
LSU stars Skenes, Crews picked first and second in MLB Draft
Two weeks after winning the College World Series, LSU achieved a feat never accomplished before by any baseball program.
Tigers pitcher Paul Skenes was taken by the Pittsburgh Pirates with the first overall pick of Sunday's 2023 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft, one spot ahead of teammate Dylan Crews' selection by the Washington Nationals.
Skenes and Crews are the first set of teammates to be taken with the first two picks in the draft's history. Skenes also becomes the first college pitcher to go No. 1 overall since the Detroit Tigers took Auburn's Casey Mize in 2018.
The 21-year-old Skenes went 13-2 with a 1.69 ERA and 209 strikeouts in 122 innings this season as the ace of the LSU staff. The hard-throwing right-hander capped his tremendous junior campaign by being named the College World Series most outstanding player during the Tigers' run to the national title.
"He had an incredibly special season this year at LSU," Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said of Skenes. "I think we saw a really good pitcher at the end of the College World Series who has all the weapons to go on and succeed in pro ball but may still have more."
The best arm in the draft is ours. pic.twitter.com/pJqg5HkzN1
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) July 10, 2023
Crews, an outfielder, earned the Golden Spikes Award honouring the best amateur player in the United States in 2023. The Florida native hit .426 with 18 home runs and 70 RBIs in 71 games as a junior and concluded his college career having reached base safely in 75 straight games.
“He’s got a whole bag full of tools; he does everything well,” Nationals general manager and president of baseball operations Mike Rizzo said. “His baseball IQ is terrific. He’s a great baserunner -- he’s a fast runner, but he’s a great baserunner also. He plays both sides of the ball, defensively and offensively. He’s got a propensity to barrel up baseballs. He’s an on-base percentage machine."
Franklin, Indiana outfielder Max Clark, the national high school player of the year, was selected third overall by the Detroit Tigers. The Texas Rangers took University of Florida outfielder Wyatt Langford at No. 4, while North Carolina high school outfielder Walker Jenkins went fifth to the Minnesota Twins.