MLB Draft 2023: Dodgers heavy on pitchers (and a quarterback) on Day 3

The Dodgers on the final day of the draft stockpiled the arms, taking nine pitchers with their 10 picks in rounds 11 through 20. Five of the pitchers went to four-year colleges, two pitched in junior college, and two are high school pitchers.

One of the pitchers is a quarterback. That’s former Clemson starting QB DJ Uiagalelei, who transferred to Oregon State. He was taken in the 20th round with a pro football future, so this is more of a long-shot pick. But Uiagalelei also the most famous player drafted by the Dodgers.

Uiagalelei also pitched at St. John’s Bosco High School in Bellflower in addition to playing football.

Before we get into the non-quarterback pitchers drafted by the Dodgers on Day 3, let’s talk about the one non-pitcher. Shortstop Jordan Thompson from College World Series-winning LSU was taken in the 15th round by Los Angeles.

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He hit .246/.365/.430 with 11 home runs as a junior, but was more known for his defense.

“Thompson is a solid runner who has the actions, athleticism and arm strength to stick at shortstop, and he has made a handful of highlight-reel plays,” says Thompson’s scouting report at Baseball America, “though maintaining consistency on the routine plays can help his defensive reputation as well.”

Baseball America rated Thompson the 377th-best prospect in the draft, while Kiley McDaniel at ESPN tabbed Thompson at No. 146, with a 35-plus future value on the 20-80 scouting scale.

4-year college pitchers

One round after taking Thompson, the Dodgers drafted left-hander Javen Coleman (16th round). He pitched only 14 innings with a 7.07 ERA, with 16 walks and 21 strikeouts.

Day 3 started for the Dodgers by drafting Carson Hobbs in the 11th round out of Samford. Hobbs struck out 18 of his 46 batters faced (39 percent) as a junior in 2023, but only pitched 11⅓ innings in six games. Hobbs suffered a season-ending injury on March 11, the details of which were undisclosed.

Luke Fox (17th round) had a 6.54 ERA in 2022 for Duke, with 66 strikeouts in 52⅓ innings, but did not pitch this season after Tommy John surgery.

Fox talked with Dan Zielinski III at Baseball Prospect Journal in May about his long road back from surgery, and his pitch mix:

“My changeup is my favorite pitch to throw,” Fox said. “I’ve always loved toying with the changeup grip and figuring out how to make it move the way it does. It’s been the hardest pitch to develop, I’d say, and find the consistency. After putting all that time into that pitch, it makes it really fun to throw.”

Alex Makarewich (13th round) struck out 89 batters and walked 44 in 72⅓ innings for Northwestern State, with a 5.10 ERA as a junior in 2023.

He earned second-team All-Southland Conference honors.

Makarewich is headed to his favorite team, per his school’s press release: “To finally get the call and the confirmation I was going to be a Dodger was a surreal feeling. Growing up in L.A., I was a Dodgers fan. My dad was a big Dodgers fan. We went to a few games. Throughout the years, I’ve always pulled for the Dodgers. To get picked by them was a surreal feeling. It still doesn’t feel real.”

Junior college pitchers

Photo credit: Tyler Junior College

Noah Ruen, picked in the 12th round, put up an eye-popping 0.82 ERA for Tyler Junior College in Texas, with 64 strikeouts and 14 walks in 43⅔ innings. He also pitched in the Cape Cod League with 13 strikeouts and no walks in his seven appearances.

The right-hander made the Baseball America top-500 draft prospects, checking in at No. 451 overall:

Ruen throws a fastball in the 88-92 mph range and touches 93, and the pitch has the sinking life and attack angle that should drive plenty of ground balls. His secondary is a sweeping slider with frisbee-like movement that checks in around 80 mph and looks like a solid-average breaking ball. Ruen could provide a unique look out of a pro bullpen, and has physical projection remaining to dream on his fastball velocity ticking up.

Jaxon Jelkin (14th round) had a 3.81 ERA in 75⅔ innings for South Mountain Community College in Arizona, with 98 strikeouts and 43 walks.

Jelkin, if he doesn’t sign with the Dodgers, is headed to the University of Houston.

High school pitchers

Two pitchers were taken late on Day 3, giving the Dodgers six total high school players selected among the 22 players drafted by the Dodgers.

First up was left-hander Sterling Patick in the 17th round, out of South Hills High School in West Covina, roughly 24 miles from Dodger Stadium.

Patick struck out nine in six innings in the CIF Southern Section Division 2 final, though his team lost in the final inning thanks to a four-run ninth inning by Crespi.

In the 19th round, the Dodgers took right-hander Spencer Green out of Richland High School in Washington.