NEW YORK -- The MLB Draft League had 47 players selected in the 2023 MLB Draft, including 34 players who played in the first half of the 2023 season. It’s the second straight year that the Draft League has produced 47 MLB Draft picks after the league had 39 players selected during its inaugural 2021 season.
After eight Day 2 selections in the 2021 Draft and 10 more in ‘22, the Draft League set a new record this year with 19 players drafted during Rounds 3-10, including 12 players from the 2023 Draft League season.
Six players were drafted within the first five rounds this year – another new Draft League record after the league produced three top-five-round selections in its first two seasons combined. In 2022, the Draft League’s top pick was No. 171 overall. This year, the Draft League had six players taken before No. 171, including two within the top 100 picks.
Sabin Ceballos, who played for the 2022 Williamsport Crosscutters, became the highest-drafted player and alum in Draft League history when the Atlanta Braves selected the University of Oregon product with pick No. 94 in the third round. The Philadelphia Phillies made SS Devin Saltiban the Draft League’s highest-ever pick among current-season players, taking the Hawaiian prep at No. 98 overall. West Virginia University RHP Carlson Reed, a fourth-round pick (No. 104 overall) by the Pittsburgh Pirates, became the league’s second-highest-drafted college player after Ceballos. Previously, no Draft League player, past or present, had been selected before pick No. 117 (Alex Ulloa, ‘21).
Beginning with Ceballos and Saltiban’s selections five picks apart, there were 17 instances in this year’s Draft in which teams drafted multiple Draft League players within a six-pick span. That includes the ninth round, when three players were selected within six picks, and the 11th, which saw Madgiel Cotto and Jack Moss get selected with consecutive picks (Nos. 317 & 318) early on Day 3.
The Draft League had three high school players taken in the Draft for a second straight year. The group accounted for three of the Draft League’s first nine selections, with Saltiban, OF Isaiah Drake (5th round, Braves) and RHP Jatnk Diaz (8th, Tigers) all earning Day 2 nods. Additionally, 13 Draft League alumni from the 2021-22 seasons were picked in the ‘23 Draft, with Ceballos headlining the league’s seven alum selections during Rounds 3-10, and A’s 15th-rounder Will Simpson (State College ‘22) leading the Day 3 contingent.
Collegiate players accounted for 44 of the Draft League’s picks in 2023, with nearly 80 percent of the league’s college selections coming from the Divisions I-II levels. The Draft League’s nine Junior College selections matched the league’s 2022 total and were one short of the record 10 Junior College draft picks from the inaugural 2021 season.
Positionally, the Draft League established a new record with 17 hitters selected in the 2023 MLB Draft, surpassing the league’s previous top mark of 15 in ‘22. The Draft League also had its first-ever two-way player drafted this year when the Miami Marlins selected Williamsport’s Ryan Ignoffo in the 20th round.
Trenton, State College and Williamsport led the six Draft League affiliates with 10 picks each this year, followed by Mahoning Valley (7), Frederick (5) and West Virginia (5). For the league’s three drafted players this year who previously pitched for a different Draft League team, the player’s most recent Draft League affiliate received credit for the selection.
National League East teams once again drafted more Draft League talent than any other MLB division: the Marlins (3 picks), Phillies (3), Braves (3), Mets (2) and Nationals (1) accounted for 25.5 percent of the Draft League’s 2023 selections. The Detroit Tigers led all MLB teams with four Draft League selections this year, while the Toronto Blue Jays, Baltimore Orioles, A’s, Pirates and Giants each drafted three Draft League players.
Overall, 24 different MLB organizations selected a Draft League player in this year’s Draft, matching the league’s total from 2022.
Full list of MLB Draft League players selected in the 2023 MLB Draft:
Frederick Keys
RHP Nolan Santos (7th, Twins)
RHP Zach Fruit ‘21 (9th, Orioles)
OF Brennan Orf (13th, Blue Jays)
C Brady Cerkownyk (15th, Tigers)
OF AJ Shaver (17th, Phillies)
Mahoning Valley Scrappers
RHP Hayden Minton ‘22 (9th, Tigers)
1B Jack Moss (11th, Reds)
C Cole Conn (12th, A’s)
LHP Jack Sellinger (14th, Marlins)
RHP Cale Lansville (14th, Giants)
RHP Zane Barnhart (17th, Orioles)
3B Brian Kalmer ‘22 (18th, Cubs)
State College Spikes
RHP Corey Avant (9th, A’s)
RHP Chris Barraza (10th, Angels)
RHP Josh Mollerus ‘22 (10th, Blue Jays)
RHP Jacob Odle (14th, Cardinals)
OF Will Simpson ‘22 (15th, A’s)
RHP Will Stevens ‘22 (15th, Rays)*
RHP Matthew Linskey (16th, Dbacks)
C Will Bush (16th, Astros)
LHP Connor Oliver ‘21 (17th, Royals)
RHP Casey Steward ‘22 (19th, Phillies)
*also pitched for 2021 Frederick Keys
Trenton Thunder
RHP Ryan Birchard (5th, Brewers)
OF Isaiah Drake (5th, Braves)
LHP Magiel Cotto (11th, Pirates)
RHP Jeremy Lee (12th, Twins)
RHP Carlton Perkins (15th, White Sox)
RHP Austin Amaral (16th, Nationals)
RHP Donye Evans (16th, Tigers)
3B Trey Paige (17th, Cardinals)
LHP Tommy Kane ‘22 (19th, Giants)
3B Charlie Pagliarini (19th, Mariners)
West Virginia Black Bears
SS Devin Saltiban (3rd, Phillies)
RHP Carlson Reed (4th, Pirates)*
LHP Zach Thornton (5th, Mets)**
OF Braden Barry (8th, Blue Jays)
SS Jeron Williams (9th, Astros)
*also pitched for 2023 Trenton Thunder
**also pitched for 2022 Mahoning Valley Scrappers
Williamsport Crosscutters
SS Sabin Ceballos ‘22 (3rd, Braves)
RHP Jack Wenninger (6th, Mets)
RHP Jatnk Diaz (8th, Tigers)
RHP Joshua Bostick ‘21 (8th, Giants)
RHP Riley Gowens ‘22-’23 (9th, Braves)
OF Matthew Etzel ‘22 (10th, Orioles)
RHP Colson Lawrence (13th, Marlins)
RHP Tyler Kennedy (19th, Pirates)
OF Stanley Tucker (19th, Red Sox)
TWP Ryan Ignoffo (20th, Marlins)
For more information about the MLB Draft League, visit mlbdraftleague.com or follow @mlbdraftleague & @draftleaguedata on Twitter, and @mlbdraftleague on Instagram.
