Tag: Wyatt Langford

Here’s where The Athletic’s Keith Law expects Wyatt Langford to be drafted

Outfielder Wyatt Langford and starting pitcher Hurston Waldrep are the two former Florida Gators expected to be drafted on Sunday night.

There is a good chance a member of the Florida baseball team will make school history on Sunday night at the 2023 Major League Baseball amateur draft held in Seattle, Washington, to help kick off this summer’s All-Star Game festivities.

Outfielder Wyatt Langford, who has been a consensus top-five pick stretching back to the college preseason, is one of three prospects in the draft that are as “cannot miss” as one can get. Along with LSU Tigers‘ outfielder Dylan Crews and starting pitcher Paul Skenes, the trio comprise one of the strongest tops of the draft seen in recent years.

While the selection predictions have varied from writer to writer, Langford’s stock has been steadily ascending, with a large handful of the media seeing him taken first overall by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Among those is The Atheltic’s Keith Law, who published his final mock draft on Sunday and put the Gator at the No. 1 position.

Langford has clearly been on the short list for the Pirates all year, but with Dylan Crews appearing to want over slot to sign here and the team’s apparent preference for a bat over an arm possibly leading them away from Paul Skenes, Langford is the best fit as someone who’s absolutely good enough to be the first overall pick but would sign at a number that will let the Pirates go over slot with later picks. Don’t discount Max Clark here either, for the same reasons, although I think the Pirates would prefer the college guy who’ll get there faster. Clark is motivated to go first overall and there’s a very good argument that he has the highest upside of any candidate to go here.

Law also has starting pitcher [autotag]Hurston Waldrep[/autotag] taken at No. 21 by the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Cardinals’ first-round pick last year was a big “pitch shape” guy, Cooper Hjerpe, although he’s currently on the shelf with an arm issue. Waldrep is another such player, featuring one of the best pitches in the draft in his power splitter.

St. Louis is also linked to Schanuel, Wilson, a little with Kevin McGonigle (who might end up at Auburn), and Chase Davis.

The 2023 MLB draft starts at 7 p.m. EDT and the first two rounds can be watched on ESPN and the MLB Network.

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A final look at Gators in MLB.com’s 2023 mock draft

Here’s a last glance at what some of the draft experts think will happen Sunday night.

The 2023 Major League Baseball amateur draft is scheduled to start on Sunday night at 7 p.m. EDT in Seattle, Washington, to kick off a week of All-Star Game festivities. This summer, a pair of former Florida Gators are expected to be selected in the first round of the draft — with a possibility of a couple more joining them in the compensations rounds.

The main focus has been on outfielder [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag], who helped power the Orange and Blue to a College World Series finals appearance despite an injury that slowed him down midseason. According to both Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo in their final mock draft for MLB.com before the fireworks begin, the standout from Trenton, Florida, is expected to be taken in the top spot by the Pittsburgh Pirates — which would make him the first Gator ever to achieve the feat.

Here is what Callis had to offer.

It looks like one of the three Southeastern Conference superstars for the Pirates, and probably one of the hitters. Money aside, most teams would take Louisiana State outfielder Dylan Crews, but clubs can’t just put money aside in the bonus pool era, and he’s going to command more than Langford. How much more? Probably $500,000 and maybe closer to $1 million. Personally, I’d take Louisiana State right-hander Paul Skenes because of the rarity of his talent, and it wouldn’t shock me if Pittsburgh opted for him.

As for Mayo, here is how he feels.

Here’s how I ended up with this, with the disclaimer that the Pirates will continue to work through all possibilities involving the top five players: There’s a growing sense that the Pirates are leaning toward a bat over an arm (Paul Skenes), and despite the buzz, I think Dylan Crews is still in play. That said, the chatter that he wasn’t their guy was hard to ignore. So if he’s off the table, that likely leaves Langford and Max Clark, and it could come down to whatever combination of agreement on talent and cost. There were scouts who felt Langford was just as good as Crews — or at least close — and would sign for less. And he’d be the “get to the big leagues faster” option over Clark.

The other former Florida product expected to go on the opening night is starting pitcher [autotag]Hurston Waldrep[/autotag], who Callis has going at No. 12 to the Arizona Diamondbacks.

After being tied to Houck for a while, the D-backs apparently prefer collegians. Lowder, Teel and Dollander would be in play if still available. If not, Waldrep would be the top pitching option and several college shortstops (Maryland’s Matt Shaw, Stanford’s Tommy Troy, Wilson) could be attractive.

Mayo also agreed that the right-hander is a first-round talent, he picked him to be taken by the Milwaukee Brewers at No. 18 overall.

Sticking with the Brewers breaking their college hitter streak by taking Waldrep, the last of the college arms that seems certain to go in the opening round. But if they can’t kick the habit, they could look at Schanuel or Davis.

Also mentioned was starting pitcher [autotag]Brandon Sproat[/autotag], who Callis believes will be taken at no. 39 overall by the Oakland Athletics.

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12 Men’s College World Series standouts who could be picked in the first round of the 2023 MLB Draft

Dylan Crews and Paul Skenes aren’t the only big names from Omaha likely to be picked Sunday night.

The 2023 MLB Draft is nearly upon us, and it features one of the best groups of collegiate prospects in recent memory.

The group is headlined by Dylan Crews and Paul Skenes, who have been widely projected all year to be the first and second overall picks (in varying orders). The LSU stars led the Tigers to their seventh national championship last month.

They’re not the only draft prospects who showed out in Omaha. Others — such as Florida’s Wyatt Langford, who is becoming a late dark horse to be the first pick — are likely to hear their name’s called during the first round on Sunday night.

Here’s a rundown of some of the players who made a name for themselves in Omaha and could be selected in the first round of the draft.

5 MLB veterans (Eric Karros!) with sons in the 2023 draft

 

Perfect Game projects two Gators to be top-15 picks in 2023 MLB draft

The 2023 MLB draft should feature a few Florida Gators early on, but where exactly do experts think they’ll end up?

The 2023 MLB draft is less than a week away, and Perfect Game has two Gators going in the first 11 picks of its latest first-round mock draft.

Wyatt Langford, who has long been considered one of the top two college bats in the draft, slipped down to No. 5 overall (Minnesota), and Hurston Waldrep moved up to No. 11 (Los Angeles) after a strong College World Series performance.

The Langford dip has little to do with the Gator’s performance. There’s a growing feeling among industry insiders that the Pittsburgh Pirates are looking to get a discount player with first-overall picks, and high-school No. 1 Max Clark seems like a natural fit. Clark wants to go first overall and would is the most likely candidate to work out a deal.

If Clark goes first, most expect Washington to take LSU’s Paul Skenes at No. 2. Stephen Strasburg’s arm is falling off and Paul Skenes might be the most hyped draft arm since Strasburg in 2009. That leaves the Detroit Tigers to pick between one of the two college bats, LSU’s Dylan Crews and Langford.

Although Detroit has been linked to Langford for some time, it would be hard to pass up the Golden Spikes winner who was expected to go first overall until this mock came out.

Waldrep at No. 11 isn’t too surprising. Scouts fell in love over a ridiculous postseason run, and an ugly last start isn’t going to scare too many teams off. Los Angeles. Assuming, Skenes goes at No. 2 and Rhett Lowder (Wake Forest) is off the board, Waldrep could even jump into the top 10. Perfect Game has Colorado taking Chase Dollander from Tennesee at No. 9 overall, but Waldrep could jump even further ahead.

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2023 MLB Draft: LSU’s Paul Skenes slight favorite to go No. 1 ahead of teammate Dylan Crews

Oddsmakers like two LSU Tigers to go back-to-back to start the 2023 MLB Draft.

The LSU Tigers have plenty to be excited about after winning the 2023 College World Series over Florida.

However, there might be one Tiger who’s just a bit more excited than the other as the 2023 MLB Draft approaches next month.

Right now, LSU pitcher Paul Skenes is projected to go first overall in the draft. His Tigers teammate, outfielder Dylan Crews, is slated to go second.

Per DraftKings, oddsmakers have Skenes as a -225 favorite to go first overall next month to the Pittsburgh Pirates, while Crews is +170 to be selected first. He’s a likely fit for the Washington Nationals, who hold the draft’s second pick.

LSU pitcher Ty Floyd is also expected to be picked in an earlier round during next month’s draft.

As for the Gators, they’ll be able to celebrate the impending selection of outfielder Wyatt Langford, who has +2000 odds to go first but could be a fit for the Detroit Tigers with the draft’s third-overall pick.

Four Gators earn D1Baseball All-America honors for 2023 season

These four players were instrumental in the program’s near-championship finish in 2023. 

D1Baseball announced its 2023 All-America awards on Thursday afternoon which included a quartet of Florida baseball players who were instrumental in the program’s near-championship finish in 2023.

Two-way player [autotag]Jac Caglianone[/autotag] and outfielder [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag] both made the first team while shortstop [autotag]Josh Rivera[/autotag] and starting pitcher [autotag]Hurston Waldrep[/autotag] made the second team. Langford is one of six players to repeat as a D1Baseball All-American while Waldrep is also among that group having earned 2022 Third Team All-American by D1Baseball last year.

Waldrep’s D1Baseball honor is the only one he garnered during the 2023 campaign. On the other hand, the announcement officially makes Caglianone and Langford unanimous First Team All-Americans while Rivera earned a spot on all five major publications’ lists.

Additionally, reliever Brandon Neely was honored as a Second Team All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association while reliever Cade Fisher and infielder Cade Kurland were named Freshman All-Americans by Perfect Game.

As a whole, seven members of the Gators baseball team were recognized as 2023 All-Americans or Freshman All-Americans.

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ESPN has two Gators going in top 20 of 2023 MLB draft

Florida’s 2023 baseball roster featured plenty of future big leaguers, and a couple of them should hear their names called early in the upcoming draft.

The college baseball season might be over, but Gators fans can still follow the team through the MLB draft, which begins on July 9.

Plenty of Florida players should hear their names called, but a couple of them should come off the board in the very first round. Wyatt Langford has been a projected top-3 pick for some time, and ESPN’s latest mock draft still has him going to the Detroit Tigers.

The Tigers brought in team president Scott Harris to right the ship last season, and word is that the Detroit front office wants a college bat. LSU’s Dylan Crews and Paul Skenes are expected to go first and second overall, so Langford is the obvious option at No. 3 for the Tigers. If Detroit decided to go with a different position, Langford would not last long on the draft board.

The other Gator expected to go in the top 20 is right-hander Hurston Waldrep, who was stellar through the postseason until a short night against LSU. Regardless of that last game, Waldrep did wonders for his draft stock by showing off two true breaking balls and a 99-mph heater.

ESPN has him going at No. 17 overall to the Baltimore Orioles. The battery of Waldrep and Adley Rutschmann could be legendary, but the Florida righty could go as early as No. 12. Should he fall, don’t expect him to last past the 20th pick.

The big question remaining is whether or not Brandon Sproat will sneak into the first round. ESPN has him going at No. 40 as a competitive balance pick. Is that technically a first-rounder? Probably not, but it’s still millions and markedly not the second round.

Florida commit Steven Echavarria is another likely compensatory/competitive balance pick. Florida got pretty lucky losing just a few commits to the draft, but this year could go differently.

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Paul Skenes overtakes Dylan Crews in latest MLB mock draft

LSU’s Paul Skenes has overtaken his teammate for the top pick in MLB.com’s latest mock draft.

There’s a new projected No. 1 pick in the 2023 MLB draft, according to MLB.com.

After [autotag]Dylan Crews[/autotag] held the spot all year, Jonathan Mayo now projects [autotag]Paul Skenes[/autotag] to go first overall to the Pirates.

Crews didn’t fall far, now slated one pick later to the Nationals at No. 2.

Mayo said it was Skenes’ performance in the College World Series against Tennessee that put him over the edge, citing the fact that Skenes is the first college pitcher to cross the 200 K mark in 12 years.

After spending his first couple of years as a two-way player at Air Force, Skenes’ pitching went to another level upon arriving in Baton Rouge. Skenes only focusing on pitching has allowed his entire arsenal to improve.

He’d join a Pirates organization that has put together a slew of top draft picks over the year and hopes to compete soon. Skenes could be ready for the big leagues by 2024. Good pitching is hard to find so teams would love to get an arm that can offer almost immediate help.

Going third overall is Florida’s [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag], who LSU will see in the CWS final this weekend.

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Two Gators projected to go in first round of 2023 MLB draft

With the 2023 MLB draft approaching, which Florida Gators are expected to go in the first round?

Any Florida fan that’s watched a Gators game during the team’s current College World Series run knows that the club has an exceptional amount of talent.

Many players on the 2023 roster will end up in the major leagues at some point, but only a couple are expected to be selected in the first round of the upcoming MLB draft. On Monday, the Sporting News’ Edward Sutelan took a shot at projecting the entire first round and Florida right-hander Hurston Waldrep joined outfielder Wyatt Langford on the list.

Langford, who has held onto the No. 3 spot in most draft rankings throughout the season, is once again drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the mock draft. LSU outfielder Dylan Crews has been the consensus No. 1 pick for over a year, only to be challenged by his teammate, right-hander Paul Skenes, who looks like a plug-and-play ace.

The Washington Nationals seem like a perfect fit for Skenes at the No. 2 spot, especially with Stephen Strasburg aging quickly on the mound. There have been some rumors of Pittsburgh taking a discount at the No. 1 pick, but Langford giving up money to jump two spots and come off the board first doesn’t make much sense.

“Wyatt Langford is a compelling No. 2 college bat behind Crews,” Sutelan wrote. “He has more power than his LSU counterpart but is a tick behind him in speed and overall hitting ability, though both are more a testament to Crews’ standout abilities than a knock on Langford, who in any other year would be the clear favorite to be the top college bat off the board.

“Langford is more likely to be a corner outfielder, but one with middle-of-the-order potential as a player who combines a well-rounded hit tool with power and speed to boot.”

Waldrep gets drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals at No. 21 overall in this mock, but he could go even higher if he caps off an incredible postseason with one more masterful start (assuming Florida makes it to the College World Series championship).

Major-league scouts are left drooling after seeing Waldrep’s “split-change” in person, and the slider has become a reliable breaking pitch to generate even more swing and miss. Add in the fact that Waldrep has a fastball that can touch 98-99 mph and 21st overall seems a bit low. Skenes and Wake Forest’s Rhett Lowder are the only other two college right-handers ahead of him, though.

“The Cardinals have found success drafting college arms in recent years with first-round picks like Zack Thompson (Kentucky) in 2019, Michael McGreevy (UC Santa Barbara) in 2021 and Cooper Hjerpe (Oregon State) in 2022. While most have been control and command over stuff, Hurston Waldrep could give them a high-upside college arm in the system after underperforming in 2023 with overpowering stuff.

“His high velo and dominant off-speed offerings give him ace upside, even if a bit of risk given his struggles with command as a junior.”

Although he isn’t listed by Sutelan, Florida shortstop Josh Rivera could sneak into the compensatory portion of the first round (picks 30-39). There are a ton of shortstops expected to go in the first round, including more than half a dozen players coming out of high school, but Rivera might be a better option for some teams that want to go the college route.

Sutelan has Grand Canyon shortstop Jacob Wilson coming off the board 10th overall to Marlins and Ole Miss’ Jacob Gonzalez going No. 13 to the Cubs. Rivera came back for an extra year of college, which hurts his leverage in the draft, but he performed just as well as the other two.

This is where a team that’s looking to save money in the first round could jump on Rivera and work out a deal, though. Right-hander Brandon Sproat is another name that could go in the first few rounds, but he might not have done quite enough to jump up from that third-round spot he went in last year.

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PHOTOS: Highlights from Wyatt Langford’s 2023 campaign

Here’s a look at some regular-season highlights from the standout Gator’s 2023 campaign.

Florida baseball earned its first regular-season Southeastern Conference title in baseball since 2018 thanks to some spectacular play by a few star position players as well as a trio of pitchers who made opponents’ lives miserable this spring. Among those responsible for the successful season was junior outfielder [autotag]Wyatt Langford[/autotag], who is expected to be among the top five picks in this summer’s MLB draft.

The right-handed slugger from Trenton, Florida, batted .399 this season, drawing 44 walks against 34 strikeouts while scoring 66 runs and driving in 41 more over 48 games played. He also added 20 doubles, three triples and 16 dingers for a .827 slugging percentage while notching an amazing .527 on-base percentage.

He was not too shabby with the glove either, notching a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage while recording 75 putouts and three assists.

Take a look below at some of the top photographic highlights from Florida baseball’s star outfielder Wyatt Langford’s final season in Gainesville during the 2023 season.