LSU pitcher Paul Skenes selected by Pittsburgh Pirates in 2023 MLB Draft

LSU star pitcher Paul Skenes has heard his name called in the 2023 MLB Amateur Draft. The Pittsburgh Pirates selected him with the No. 1 overall pick.

Skenes, a transfer from Air Force, made a name for himself in a huge way in 2023. He set the SEC record for most strikeouts in a season with 209, topping the mark set by Ben McDonald in 1989. He helped lead LSU to a national championship with some huge performances in the College World Series en route to Most Outstanding Player honors.

After his dominant season with the Tigers, Skenes won the National Pitcher of the Year award and D1Baseball Player of the Year.

But in addition to his talents on the mound, Skenes has proven he can get the job done at the plate, as well. At Air Force, he hit .367 with 24 home runs and 81 RBI in 341 at-bats over two years. He has said he also plans to hit when he gets to MLB.

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.