Success of 2023 draft picks Paul Skenes of Pirates, Dylan Crews of Nationals a sign of development shift

Paul Skenes was still celebrating being chosen first overall by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2023 MLB Draft when he received word that LSU teammate Dylan Crews was taken with the second selection.

They have a history, as Skenes was pitching for Air Force when he surrendered the first home run of his college career to Crews and then became teammates, first for USA Baseball then in leading LSU to its seventh College World Series championship.

“I wish I could have savored it a little bit more, because even as I was getting the congratulations and all that, I had some LSU coaches who were in town, and they were like, ‘Oh, Dylan just got picked!’ And we’re like, ‘OK, let’s go!” Skenes said. “But I didn’t get to see him get picked at the time because I was dealing with some other stuff. But definitely, it was special. Definitely, it’s still special, but being able to reflect on that and share that with him, it’s pretty dang cool.”

Even though they didn’t face each other, Skenes and Crews shared the field at PNC Park this weekend when the Washington Nationals visited for a four-game series.

Nationals manager Dave Martinez laughed when asked about missing a start by Skenes. The 6-foot-6 right-hander is an NL Rookie of the Year candidate who has 142 strikeouts in 114 innings this season and features a five-pitch repertoire with a four-seam fastball that tops 100 mph.

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” Martinez asked. “I don’t have to hit, so I would love to see him. But I think our guys would be engaged to go out there and compete against him. This year, he’s been one of the best, right? I don’t think our guys would shy away from it. I would love to watch him go against us and see him compete.

“Obviously, we saw him in college and we know what he can do. He’s been doing really, really well in the major leagues so far, so I’d be excited to see him pitch, I really would. On TV, his stuff looks electric. To see him live would be kind of fun.”

That the top two picks in the 2023 MLB Draft are both in the majors a year after being drafted would be rather remarkable on its own, but what makes it even more amazing is that they’re not alone. Six other players from their draft class, including five of the top seven picks, already have made their major-league debuts.

That makes theirs one of the best draft classes in decades.

“I said at the time that I thought 2023 was the best draft class of my career,” said draft analyst Keith Law of The Athletic, who has been tracking the MLB Draft since 2002, “and we’re seeing that now, with so many debuts from college guys, plus several high school guys absolutely crushing it in the minors.”

The eight have had varying levels of success in the majors:

• Skenes, who made his MLB debut May 11, has been outstanding in going 9-2 with a 2.13 ERA and 0.98 WHIP in 19 starts for the Pirates and was the starting pitcher for the National League in the All-Star Game.

• Crews, an outfielder, made his debut Aug. 26 and has three doubles and three home runs in the first 10 games of his career, boosting his batting average to .250 (10 for 40) by going 2 for 3 in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader against the Pirates.

• Los Angeles Angels first baseman Nolan Schanuel became the first from the class to reach the majors, making his debut Aug. 18, 2023. The No. 11 pick has 17 doubles, 12 home runs and 45 RBIs in 130 games this season.

• Texas Rangers outfielder Wyatt Langford, chosen fourth, made the Opening Day roster, was the AL Rookie of the Month in June and has 20 doubles, four triples, 10 homers and 62 RBIs in 114 games.

• Oakland Athletics shortstop Jacob Wilson, the No. 6 pick and son of former Pirates All-Star shortstop Jack Wilson, made his debut July 19 and is batting .233 (7 for 30) in 10 games.

• Cincinnati Reds right-hander Rhett Lowder, selected seventh, has an 0.87 ERA and .167 batting average against in 10 1/3 innings over two starts since making his debut Aug. 30.

• Right-handed pitcher Hurston Waldrep, the No. 24 pick, made his debut for the Atlanta Braves on June 9 and allowed 13 earned runs in seven innings over two starts in the majors before dealing with right elbow inflammation. He’s now at Triple-A Gwinnett.

• Right-hander Jake Bloss, a third-round pick, made his debut June 21 for the Houston Astros and had a 6.94 ERA in 11 2/3 innings over three starts before being traded to the Toronto Blue Jays as part of the return for Yusei Kikuchi on July 29. He’s now at Triple-A Buffalo.

All eight players are college baseball products who advanced to the majors by age 22 (Bloss turned 23 on June 23), a sign of their tremendous talent and a seismic shift in baseball development.

The path to the majors could be accelerated because of the required financial investment, as signing bonuses are trending toward eight figures. Skenes signed for record $9.2 million, which was broken this year when Nos. 2 and 3 picks Chase Burns and Charlie Condon signed for $9.25 million. But college baseball also is becoming a valuable tool to major-league teams, almost as much as the minors.

“I think that’s just where college baseball is now. It’s such a high level,” Skenes said. “It’s definitely a different game, but it’s not a talent thing now as much as it has been in the past. Especially on the pitching side, the transition from going from college to the big leagues is just different. It’s definitely harder in the big leagues. You can get away with less, but you just have to learn the game a little bit more just because it’s different.”

The early success of some of the prep prospects only enhances the value of the 2023 draft, especially outfielders Max Clark of Detroit (No. 3), Walker Jenkins of Minnesota (No. 5) and Jonny Farmelo of Seattle (No. 29) and shortstops Colt Emerson of Seattle (No. 22) and Kevin McGonigle of Detroit (No. 37).

Not only has the 2023 draft class lived up to its hype, but Law believes Skenes has even exceeded expectations “because he added a brand new pitch that turned out to be one of the best in the majors” by developing a “splinker” – a splitter-sinker hybrid that has become a putaway pitch.

“You just can’t project that kind of thing on anyone,” Law said, “but even less for a college guy than a high school guy.”

Pirates manager Derek Shelton, who sat in on some of the draft conversations but takes no credit for the selection of Skenes, believes the fast tracking of the draft picks is a positive development for the game now that some of the top prospects are thriving in the majors.

“Anytime you talk about young players in the game, guys that were just drafted — and we’re starting to see it a lot more prevalent than we did 10 years ago; guys are getting to the big leagues quickly — it’s going to be exciting to see a good, young player,” Shelton said. “Now that Crews has got to the big leagues, it shows that the top end of the draft, the decisions that were made were the right decisions. Paul’s proving that for us.”