A's land trio of major prospects in Minors Draft

7.10.23

Thanks to an assortment of trades as a part of the major rebuilding process begun last fall, the Philadelphia Athletics had three selections among the top ten in the 2023 WFBL Minors Draft. On Sunday night, those picks became actual names, and three exciting young players have been added to the organization's embarrassment of prospect riches.

With the third overall pick the A's chose pitcher Paul Skenes from national collegiate champion LSU. Chosen by Pittsburgh in the MLB Draft at first overall, the big right-hander is viewed by most analysts across the sport as the best pitching prospect in at least a decade. The 21-year-old is expected to work in the minor league system this summer and should reach the big club by next season, becoming a part of the growing talent in the Athletics starting rotation for years to come.

At second overall the Athletics chose 21-year-old outfielder Wyatt Langford out of the University of Florida. Taken by Texas with the fourth overall MLB Draft pick, the righty bat is deemed one of the most talented offensive prospects to come along in recent years. Langford is advanced enough that he could push for a spot as a starting corner outfielder or DH in the Majors starting lineup as soon as some point next season.

Finally with the 10th overall pick, the A's chose third baseman Braden Taylor out of TCU, who was taken by Tampa Bay with the 19th pick of the MLB Draft first round. Athletics GM Matt Veasey has had his eye on Taylor for some time now and moved up last week from the 21st pick in the WFBL Minors Draft in order to be in position to grab him.

"We are extremely excited to add these three talented young men to our system," said Veasey after making the selections. "Kudos to our scouting folks for doing their homework and providing us with the information necessary to make tough choices, because there was plenty of talent out there."

When asked how quickly he sees any or all of the new prospects moving up to help the Athletics rebuilding program at the Majors level, Veasey was expectedly non-committal. 

"We just now selected these three guys out of college, where they each endured a long season. We'll meet with them this week and you can expect them all to start out in Clearwater (A-level), either in the coming weeks or to begin 2024. But it wouldn't surprise me to see Skenes in Philly on Opening Day next season, with Langford and Taylor pushing towards that level over the next year or so."