Jacob Gonzalez, Ole Miss
Smooth left-handed swing plays a consistent game with not many hot or cold streaks.
8) Kansas City- SS- Arjun Nimmala, Strawberry Crest (FL)
One of the youngest prospects in the draft, projects as a future 30+ homerun hitter.
9) Colorado- SP-Hurston Waldrep, Florida
The Rockies always need to find new arms.
10) Florida- SS- Jacob Wilson, Grand Canyon U
One of the safest picks in the first round. Lower ceiling than the other top 10 prospects.
11) Los Angeles Angels- SP-Rhett Lowder, Wake Forest
Lowder is a guy who could switch spots with Dollander. Draft 412 has him slipping to #11 overall.
12) Arizona- C- Blake Mitchell, Sinton H.S. (TX)
Mitchell has been rising up MLB draft boards, and Arizona at #12 overall makes sense.
13) Chicago Cubs- SP-Noble Neyer, Jesuit H.S. Portland, OR
Already hitting 100 mph in high school. Maybe the next Kerry Wood? Pump the brakes.
14) Boston- 3B-Yohandy Morales, Miami, Fla.
Defense is below average but the hitting upside is too much to pass on.
15) Chicago White Sox- C-Kyle Teel, Virginia
The best college catcher in the draft. The South Siders will enjoy his raw power.
16) San Francisco- OF-Enrique Bradfield, Jr., Vanderbilt
Disruptive type speed to go along with 80+ rating on defense to track down the gap shots at Oracle Park for years to come.
17) Baltimore- SP-Thomas White, Phillips Academy (MA)
Left hander with above movement. Baltimore adds to their young pitching depth.
18) Milwaukee- 1B/RHP- Bryce Eldridge, Madison (VA)
Milwaukee will have to decide how they want to use Eldridge. Has potential as a pitcher and or a hitter.
19) Tampa Bay- 3B- Aidan Miller, Mitchell HS (FL)
Injured much of the season, some scouts have Miller sliding down the board.
20) Toronto- 2B- Tommy Troy, Stanford
Toronto gets a consistent performer who may not have the highest ceiling. He will be a steady major leaguer.
21) St.Louis- 3B- Brayden Taylor, TCU
The Cardinals get their heir apparent to Nolan Arenado
22) Seattle- SS- Matt Shaw, Maryland
Could go higher as he has been playing his best baseball over the past couple months. Seattle will jump all over this pick.
23) Cleveland- SS-Kevin McGonigle, Monsignor Bonner HS Drexel Hill (PA)
Cleveland gets one of the best pure high school hitters in the draft.
24) Atlanta- 3B- Brock Wilken, Wake Forest
Atlanta gets a solid college hitter, who may need to switch over to first base.
25) San Diego- SS-Colin Houck, Parkview HS (GA)
Projections on Houck have varied, this is a nice value pick at #25 overall.
26) New York Yankees- SS/3B- George Lombard, Gulliver Prep HS, Miami
Yankees may have to pay up for Lombard who is a Vanderbilt commit.
27) Philadelphia- SP- Travis Sykora, Round Rock HS (TX)
This may be a reach, but Philadelphia takes a flyer (no pun intended) on Sykora who has been moving up boards.
28) Houston- SP- Hunter Owen, Vanderbilt
Houston nabs a left hander who may be only a year or two away.
29) Seattle- OF- Jack Hurley, Virginia Tech
Seattle nabs an OF to go with their earlier pick of SS-Matt Shaw.
30) Seattle- SP- Tanner Witt, Texas
With three picks in the top 30, Seattle goes after a college power pitcher in Witt.