Ole Miss SS commit Cooper Pratt selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in 2023 MLB Draft

Cooper Pratt’s childhood dreams have become a reality, as the shortstop from Mississippi was selected with the No. 182nd overall pick of the 2023 MLB Draft by the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Ole Miss signee is a hometown kid from Oxford, attending high school at Magnolia Heights where he helped lead his team to a 40-3 record behind his .469 batting average, 50 RBIs, and 38 stolen bases. Pratt also showed off his ability on the mound as a right-handed pitcher, boasted a 10-0 record on the mound with an 0.14 ERA and 66 strikeouts in his senior season.

Pratt was named the Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of Mississippi and was ranked the No. 45 overall prospect for this year’s MLB Draft according to MLB.com. And between his 6-foot-4, 195-pound frame, his bat-to-ball skills, and strike-zone awareness, he’s more than worthy of that ranking and his selection in this year’s draft.

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