For the first time history, a pair of teammates were selected with the No. 1 and 2 picks in the MLB draft. Sunday night the Pittsburgh Pirates took LSU righty Paul Skenes with the No. 1 selection and the Washington Nationals followed with LSU outfielder Dylan Crews as the No. 2 pick.
Skenes and Crews helped LSU win the College World Series last month.
Products of The Powerhouse @Paul_Skenes | @__dc4__ pic.twitter.com/GVU0BrdsIg
— LSU Baseball (@LSUbaseball) July 9, 2023
The draft began in 1965 and on only two prior occasions were two teammates selected within the top three picks, both times going No. 1 and 3. Here's the recap:
| 1978 Draft | 2011 Draft |
|---|---|
1. 3B Bob Horner, Braves (Arizona State) | 1. RHP Gerrit Cole, Pirates (UCLA) |
2. 1B Lloyd Moseby, Blue Jays (Oakland HS) | 2. LHP Danny Hultzen, Mariners (Virginia) |
3. OF Hubie Brooks, Mets (Arizona State) | 3. RHP Trevor Bauer, Diamondbacks (UCLA) |
Our R.J. Anderson ranked Crews and Skenes the No. 1 and 5 prospects, respectively, in the 2023 draft class, respectively. Crews is arguably the best draft prospect since Bryce Harper, and for the Pirates to pass on him, it's likely they were not 100% certain they could sign him. Drafting Crews would do Pittsburgh no good if they couldn't get him to turn pro.
As for Skenes, he has been called the best college pitcher since Stephen Strasburg. For a team like Pittsburgh, it's basically impossible to go out and buy an ace in free agency. They have to develop their own No. 1 starters, like they did with Cole, and Skenes is the organization's best chance at a true ace.
