Virginia Tech outfielder Carson Jones selected by Seattle Mariners in 2023 MLB Draft

Virginia Tech outfielder Carson Jones has heard his name called in the 2023 MLB Draft. The Seattle Mariners selected him with the No. 457 overall pick in the 15th round on Tuesday.

Jones had a solid 2023 season for the Hokies as he finished with a .289 batting average to go with 14 home runs and 47 RBI — both career-highs. He entered the season as the No. 39-ranked outfield prospect in the draft, according to D1Baseball, and lived up to the billing as he took on a bigger role.

On the whole, during his time at Virginia Tech, Jones had a career .279 batting average with 24 home runs and 86 RBI. He also won an ACC Player of the Week award during the 2022 season.

More on the 2023 MLB Draft

The 2023 Major League Baseball Draft will begin during All-Star week, with the first two rounds getting underway at 7 p.m. ET on Sunday, July 9. Rounds 3-10 will then begin at 2 p.m. ET on Monday, July 10, with rounds 11-20 starting at 2 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 11.

This year’s MLB Draft is a historic one, as a draft lottery was used to determine the order for the first time. The Washington Nationals, Pittsburgh Pirates and Oakland Athletics each had a 16.5% chance to receive the No. 1 overall pick. Ultimately, Pittsburgh won the right to have the first selection, with Washington finishing right behind them at No. 2. Oakland, however, fell all the way down to No. 6 overall.

While the MLB Draft is always unpredictable, the consensus is that this year’s top prospects both hail from LSU, who won the 2023 College World Series. Pitcher Paul Skenes and outfielder Dylan Crews headline this year’s class, which is considered a deep one.

Within the first ten rounds of the draft, each slot is assigned a certain value. Each team has a bonus pool that they are able to spend on these picks, and players will sign at, above or below their assigned slot value.

In rounds 11-20, there is no assigned slot value and MLB teams are free to spend up to $150,000 to sign their picks from the second half of the draft. If they exceed the $150,000 mark, that added amount will be deducted from their bonus pool.

Following the final day of the 2023 MLB Draft, selected players will have until August 1 to sign a contract.