2023 MLB Draft Roundup: Rounds 1-5

A closer look at my favorite picks from rounds 1 through 5 of this year's draft

We’ve made it to the final edition of my favorite MLB Draft signings from each round. Thank you to everyone for reading along and whether or not you agree with my picks, I appreciate the support. We are on the final five rounds of my favorite signings and this is where things get interesting.

The first 5 rounds are where we see the most talented players get taken and where a majority of the players who make it to the big leagues get drafted. Obviously, there are outliers, but more times than not, these are the rounds that produce the most big league players and overall value.

Round 5: Chase Jaworsky, Rock Canyon HS, Astros

For the fifth round, we have our second high school pick in this entire series — Chase Jaworsky out of Colorado. Some public rankings had Jaworksy as the third best shortstop and the sixth best player in his class out of Colorado. When you watch Chase swing, you may notice some unconventional movement mostly driven by his upper body. However, Jaworsky shows strong overall rotation and has a solid hit tool and average power.

Chase Jaworsky via https://www.astrosfuture.com/2023/07/chase-jaworsky-forgoes-college-commitment-sign-houston-astros/

Jaworsky has shown plus defense throughout the summer circuit and has proven to possess a strong glove over at shortstop. However, given his athleticism Jaworsky could see himself moving to the outfield at some point in his minor league career, as he has the speed and range to be useful out in the grass. Jaworksy was a bit of late bloomer, but I think the continued growth as well as the development system the Astros have in place will give Jaworsky a chance to have success in pro ball.

Current Stats: .281/.395/.281 in 9 G, 0 HR, 2 RBI, 4 R

Round 4: Quinn Mathews, Stanford, Cardinals

Quinn Mathews received a lot of media attention after his 156 pitch outing in the Super Regional against Texas. What was probably new information to casual fans was that Quinn had throw 100+ pitches in 14 games in 2023 and averaged 119 pitches in those 14 games. Sure that might be a bit much on a college arm especially that of a top 5 round pick, but at the same time, there’s something to be said about a pitcher who can consistently give you a good 5-6 innings with quality stuff.