2023 MLB Draft Results: Hot Takes for Dylan Crews, Paul Skenes, Top Prospects
The first day of the 2023 MLB draft is in the books, and 70 of the nation's top amateur players have now realized their dream of being drafted into the professional ranks.
After plenty of talk of alternative options, LSU teammates Paul Skenes and Dylan Crews ended up going 1-2 at the top of the draft class after all. They were followed by a trio of outfielders in Max Clark, Wyatt Langford and Walker Jenkins, and the consensus top-five in this draft class were indeed the first five names called.
That was followed by a run on college bats, which pushed several top high school players to the bottom of the first round and on into the compensation round and the second round. That could mean a lot of above-slot bonuses or players finding their way onto college campuses in the fall.
Ahead, we've provided some early hot takes for five of the draft's biggest names as they get set to embark on the next step in their development.
Dylan Crews Will Immediately Be a Top 15 Prospect on Top 100 Lists
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Bleacher Report's updated Top 100 prospect list will be released on Wednesday morning, with our first chance to see where the latest wave of top draft picks slot in with the game's other top up-and-comers.
Expect Dylan Crews to check in among the best prospects in baseball.
The 21-year-old outfielder won Golden Spikes honors as the nation's top amateur player this year while hitting .426/.567/.713 with 18 home runs, 70 RBI and far more walks (71) than strikeouts (46).
The rebuilding Washington Nationals have no reason to rush him to the majors, but in a few years the team could have a stacked outfield of Crews, James Wood and Robert Hassell III, with Crews the best candidate of the bunch to handle center field.
Check back Wednesday morning to see exactly where Crews slots in on our top prospect list.
Paul Skenes Will Not Make His Pro Debut Until 2024
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Paul Skenes is the best college pitching prospect since Stephen Strasburg, and his overpowering stuff could get big league hitters out right now.
Don't expect the Pirates to push it, though.
The 6'6", 235-pound right-hander finished 12-2 with a 1.69 ERA, 0.75 WHIP and 209 strikeouts in 122.2 innings this spring, becoming the first college pitcher since Trevor Bauer was at UCLA in 2011 to punch out 200 hitters in a season.
So why not just slot him immediately into the rotation?
More than a few eyebrows were raised when he threw 124 pitches in a complete game victory over Tulane on June 2, and he went on to throw 468 pitches over his final four starts while helping to lead the Tigers to a College World Series title.
That late-season workload will likely be reason enough for the Pirates to simply shut Skenes down for the year, similar to what the Texas Rangers did with Jack Leiter coming out of Vanderbilt as the No. 2 overall pick in 2021.
Rhett Lowder Will Be the First 2023 Pick to Reach the Majors
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Paul Skenes might have been the best MLB prospect among this year's college pitching crop, but Rhett Lowder was every bit as productive for a stacked Wake Forest team.
The 6'2", 200-pound right-hander finished 15-0 with a 1.87 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 143 strikeouts in 120.1 innings, and he was every bit as impressive during his sophomore season while establishing himself as one of the top pitchers in this class.
The Cincinnati Reds called his name at No. 7 overall, and he could slot behind Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo in their future starting rotation as early as next season given his overall polish.
With one of the best changeups in this draft class to go along with a mid-90s fastball, a durable frame and great pitchability, he is going to rocket through the minors.
Keep in mind, the Reds jumped Mike Leake straight from Arizona State to the MLB rotation on Opening Day the following year after selecting him with the No. 8 overall selection in the 2009 draft.
Jacob Wilson Will Win Multiple Batting Titles
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The 2023 draft had a consensus top-five and those players were indeed the first five to hear their name called on Sunday.
The question was who the Oakland Athletics would take at No. 6 overall.
They ended up going with Grand Canyon shortstop Jacob Wilson, who has truly elite bat-to-ball skills and room to add more punch as he grows into his 6'3", 190-pound frame.
The 21-year-old hit .412/.461/.635 with 27 extra-base hits and only five strikeouts in 217 plate appearances, and with the defensive tools to stick at shortstop, he has an extremely high floor even if the power never comes.
The Athletics organization has not won a batting title since first baseman Ferris Fain went back-to-back with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1951 and 1952, but Wilson has the hit tool to bring that drought to an end and be a perennial contender in the AL batting race.
George Wolkow Will Be the Steal of Day 2
5 of 5George Wolkow was one of the top high school bats in the 2024 draft cycle before he reclassified last March and joined this year's draft class.
The towering 6'7", 239-pound slugger does not turn 18 years old until Jan. 11, making him one of the youngest players in the 2023 draft, but he already has tantalizing raw power with room to add plenty more as his frame continues to fill out.
Ranked as the No. 71 prospect in the class by MLB.com, he went undrafted on Sunday, and at this point it will likely take an above-slot deal to sign him away from his commitment to the University of South Carolina.
If a team can find a way to get him signed, he will be the biggest steal of Day 2, and could be someone we look back on years from now astonished that he didn't hear his name called in the first two rounds.
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