With the MLB Draft approaching in a couple of weeks, here are three players to look out for that played in the CWS.
With the Tigers being crowned the king of the dance in Omaha, the baseball world not shifts its attention to the MLB Draft which will begin on July 17 in Seattle, Washington. Everyone has heard of LSU ace Paul Skenes and fellow Tiger outfielder Dylan Crews who will go one and two in this year's upcoming draft.
However, who are the players who flew under the radar and shot their draft stock up in Omaha? We take an inside look at the names in Omaha you may have missed and players to watch come off the board early at the draft.
MLB Draft prospects who improved their stock: Brayden Taylor – TCU
Headed into Omaha as one of the most sought-after third basemen in the draft in the back end of the first round, the lefty hit .308 with 23 home runs and led the Horned Frogs back to the College World Series for the first time since 2017. With his home run total nearly doubling this year, Taylor immediately got the attention of many big-league clubs. The Big12 Conference MVP possibly slid himself into top 10 pick consideration in Omaha by getting a hit in three of four games with a multi-hit game against Florida.
Taylor also came to the plate in the bottom of the 9th against the Gators and hit a ball 110 off the bat to dead center which would have been a homer in 97% of MLB stadiums.
To compliment his bat, Taylor has the best range of any third basemen in college baseball and the best arm of any hot corner athlete in the draft. He can do it all including a tremendous baseball IQ and not afraid to lay down a bunt in a situation when it's needed.
Possibly the best infielder going off the board, Taylor could go as high as #6 overall to Oakland after his performance at the CWS.
MLB Draft prospects who improved their stock: Rhett Lowder – Wake Forest
A sure-fired top-ten pick after the CWS, the right-hander from Wake Forest only solidified his name in Omaha by pitching toe-to-toe with projected #1 overall pick from LSU, Paul Skenes. While Lowder doesn't have the velocity to pump his fastball by hitters in the high 90s like Skenes, his fastball acts almost like a sinker to hitters in the mid-90s. To complement the fastball, Lowder has two of the best off-speed pitches in college baseball that he uses to get one of the highest swing-and-miss rates in baseball. His changeup that comes in at 87-88 mph is widely considered to have the most movement of any secondary pitch in this year's draft.
A native of Albemarle, NC, Lowder finished the 2023 season 4th in the country in ERA with a 1.87 in 120.1 innings pitched and 143 strikeouts which broke the school's record. While always highly sought after by MLB clubs, front offices had yet to see him under the bright lights in Omaha as the Demon Deacons haven't appeared in the World Series since 1955. When the stars aligned, for Lowder to square off with Skenes at the Greatest Show on Dirt, it was hyped as the best pitching matchup in the history of the College World Series.
Indeed, the face-off of two megastars did not disappoint. In an 11-inning thriller that ultimately knocked Wake out of the CWS, Lowder tossed 7 complete innings and only allowed three hits in complete domination of the nation's best lineup featuring Dylan Crews and Tommy White. Combined with his opening round start over Stanford, in 12.1 innings of work in Omaha, Lowder allowed two runs and struck out 12 batters at the World Series.
Look for Lowder's name to be called early in the first round and shot up to the majors by the end of next season, potentially by the Reds at No. 7 overall.
MLB Draft prospects who improved their stock: Josh Rivera – Florida
Ranked as the second-best shortstop in college baseball, Josh Rivera's draft stock soared to the top five rounds after the CWS. As the No. 111 prospect in the upcoming MLB Draft by MLB.com. Rivera can do it all for any franchise. With a .348 batting average and 72 RBI's, he is one of the best bats in the college game and a major contributor in the Gators lineup.
One of the most versatile players in the draft, his game is very similar to Whit Merrifield's out of South Carolina and current Blue Jay with even more power in his bat homering 19 times in the '23 season.
Scouts also love Rivera in the field with a .965 fielding percentage for Florida this past year. He also has one of the best arms of any shortstop in the draft and put that on display against TCU in Omaha nailing a runner at the plate on a great cut-off throw. Only making one error in the Gator's run to the national championship series, Rivera proved he can be plugged into any club and be a solid everyday shortstop and could be moved to multiple positions such as former Florida Gator and Cincinnati Red Jonathan India.
After the CWS, Rivera could have rose his draft stock to the top three rounds in the upcoming draft and would be a major steal for a big-league club. If Seattle passes up on George Lombard Jr. at the tail end of the first round, Rivera could be the way to go for the Mariners as a middle-round pickup.
