This year’s College World Series featured a matchup between the Florida Gators and the LSU Tigers. Players from both teams are expected to go early in this year’s MLB draft, but as of Saturday afternoon, Florida’s Wyatt Langford had overtaken LSU’s Dylan Crews and RHP Paul Skenes as the favorite to go first overall, per the 2023 MLB Draft odds at FanDuel. Let’s dive into the MLB draft odds for the first overall pick to break down why Langford has overtaken Skenes and Crews to land with the Pittsburgh Pirates at first overall.
2023 MLB Draft Odds: Wyatt Langford Overtakes Paul Skenes, Dylan Crews
2023 MLB Draft Odds: First Overall Pick
Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook
Wyatt Langford: +160
Paul Skenes: +270
Max Clark: +300
Dylan Crews: +360
Wyatt Langford (FLA – LF)
The Florida Gators and Wyatt Langford put together an incredible run in 2023. The Gators entered the tournament ranked No. 2 in the country, which afforded them the luxury of hosting both their regional and their super regional. Langford, a 21-year-old from Gainesville, Florida, led the Gators in batting average (.373), on-base percentage (.498) and on-base plus slugging (1.282).
Although Langford has emerged as the favorite among bettors to go first overall, MLB mock drafters are skeptical. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel has Langford going third overall to the Detroit Tigers, as does CBS’s Mike Axisa. However, The Athletic’s Keith Law has Langford going first. He cites two reasons: Crews’ desire for a bigger contract than the slot requires and Pittsburgh’s desire for a bat over an arm.
Max Clark (Franklin HS – CF)
Unlike the other favorites to go early in this year’s MLB draft, 18-year-old Max Clark hasn’t played a lick of college ball. Clark attended Indiana’s Franklin Community High School, located just south of Indianapolis, where he earned Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year honors for three straight years. His elite senior-season batting average of .646 jumps off the page.
Clark is no stranger to the national stage, either — he won gold for Team USA in the 2021 U-18 Baseball World Cup while batting .294 across eight games. Although Clark committed to play college ball for Tim Corbin at Vanderbilt University, it looks like he’ll head to the minors instead. Clark is projected to land with the Texas Rangers at fourth overall by ESPN, CBS and The Athletic.
Paul Skenes (LSU – SP)
Few names dominated the airwaves during the College World Series than RHP Paul Skenes — but he didn’t take the mound once. Skenes was instrumental in getting the Tigers to the finals, but because he pitched in the final elimination game against RHP Rhett Lowder and the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, the 21-year-old wasn’t rested enough to see action.
Skenes’ college stats are incredible. Last year, including the postseason, he pitched 122.2 innings across 19 starts. He recorded an elite 1.69 ERA and 15.4 K/9 through that span with a 13-2 record. Opposing batters hit just .65 against him. Those metrics are already impressive, but the fact he recorded them against SEC competition makes Skenes’ dominance that much more impressive.
ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel has Skenes going first overall to the Pirates, but both CBS’s Mike Axisa and The Athletic’s Keith Law have him falling to the Washington Nationals at second overall. Insiders project Skenes to be a major-league starter within a year, not unlike RHP Stephen Strasburg. Skenes is also the favorite to go second overall at odds of -270 (73%) at FanDuel Sportsbook.
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Dylan Crews (LSU – CF)
Unlike Skenes, Dylan Crews actually made some noise in the finals of the College World Series. He did plenty of damage from the batter’s box and recorded a fantastic catch in Game 3 to help power the LSU Tigers to a national championship. Crews led the Tigers in batting average (.426), on-base percentage (.567) and on-base plus slugging (1.280) this season.
Crews, a 21-year-old outfielder from Altamonte Springs, Florida, had previously entered his name in the ring for the 2020 MLB draft — only to withdraw a week before it took place and fulfill his commitment to playing college ball at LSU. CBS has Crews going first overall to the Pittsburgh Pirates, but his ask for $10 million has some speculating that the Pirates will pass. ESPN has him landing with Washington at second overall, while The Athletic has him going to Detroit at third overall.
