Draft tracker: Nats kick off Day 2 of 2023 MLB Draft (final update)

The 2023 MLB Draft continues with Rounds 3-10 this afternoon and the Nationals are set to kick everything off with the first pick of the third round, 71st overall.

The Nationals, of course, lost to the Pirates for the No. 1 overall pick in the inaugural MLB Draft Lottery despite having the worst record in the majors last year by five games. But the draft’s subsequent 19 rounds revert back to the traditional order of worst-to-first, meaning they will have the first pick in each remaining round.

With the No. 2 overall pick last night, the Nationals selected Louisiana State University outfielder Dylan Crews, widely considered to be one of best prospects – if not the best prospect - in this year’s draft as the Golden Spikes Award winner.

“He's got a great skill set,” general manager Mike Rizzo said. “I think he's a guy that's going to fit right in here and be one of the leaders of the core group of guys that's going to be part of the next group of championships that we have here."

To start the second round, the Nats selected University of Miami (Fla.) third baseman Yohandy Morales with the 40th overall selection. The Nationals were surprised the 6-foot-4, 225-pounder was available to them that late, as he was ranked as MLB Pipeline’s 20th best draft prospect.

"One of the loudest bats I heard this year," vice president of scouting Kris Kline said. "We were pretty happy with that one, to get him at 40."

The Nationals will make eight more picks today, with their final 10 coming tomorrow afternoon.

Some things to keep in mind:

* Per the Collective Bargaining Agreement, each team gets an allotted bonus pool equal to the sum of the values of that club’s selections in the first 10 rounds, i.e. the more picks a team has, and the earlier in the rounds, the larger the pool
* The Nationals' bonus pool is $14,502,400, the third-highest behind the Pirates and Tigers
* The slot value for the No. 2 pick is $8.9985 million (which Crews is expected to want to exceed) and the slot value for the No. 40 pick is $2.14 million
* The slot value for the 71st pick is $1.02 million, the second-to-last value in the draft above $1 million
* Any bonus greater than $125,000 for a player taken after the 10th round (tomorrow) is applied to the bonus pool total

For what it's worth: MLB Pipeline's Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis said at the top of the draft broadcast that these rounds usually see the most high school players selected and almost all players selected today will sign. Teams don't use these picks on players they don't think will sign.

This post will be updated throughout the day with the Nationals’ selections, so be sure to check back in!

Update: To start the third round, the Nats selected right-hander Travis Sykora from Round Rock High School in Texas.

The 19-year-old is listed as 6-foot-6 and 232 pounds and ranked as the No. 40 draft prospect per MLB Pipeline. He went 7-0 with a 0.84 ERA and 108 strikeouts in 58 innings this season.

Sykora’s best pitch is his 70-grade fastball, rated as the biggest in this high school class, that sits 95-98 mph and can reach 101 mph. His slider and splitter both sit in the mid-80s, and he has shown the ability to locate and miss bats with both.

He has a commitment to the University of Texas.

With the 102nd pick to start the fourth round, the Nats selected Alabama outfielder Andrew Pinckney.

The 22-year-old is listed at 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds. He slashed .339/.442/.648 with 12 doubles, three triples, 18 home runs, 58 RBIs, eight stolen bases, 40 walks and a 1.090 OPS in 64 games with the Crimson Tide en route to being named second-team All-Southeastern Conference this year. He was also selected as the SEC Co-Scholar-Athlete of the Year

Nats fans might like the fact that he went 3-for-3 with a home run against LSU's Paul Skenes, the No. 1 overall pick of this draft, in April.

After redshirting in 2020, Pinckney developed into one the best all-around players in college baseball. He became more disciplined at the plate with a quick and strong right-handed swing. He can use the entire field and displays solid power from gap to gap.

His 60 run grade helps him in the outfield and on the basepaths. He reportedly can go from home to first in less than four seconds on a drag punt and has stolen 43 bases in 49 attempts over the last three years.

He played more right field than center field at Alabama, but his solid range and strong arm allow him to play up the middle.

Pinckney was ranked as the 216th draft prospect per MLB Pipeline.

Update II: The Nationals selected shortstop Marcus Brown from Oklahoma State with the 138th overall pick to begin the fifth round.

The 6-foot, 187-pound junior is a left-handed hitter who played mostly shortstop with some time at third base. Brown, 21, slashed .273/.360/.469 with an .828 OPS, 10 doubles, three triples, nine homers, 36 RBIs, three stolen bases and 14 walks in 60 games this season.

In the sixth round, the Nats picked LSU second baseman Gavin Dugas with the 165th overall selection.

The 5-foot-10, 205-pounder was a graduate student and teammate of Crews with the Tigers. The 23-year-old slashed .290/.464/.589 with a 1.053 OPS, 12 doubles, two triples, 17 homers, 46 RBIs, one stolen base and 44 walks in 68 games with the national champs.

Update III: We’re halfway through the day’s picks. Starting the seventh round, the Nats used the 195th overall pick on catcher Ryan Snell out of Lamar University in Texas.

The 23-year-old (who actually shares a birthday with yours truly) is a boulder behind the plate, standing at 5-foot-10 and coming in at 206 pounds.

The right-handed hitter slashed .317/.412/.654 with a 1.066 OPS, 17 doubles, one triple, 17 homers, 58 RBIs, two stolen bases and 33 walks to 30 strikeouts. Behind the plate, he threw out 20 of 34 would-be basestealers.

Snell was named 2023 Southland Conference Player of the Year and named to the conference’s All-Defensive team. He was also named a third-team All-American by American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) while also receiving ABCA first-team All-Region honors.

He joined Jack Payton (Louisville) and Kyle Teel (Virginia) as the three finalists for the prestigious Buster Posey Award, which is given to the nation's top collegiate catcher.

For their eighth-round pick, the Nationals selected left-hander Jared Simpson from the University of Iowa with the 225th selection.

A redshirt senior with the Hawkeyes after starting his college career at the University of Missouri, the 23-year-old went 4-3 with a 6.54 ERA, 1.500 WHIP and one save in 42 ⅔ innings over 22 appearances (one start). A big lefty on the mound at 6-foot-4 and 205 pounds, Simpson posted a 2.91 strikeout-to-walk rate and a 13.5 strikeout-per-nine-innings rate. Though he did walk 22 batters and hit 13, he only surrendered four longballs.

In four appearances in the Prospect League this summer, he allowed only one earned run in seven innings (1.29 ERA) over four appearances. He also had a 1-1 record, 1.571 WHIP and 12 strikeouts to six walks.

Update IV: We’re in the home stretch for today. The Nats selected right-hander Thomas Schultz out of Vanderbilt with the 225th overall pick in the ninth round.

The 23-year-old is a tower presence on the mound as a 6-foot-6, 243-pound reliever. He entered this season as a preseason third-team All-American and on a Stopper of the Year watch list.

During his senior season with the Commodores, Schultz went 2-2 with a 4.05 ERA, 1.290 WHIP and two saves in 33 ⅓ innings over 21 appearances (one start). He struck out 37 with 10 walks for a 3.70 K/BB rate and 10 K/9 rate while only surrendering five home runs.

For their final pick of the day, the Nats took Indiana shortstop Phillip Glasser at No. 285 overall in the 10th round.

The 6-foot 200-pounder slashed .357/.444/.515 with a .959 OPS, 19 doubles, one triple, seven homers, 48 RBIs, 14 stolen bases and 36 walks to 30 strikeouts in 63 games with the Hoosiers.

A 23-year-old left-handed batter, Glasser earned second-team All-Big Ten honors as a graduate student this season.

Of the Nats’ eight selections today, they drafted five position players and three pitchers (two right-handers and one left-hander). They selected one outfielder, three infielders and one catcher. All of the picks today were from the collegiate ranks except for the first one, Sykora, in the third round.

Halfway through the draft, the Nats have selected two outfielders, four infielders, one catcher, two righties and one lefty, with Sykora the only prep player.

The draft concludes tomorrow at 2 p.m. with Rounds 11-20. We’ll be back with a similar draft tracker for the Nats’ final 10 picks.