South Carolina pitcher James Hicks selected by Houston Astros in 2023 MLB Draft

Another South Carolina pitcher is off the board as James Hicks has been picked by the Houston Astros in the 2023 MLB Draft. Hicks was taken in the 13th round with the No. 404 overall selection.

Hicks had an excellent season in 2023, finishing 8-1 with a 3.48 ERA. He also had a pair of saves over his 25 appearances.

James Hicks was named to the All-NCAA Columbia Regional Team as he helped the Gamecocks win their regional and advance to a super regional matchup with Florida. Ultimately, the Gamecocks were swept by the Gators in the super regional, after sweeping Florida at home during the regular season.

Hicks was previously drafted in the 15th round of the 2022 MLB 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 1 to sign a contract.