Vanderbilt shortstop commit George Lombard Jr. selected by New York Yankees in 2023 MLB Draft

Vanderbilt shortstop commit George Lombard Jr. was selected by the New York Yankees with the No. 26 overall selection in the 2023 MLB Draft.

He is the son of former major leaguer and current Detroit Tigers bench coach George Lombard. The elder Lombard was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the second round of the 1994 MLB Draft out of high school. He played parts of six seasons in the majors with four different teams.

Prior to being hired by the Tigers, George Lombard was the first base coach for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He helped the team to the the 2020 World Series.

George Lombard Jr. attended Miami Gulliver Prep and ranks as the No. 31 prospect on MLB.com’s draft rankings.

“The younger Lombard already looks the part at 6-foot-3 with a pro body that stands out among high school players,” MLB.com’s scouting report on Lombard Jr. reads. “The right-handed hitter has a ton of raw pop to tap into and he showed it off at times last summer, though it came with some swing-and-miss concerns and some inconsistent at-bats along the way. Lombard has a long stride and is better runner underway, but he’s worked to improve his overall speed.”

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 like George Lombard Jr. will have until August 1 to sign a contract.