2023 MLB Draft Coverage
2023 MLB Draft Coverage
The 2024 college and high school baseball season’s are about to get underway
is well underway and the high school season is rolling as well. We have plenty of coverage planned for the 2023 MLB Draft as it relates to the Cleveland Guardians.
This page will have links to articles about the 2023 MLB draft written on the site and mostly, it will include a running list of potential draft targets by the Guardians this season below. It’s not a complete list and in any particular order. Just split up by college pitchers, high school pitchers, college bats, and high school bats. It’s not exact, just a running list of players we think might be of interest to the Guardians in the 2023 MLB draft. This list will be updated periodically throughout the season leading up to the draft by draft writers Willie Hood and Jared Sziber with help from Justin Lada.
Enjoy!
College pitchers
RHP Juaron Watts-Brown (Oklahoma St): Transferred from Long Beach. Low-90s heat. Lean, projectable frame. Has a slider, change and curve. Uses them in that order.
RHP Tanner Hall (Southern Missouri): Command-first right hander with an above average changeup. Finished top five in NCAA in strikeouts in 2022. 89-93 heat. Same school as former draft picks Kirk McCarty and Nick Sandlin.
LHP Sean Sullivan (Wake Forst): Low-three quarters lefty that is hard to pick up with a big fastball and above average breaking balls.
RHP Ty Floyd (LSU): Walk rate at 2.8, and K-rate just over 10. Floyd has good control and has shown the ability to throw 4 different pitches that are average to slightly above. Fastball sits in the low 90’s but has seen some up tick this year.
https://twitter.com/PGCollegeBall/status/1629240007750832132
RHP Jason Savacool (Maryland): Mid-90s heat with a good change and control. Possible day two pick.
RHP Noah Hall (South Carolina): An undersized (6’0) SEC right hander who can bump it up to 96, with above average control and a potentially double plus changeup sounds right up Cleveland’s alley.
RHP Jackson Baumeister (Florida State): Mid-90s heat with life in the zone and a big breaking ball. Had control issues before but seems to be locating in 2023. Cleveland likes guys who improve YOY. Whiffed a ton of bats in the cape in 2022 as well.
LHP Zach Thornton (Grand Canyon): Low-90s heater from the left side with a high arm slot and a bevy of offspeed offerings and pitchability. Keeps BB low.
RHP Tanner Witt (University of Texas): Witt missed most of last season and all of the 23 season due to TJ surgery last April. When healthy Witt has an explosive fastball and hammer of a curve. THe fastball sits in the low to mid 90’s but hashit 97 in the past. The curveball has high end spin rates and above average velocity. If it wasnt for the surgery, Witt would go high in the first round. If healthy, Witt could see a massive jump once he gets to pro ball.
RHP TJ Nichols ( University of Arizona): Standing at 6’7 Nichols is a imposing figure on the mound. The University of Arizona ace has a fastball that sits in the upper 90’s a decent slider with good bite, and a change up that has good sink and some fade. The isuse with Nichols in the past has been command, but has shown improvement every year in this area. Nichols currently owns a 2.3 walk rate which is right in line with what the Guardians did with Gavin Williams in 2021.
RHP Alonzo Tredwell (UCLA): Tredwell is getting his frist real chance to start this year at UCLA after coming out of the pen last year. He has above average control over his pitches which consist of fastball that sits between 92-94 but has topped at 96. His slider is his best off speed pitch that sits in the upper 80’s and misses lots of bats to boot. He throws a curve and change that are average now, but could become plus pitches once he gets to pro ball. Even though Tredwell stands at 6’8 he is able to repeat his delivery very easily. If Tredwell is able to maintain velocity and control this year as a full time starter he could be a comp round type arm.
RHP Coleman Picard (Bryant): A 6’2 righty with a huge breaking ball from Bryant…sounds familiar…Picard has better control than Cleveland’s other Bryant pitcher and his breaking pitch is absolutely disgusting. Heat is high-80s/low-90s but he has control and an outpitch. Too bad his first name isn’t Jean-Luc or he’d be perfect.
RHP Max Carlson (UNC): Low-mid-90s heat, nice changeup. Improved control so far in 2023.
LHP Liam Sullivan (Georgia): Big bodied, tall lefty that throws in the low-90s, has a slider and curve. History of solid control and performance on the Cape (14 K/9 2.5 BB/ in ‘22).
RHP Bryce Warrecker (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo): Big, lanky right hander with low 90s-heat and ride, solid sweeping breaking ball and change. Control + Cape performer (8.1 K/9, 1.8 BB/9 in ‘22)
LHP Hunter Hollan (Arkansas) A Junior College transfer, Hollan has a 4 pitch mix, lead by a fastball that touches 97 with late life, although it typically sits in the 92-94 range. Hollas Curveball is his best secondary pitch, which has shown flashes of being a plus pitch. If he can have continued success in the SEC he could see his stock rise.
https://twitter.com/RazorbackBSB/status/1635005386980839427
College bats
3B Mac Horvath (UNC) Horvath does a great job of working the zone and hardly ever swings out of the zone. He is finally tapping into his power potential this year with some swing adjustments. He is currently a short stop but will move to third in pro ball or even a corner spot in the outfield.
https://twitter.com/DiamondHeels/status/1639710666180243456
3B Braden Taylor (TCU): Left handed hitter with a professional approach, ability to make contact and has added a little bit of needed thump to his bat that was questioned coming into the year, to go along with his contact ability. Glove may be average, but has the arm for third. Showing above average run times. May already play well above Cleveland’s range.
OF Homer Bush JR (Grand Canyon University) The son of former big leaguer, Homer Bush. Junior has a chance to be a top of the order threat at the next level. He has an above average hit tool and hits gap to gap well. Currently he has more walks than strike outs, for the year, and has good speed. He will be able to steal bases at the next level and stick in center.
https://twitter.com/bigdonkey47/status/1629704771689955329
2B Roc Riggio (Arkansas): Undersized, short-levered left handed hitting second baseman. Barrels the ball well.
OF Adam Cecere (Wake Forest): Big lefty power bat who probably struck out too much in ‘22 for Cleveland’s liking but so far in ‘23 has more walks than K’s and keeping an eye on him for that for now.
INF Mike Boeve (Nebraska): Boeve is a left handed hitting infielder that walked more than he struck out his sophomore year (39/29) whose 90th percentile exit velo is over 100, per Baseball America. He had modes numbers on the Cape circuit last summer (but zero power). Someone to keep an eye on as the season goes on.
C/OF Cooper Ingle (Clemson): Ingle walked more than he struck out in ‘22 at Clemson (38/29) and his 90th percentile exit velo’s per Baseball America is at about 101. There’s good bat speed there. He did strike out at an alarming rate in the Cape Cod League in 2022 (32.59%) so that is something to keep an eye on. As a catcher though, he has a cannon and Cleveland has shown they’ll deal with more strikeouts behind the dish if you put up premium defense. Ingle’s arm might at least satisfy that requirement. He’s also played some outfield, so he’s not stuck behind the plate. Cleveland previously drafted another current Clemson backstop, Jonathan French, as a prep player, though he didn’t sign. They probably also likely saw Ingle some when looking at Davis Sharpe.
IF Christian Knapczyk (Louisville): Undersized 21 year old junior infielder. Baseball America has his 90th percentile exit velo at 97.8 with a contact rate of 89%. He also walked more than he struck out as a sophomore (41/27) and also performed well on the Cape in ‘22 (.321/.400/.413). He’s said to be a strong defender with good baseball IQ as well.
INF Luke Keaschall (Arizona State): The transfer from San Francisco is a junior shortstop swiped 30 bases in ‘22 as a sophomore at San Fransico to go with a 37/34 K/BB rate over 57 games, hitting .305/.445/.502. He wasn’t as good in the Cape Cod League in ‘22 (.265/.364/.319 - 25 K%/9 BB%) as he was in ‘21 (.321/.356/.464 - 16.67 K%/5.56 BB%) but per BA again, his 90th percentile exit velo is 97 and his contact rate is 84%, which is a solid ratio. We’ll see how the transfer to Arizona State goes. The history is mixed. The ball obviously flies there. But Cleveland has taken Jason Kipnis and Joe Lampe from the Sun Devils before, both with similar profiles.
INF Mitch Jebb (Michigan State): Jebb is a top of the order type of bat that should stick in the dirt but is athletic enough to move to center field in pro ball.. He controls the zone very well, and has great bat to ball skills. He currently is hit over power, but could see double digit home runs in his future. Jebb has above average speed and is a smart base runner. Jeb was a Cape Cod League All Star in 2022, while batting .356, with 8 doubles, 3 triples and 26 steals.
INF Tommy Troy (Stanford): Troy does everything well but nothing great. His hit tool is slightly above average with the chance to be plus. He is above average athlete who can play around in the dirt, but will probably stick at third or short.
https://twitter.com/JoeDoyleMiLB/status/1642614459779936256
OF Colton Ledbetter ( Mississippi State University) A Samford transfer, Ledbetter has been tearing it up in the SEC. He has a history of big time exit velocity, and contact rates. He may not be a burner, but there is athleticism there.
https://twitter.com/PeterGFlaherty/status/1647364057832337410
C Kyle Teel (Virginia Tech): The left hand hitting Teel checks a lot of the Guardians boxes. Teel walks more than he strikes out, played for team USA and in the cape. His hit tool is above his power at the plate currently, but some feel that could change when he gets into the pros. He is a very athletic player who has played outfield as well a as catcher. Some feel he can stick behind the plate. Either way, the tools and the intangibles make it easy to see him succeeding.
https://twitter.com/JoeDoyleMiLB/status/1627359002941358080
C/INF Cole Carrigg (San Diego State): It’s not very common to have a player who can legitimately play 3 up the middle positions. Carrigg has this ability and depending on the team could end up behind the plate, at short, or in center. He is very athletic and has a great hit tool. He was one of the best hitters in the cape last year, hitting .330 and stealing 15 bases. In the pros, he should be a top of the order bat, who can be a legit threat at the plate and on the base paths.
1B/OF Nolan Schanuel (Florida Atlantic): Left handed hitting, right handed throwing primary first baseman for FAU, Schanuel has an 86% contact rate and 90th percentile exit velocity of 106 per Baseball America. He walked 39 times compared to 22 strikeouts a year ago as a 20 year old sophomore. He just turned 21 and didn’t play too well in the Cape a year ago (.194/.318/.361) but drew some walks and is off to a good start in 2023.
Prep pitchers
RHP Charlee Soto (Reborn Christian, FL - UCF): Soto is armed with very loud stuff. His fastball sits in the 92-94 range but has been up to 98 in the past. THe fastball has a ton of late run and can be difficult to pick up. He pairs his heat with an upper 80’s, hard biting slider. His change up is a bit behind the other two pitches, but has shown flashes of being a plus pitch in the future. The control can be a bit come and go, but while being one of the youngest players in the draft, there is a ton to dream about in this 6’5 righty.
RHP Steven Echavarria (Millburn NJ) An undersized right handed pitcher, from a cold weather state (New Jersey), the Florida commit, has above average command of 4 different pitches. His fastball sits in the 92-94 range, but plays up because of his command and his other offerings being good as well. He will not turn 18 until August, so he checks many boxes for the Guardians.
https://twitter.com/FlaSmitty/status/1578823933381734400
RHP Zander Mueth (Belleville East IL): Coming from a low 3 / 4 delivery, Mueth gets a ton of side to side action on his low to mid 90’s fastball. Mueth has an above average slider that he sometimes has issues controlling because of the amount of run it has. He offers a change but it is behind the other two pitches currently.
https://twitter.com/FlaSmitty/status/1550634174033399808
RHP Jason DeCaro (St Anthony’s NY) A cold weather arm who is starting to see his stock rise recently, DeCaro is young for the class( and when I say Young I mean YOUNG), and flashes a ton of upside. 6’5 righty who brings a fast ball that sits 92-95, with a lot of arm side run. The curve has shown flashes of being a plus pitch.
https://twitter.com/ChrisDryllPBR/status/1641233280539164676
LHP Mathew Dallas (Briarcrest Christian TN) As a big, athletic lefty, Dallas can spin a great 12-6 curve ball. The velocity on the fastball sits in the low 90’s, but there is much more room for growth in that area. Dallas has above average control.
https://twitter.com/FlaSmitty/status/1550977450527657985
Prep bats
C Zion Rose (IMG Academy): An incredible athlete, Rose has the chance to be a bit of a unicorn. He has all the tools necessary to stay at catcher, along with being an above average hitter, hit for power, and steal some bases on top of it. Some feel he could grow out of the athleticism, but its easy to dream on this player, as his stock keeps rising.
INF Colt Emerson: Emerson saw his stock rise over the summer and fall showcase circuits. He makes non stop hard contact. His hit tool is above his power for now, but he possesses good gap to gap power. He is a great athlete, that was an all state wide receiver his junior year. He should be able to stick in the infield once he gets to pro ball. He has good instincts and slightly above average arm, although his field tool is average, he played well at third for team usa in the summer.
INF Dylan Cupp (Cedartown GA) Cupp is one of if not the best defensive shortstop in the draft. He has great bat to ball skills and fills the gaps well while hitting. The hit tool, plus the defense make him a target.
https://twitter.com/whoeferbaseball/status/1627744788530270238
SS Steven Milam (Centennial NM) Milam is a small, switch hitting short stop that has great bat to ball skills. He wont ever be a major power threat, but there is more pop than expected given the frame of his body. Very nice compact swing on both sides, he can drive the ball to the gaps well.
https://twitter.com/PGShowcases/status/1550251627021492224
SS Adrian Santana (Doral Academy Charter FL): Santana is one of the better defenders in the class. The young for class high schooler is shooting up draft boards recently. He is a burner on the bases and in the field, the bat is currently behind the other tools, but there is promise there for a major upgrade.
https://twitter.com/FlaSmitty/status/1649231496031469568
INF Camden Kozeal (Millard South NE) Kozeal has great bat to ball skills with an above average hit tool. He fits very well with how the Guardians have drafted over the past few years. He lacks power and will probably end up as a second baseman in pro ball, but he feels a lot like Tyler Freeman in terms of tool set. Based on his swing, he could develop some more pop at the plate, but does a nice job of having a great hit tool overall.
https://twitter.com/BaseballPDP/status/1544057016842321925
INF Myles Naylor (St Joan of Arc): Could the Guardians make it 3 Naylor brothers? It is certainly possible with the youngest, Myles. He is currently a shortstop in high school, but most feel he will have to move to 3rd or 2nd in the future, due to his fringy arm and athleticism. Naylor possesses above average bat speed and control over the hitting zone. Myles is not as polished as his older brothers but is a sort of mix between the two in terms of hitting ability.
