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Chicago Cubs News: Checking in on the 2023 Chicago Cubs MLB Draft Picks
The Chicago Cubs have had over a month to get their draft picks into game action and some of those players have really jumped off of the page with their production.
In July, the Chicago Cubs added 20 players to their system through the draft. Some of them have been underwhelmed, some of them have been injured, and some of them appear to be legitimate stars in the making.
Regardless of how good some of these guys have looked, none of them have earned the fanfare of Los Angeles Angels first baseman, Nolan Schanuel, who made his professional debut last week after just 21 minor league games.
We gave a scouting report on the players the Cubs drafted immediately following the draft and if you want to take a look at that you can find it here:
And if you find yourself questioning why the Cubs would spend their first-round pick on a middle infielder you can see our coverage of that decision here.
Here’s an update on how the 2023 Chicago Cubs draft picks have fared in their first taste of professional baseball.
1st Round Pick: Matt Shaw SS (University of Maryland)
21 Games Played: .378/.433/.585 3 HR, 2 3B, 4 2B, 9 SB, 12 RBI, 14 R
Matt Shaw was the right pick when the Cubs took him and he’s done nothing to change that opinion. He mashed in the three games he played at Rookie Ball and has continued to mash in the 18 games he’s played at High-A South Bend after skipping Low-A Myrtle Beach altogether. If he continues on this track for the remainder of the season he could start next year at AA and potentially find himself with the major league squad during a playoff push in September.
2nd Round Pick: Jax Wiggins RHP (University of Arkansas)
Injured, no game action yet
We talked about the Jax Wiggins pick immediately following it and praised the pick. Nothing has changed in that time as Wiggins hasn’t done anything since then. He was a potential first-round pick coming into the season that got hurt and the Cubs were able to steal him in the second. He has a ceiling of a mid-rotation arm and a floor of a late-inning high-leverage reliever thanks to good velocity and a solid breaking ball.
3rd Round Pick: Josh Rivera SS (University of Florida)
17 Games Played: .222/.275/.365 1 HR, 1 3B, 4 2B, 7 RBI, 12 R
Rivera was arguably the best senior in the draft and the Cubs snagged him in the third round. He hasn’t hit the ground running as hoped, but he skipped Low-A Myrtle Beach just like Shaw did and some players need a little slower of a buildup. He dominated in his three games at Rookie Ball and at this rate will likely open next season back at High-A South Bend before getting a shot at Tennessee.
4th Round Pick: Will Sanders RHP (University of South Carolina)
Injured, no game action yet
Much like Wiggins, Sanders was once a projected first-round pick. What the Cubs have been able to do with late-bloomer Cade Horton this season can’t be overstated and if they’re able to do the same thing with either Sanders or Wiggins (let alone both), this will be an extremely successful draft.
5th Round Pick: Michael Carico C (Davidson University)
5 Games Played: .083/.353/.083 1 RBI, 4 BB, 4K
At the time of the draft, this was one of my favorite picks due to Carico’s ungodly college numbers. He’s only played in five games as a professional and he finds himself at Low-A Myrtle Beach so there is absolutely time for him to turn this thing around and the fact that he’s walked as often as he’s struck out implies that he has the makeup to come out of a slump to start his career.
6th Round Pick- Alfonsin Rosario OF (HS)
9 Games Played: .250/.364/.286 1 2B, 4 SB, 1 RBI, 3 R
At the time of the draft we said that Rosario was an interesting pick because he had “the look,” that scouts refer to. That being said, so did Brennen Davis before injuries derailed his once-promising career, so there was certainly still room for concern. That being said, Rosario has looked great to start his career and he’s walked four times as well. If he can eventually find the power that his frame projects he could be a steal in the sixth round.
7th Round Pick- Yahil Melendez SS (HS)
10 Games Played: .237/.256/.342 2 2B, 1 3B, 3 RBI, 3 R
Melendez is significantly younger than the competition even at Rookie Ball. He’s almost two years younger than Rosario despite both being drafted out of high school. So to see him accessing power is a huge plus to start his career, but the thing that is more than a little concerning is that he’s struck out 16 times in 38 at-bats while walking just once. He’s young and has time to figure it out, but that’s eye-popping, to say the least.
8th Round Pick- Brett Bateman OF (University of Minnesota)
18 Games Played: .276/.442/.293 1 2B, 10 SB, 9 RBI, 15 R, 18 BB, 9 K
Bateman has been about as advertised. He’s a slap-hitting speedy outfielder who has next to nothing in terms of power but a great eye that will keep his OBP high. In 18 games he’s walked 18 times and struck out half that many times while stealing ten bases and putting himself in a good position to score runs. He could evolve into a usable 4th/5th outfield type on a good team.
9th Round Pick- Jonathon Long 1B (Long Beach State University)
14 Games Played: .326/.473/.651 4 HR, 2 2B, 7 RBI, 8 R
Long has been the surprise of this class so far. He came from a relatively small school and immediately settled into a power-hitting role that can only be matched by first-round pick, Matt Shaw. I’m struggling to see a world where Long doesn’t end the season at High-A South Bend and he could get as high as AAA Iowa by the end of next season.
10th Round Pick- Luis Martinez-Gomez RHP (Junior College)
1 Game Played: 0.2 IP, 2 H, 1 BB, 1 K 2 ER
At the time of the draft, I thought this pick was interesting because there wasn’t anything that stuck out to me as a solid player worth drafting. He doesn’t have an imposing frame, nor does he have the kind of stuff that has equated to eye-popping strikeout numbers. We’ll see what happens from here.
11th Round Pick- Zyhir Hope OF (HS)
11 Games Played: .286/.419/.543 3 HR, 3 SB, 9 RBI, 8 R
Hope was a player that draft pundits didn’t love. That being said he’s already accessed his power against older (albeit unpredictable) competition at Rookie Ball and is someone worth keeping an eye on due to his five-tool skillset.
12th Round Pick- Carter Trice 2B (NC State University)
10 Games Played: .296/.406/.556 1 HR, 4 2B, 6 RBI, 5 R
Trice has eight hits since turning pro and five of them have gone for extra bases. He’s maintained his K/BB% that he had through college and appears to be unchallenged by Rookie Ball. He should end the season at Low-A Myrtle Beach.
13th Round Pick- Sam Armstrong P (Old Dominion University)
1 Game Played: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 BB, 1 K, 0 ER
Still, an 80-grade name that sounds like it was pulled straight from Backyard Baseball, Armstrong has only thrown one inning since turning pro but it was a good one. It’s unclear if the Cubs will continue to develop him as a starter (he started the one game he’s played so far), but he’ll be worth watching.
14th Round Pick- Grayson Moore P (Vanderbilt University)
1 Game Played: 1 IP, 0 H, 1 BB, 2 K, 0 ER
This was another of my favorite picks in last year’s draft because I believed that Moore could move quickly. He was a reliever at one of the best universities in the country and he hit the ground running as a pro. The walks will always be a concern for a reliever but striking out two of the four total batters he’s faced so far is a percentage I’m very comfortable with.
15th Round Pick- Ty Johnson P (Ball State University)
No game action yet
Johnson is a player that had middle-reliever written all over him when he was drafted and he’ll be in his age-22 season next year having never played as a professional. The clock is ticking on this one.
16th Round Pick- Daniel Brown P (Campbell University)
No game action yet
This pick made no sense to me at the time of the draft. He faced a total of 18 batters in his entire time in college and only got three outs. He allowed 10 earned runs on 13 walks and had nine wild pitches. I still don’t understand.
17th Round Pick- Ethan Flanagan P (UCLA)
No game action yet
Keeping with the trend of pitchers that the Cubs drafted that haven’t played yet, I think Flanagan’s absence may be to try to give him an actual offseason to hit the ground running next year. He was bad in 2023 but if the Cubs get the pitcher he was in 2022, it’s a solid 17th-round pick.
18th Round Pick- Brian Kalmer 3B (Gonzaga)
21 Games Played: .342/.427/.658 6 HR, 4 2B, 1 3B, 23 RBI, 16 R
In 240 plate appearances at Gonzaga, he hit .358/.454/.682 with 15 homers, another 18 extra-base hits, and a stolen base. He continued to be red hot at Myrtle Beach and could find himself at South Bend to end the season.
19th Round Pick- Nick Dean P (Maryland)
No game action yet
Dean doesn’t blow you away but he has been a starting pitcher in a major conference for four years and has the potential to develop into a back-of-the-rotation type piece. He seems to be similar to Flanagan in that he’s getting the rest of the season off before starting his professional career next year.
20th Round Pick- Drew Bowser 3B (Stanford)
13 Games Played: .296/.367/.386 4 2B, 4 SB, 7 RBI, 5 R
Bowser is an interesting player if for no other reason than that he was a college hitter from a good program but the Cubs have kept him in Rookie Ball longer than any of their other college hitters. It’ll be interesting to see his next step, to say the least.
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