2023 Chicago Cubs Draft Picks

7/14 update: Per Jim Calis and Keith Law, the Cubs have reached an agreement with Shaw for full slot. The signing has not yet been made official by the Cubs. 

Shaw demonstrated a huge power breakout in his sophomore season at Maryland, jumping from 8 home runs to 22. In 2023, he took his offensive game to a new level with a .341/.445/.697 line through 62 games, keeping a steady 16 K% while increasing his BB% to 16%, in addition to slugging 24 home runs and stealing 18 bases.  Shaw is a stocky middle infielder, who played shortstop for the Terps but is likely to slide over to second base as a pro. He's a proficient base stealer and a solid defender, but the headline is the bat that possesses power to all fields. Shaw has already shown his chops in the Cape, he checks a ton of boxes and may be picked in the teens in July.

Jeremy Nygaard:
Maybe that's the easy answer given he was the club's first pick, but Matt Shaw was overlooked as a hitter due to there being two absolute college studs and a glut of infielders. He was my favorite of all the college infielders, even if he doesn't stick at shortstop. He has the bat and athleticism to play anywhere, though the arm may prevent him from playing shortstop, third base, or right field. I look for Shaw to adjust quickly in pro ball and sneak into a preseason national Top 100 or two.

Jaxon Wiggins has an exceptional repertoire, with a fastball that almost touches 100 mph, a hard slider, a changeup and a curveball. He was trending toward being a first-round pick after backing up a promising freshman season with a summer for the U.S. Collegiate National Team. 

But his sophomore year wasn't good and his junior year was over before it started when he suffered elbow discomfort and ended up undergoing Tommy John surgery. He definitely won't pitch this year and the time is unclear at best as it was announced he needed the surgery in February, but not when the surgery happened. Best case scenario, he's throwing in spring training. Realistically, though, Wiggins is probably starting to throw when the complex seasons begin next summer.

Jeremy Nygaard:
It's easy to dream on an arm like this. At a minimum, you'd think someone who can touch 100 mph and has a slider could be a valuable bullpen arm. Add anything to that and you've got a starter. But Wiggins has been injured and struggles to throw it over the plate. An intriguing arm if you could coax him to sign underslot, but he's got enough ability that he could go back to school and try to improve his draft stock. 

UPDATE: Rivera has signed with the Cubs under slot for his draft position. 

Rivera was a key contributor in Florida's College World Series run in 2023, with solid tools across the board helping him move steadily up Draft boards this spring. Rivera's college production in his first two seasons was impacted by the pandemic and injury. In 2023 he's been a able to show what he can do. Rivera has a strong, selective approach at the plate that has led to a higher walk rate 18 BB%, than strikeout rate 14 K%. He hit .348/.447/.617 in 2023 with 19 home runs. Defensively, while not the quickest, Rivera has good defensive actions that give him a good chance to stick at shortstop.  Rivera does everything pretty well and should be a top 100 pick in July.

Jeremy Nygaard:
A senior - so you can expect some savings - with a high floor. You're probably not banking on a first-division regular, but if you can get a utility player with a little bit of pop while stretching the bonus pool a little bit, that's a win.

Sanders is a big-bodied righty whose frame, solid platform of stuff, and projectability outweigh his relatively poor 2023 production. Sanders features a four pitch mix in which all of them may be above average with no one outstanding offering, but plenty of clay to mold. His fastball sits 93-96 mph with good carry. Despite Sanders' size and good extension, he struggled to get whiffs on his fastball and this development will be key to unlocking his potential as a pro. For secondaries, he relies most on his slider but also features a changeup with good fade, both solid offerings. Sanders has some projection left, unlocking a better fastball will be a key next step.

Jeremy Nygaard:
A little bit different than the Wiggins pick, because the floor is higher. He's going to need to figure it out mechanically and make adjustments to his fastball. If he does, you could get a durable, mid-rotation starter. If he doesn't, there's still enough to like as a reliever profile. 

UPDATE: The Cubs have announced they have signed Carico for $400,000, roughly his draft slot allowment. 

Carico has one of the most intriguing bats of any catcher in the 2023 class. A broken wrist put a huge dent in his 2023 season after just 9 games, but his numbers for Davidson in 2022 were ridiculous. In 54 games, he batted .456/.559/.843 with 21 home runs, 17 K% and 23 BB%, sheesh. In limited 2023 action he's hitting .352/.551/.690 with 6 HR. Carico has an uppercut type swing from the left side that produces fly balls to all fields, and the bat speed and raw power to hit for plenty of power at the next level. The question with Carico's offensive profile is if he can translate it to tougher competition and better velocity. Defensively, he should stick at catcher. He's an above average defender with a solid arm, but his receiving skills could use refinement. The hit tool will be average but Carico could be a great pickup for an organization that can take advantage of his raw power and great approach at the plate.

Jeremy Nygaard:
As prep guys were flying off the board on Day Two, Carico was one of the best college players available and fell into the Cubs laps. He will need time to adjust to better pitching - you aren't seeing it at Davidson - but if he shows an ability to hit at all he's a backup catcher. He missed a lot of the season with a hand injury. Someone to watch the next few years.

UPDATE: Per Jim Callis, the Cubs gave Rosario full slot. 

Jeremy Nygaard:
Heavy lean toward the risk category here. Too much swing-and-miss. If he comes in under slot, I'll not like this pick less.

Jeremy Nygaard:
Melendez has already reportedly agreed to an above-slot deal. And I'm a fan of these picks. A young shortstop for Puerto Rico who has limited exposure, but enough tools to believe in. This pick is akin to an international signing. There is plenty of time to develop a 17-year-old. 

UPDATE: The Cubs have announced they have signed Bateman, though we are still awaiting final numbers. 

Jeremy Nygaard:
It's 2023 and speed is en vogue again. Bateman will give you that and good defense in center field.

UPDATE: The Cubs have announced they have signed Long, though we are still awaiting final numbers. 

Jeremy Nygaard:
Probably isn't to the bottom of the defensive spectrum yet, but you're buying the power. Going to give a minor-league team a valuable bat in the lineup for the next couple of years with a chance to be more. 

UPDATE: Martinez-Gomez has been signed, we are now awaiting numbers. 

Jeremy Nygaard:
An electric arm out of the JUCO ranks. You'd hope pro coaching can help him level up. A fun way to end Day Two.

As reported by his mom and confirmed by Jim Callis on 7/20, Hope has signed with the Cubs.

Jeremy Nygaard:
The Cubs must have worked that calculator on Monday night and realized they had money to spend on Hope, who is rumored to be forgoing a UNC commitment. The road to Wrigley will be long for Hope, but he's a plus athlete. It will be on the developmental team to turn him into a baseball player. There's plenty of risk here as well, but the "take a prep with the first pick on day three" is a strategy of which I'm a fan.

Carter Trice. Real name, no gimmicks.

Jeremy Nygaard:
Trice struggled at NC State after transferring from Old Dominion. At a minimum, he'll be a solid player through A-ball and give the organization depth. He's a three-year Cape player, so he's got plenty of wood-bat experience. But is a career .238/.343/..409 player in that league. He's still only 20, so there's still time to develop into more.

Jeremy Nygaard:
A solid small-school pitcher who didn't put up big strike-out numbers and walked more than you'd like to see. Probably profiles as a reliever. Guessing the two starts he made in the Cape (10 innings, 13 Ks, 3 walks, 0 ER) helped get his name called. The new and relatively unknown thing here is that a bigger college could slide in and try to get him to transfer. Two years ago, he's a slam-dunk sign. Now there is another option.

Jeremy Nygaard:
Pitched out of Vandy's bullpen and struck out 36 in 26 1/3 innings. If the Cubs can get him signed, I'd consider it one of their better-value picks. Throw him into an A-ball bullpen and see how he does. But he could return to Vandy, compete for a starting role, and look to be one of the better seniors in next year's draft. He might get $150k this year and he likely wouldn't get that next year, so you wouldn't blame him either way.

Jeremy Nygaard:
A tall, righty who made his best start of the season (7.0 IP, 10 Ks) in late February. Got lit up on a number of occasions (gave up 10 earned runs on 15 hits and four walks in his last eight innings), but the Cubs must see something they can do to get more production of out him. Hard to call anything at this point in the draft a risk though. 

Per Carlos Collazo, Brown has been up to 101 mph, but has "very little feel for pitching."

Brown retired three batters - by striking out the side in his second appearance - in 2023. In the rest of his college career, he either hit or walked every other batter he faced. In total, he faced 18 batters, struck out three, walked, 13 and hit two.

Jeremy Nygaard:
Probably the most "fun" pick of the draft. Brown's game log from this season (and his career) is almost laughable. This year he made four appearances and got three outs. Nothing too crazy... right? In his first game, he walked four on 22 pitches. They all scored. In his second game, he struck out the side on 15 pitches. In this third game, he walked three, two of them scored. In his last game, he walked two. That's right, four games, three outs, nine walks, six earned runs. In 2022, he faced six batters. He walked four and hit two. But he throws the ever-living snot out of the ball and not just anyone can do that.

Jeremy Nygaard:
A draft-eligible sophomore, Flanagan really doesn't have any reason to sign. He was better in 2022 than 2023 and can have another shot to improve his draft stock while still having some financial leverage.

UPDATE: Kalmer has been signed, we're now awaiting final signing numbers. 

Jeremy Nygaard:
Showed power (15 home runs) in his lone year at Gonzaga after rarely playing at Arizona State for two years before going JUCO. 

Jeremy Nygaard:
A good value/depth pick this late in the draft. Started every one of the 43 games he appeared in for Maryland in four years. Struck out 77 in 74 2/3 innings this year.

Jeremy Nygaard:
Another one of those cases where his signing bonus isn't going to get bigger by going back to school for another year, but he can improve his draft stock by going back to Stanford and cutting down on his swing-and-miss. Big-time power (32 home runs in the last two years), but that gets overshadowed by the holes (158 Ks in 483 at-bats and only 46 walks).