DETROIT – The Detroit Tigers selected three players on the first night of the 2023 Major League Baseball Draft, taking OF Max Clark from Franklin Community High School (IN) in the first round (third overall), SS Kevin McGonigle from Monsignor Bonner High School (PA) in Competitive Balance Round A (37th overall), and 2B Max Anderson from the University of Nebraska in the second round (45th overall).
Clark, 18, hit .646/.808/1.215 with six home runs, 33 RBI, 45 runs scored and 35 stolen bases in his senior year and was named the 2022-23 Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year.
Over his three high school seasons, Clark slashed .551/.713/1.027 with 20 doubles, 10 triples, 21 home runs and 95 RBI. He drew 113 walks in his high school career and only struck out 16 times. He was selected as the Gatorade Indiana Baseball Player of the Year each season as a high schooler.
In addition to his high school play, Clark has also starred for the USA Baseball U18 team, winning a gold medal in the WBSC U-18 World Cup. Clark had a clutch homer against Canada during the tournament and had three hits in the gold medal-winning game against Taiwan.
McGonigle, 18, hit .530/.690/1.045 with eight doubles, four triples, six home runs and 22 RBI in 25 games as a senior at Monsignor Bonner. He struck out just twice, while drawing 32 walks. He was selected as the Pennsylvania Gatorade Player of the Year following the season.
In 73 games during his high school career, McGonigle batted .498/.638/1.014 with 18 doubles, eight triples, 24 home runs and 77 RBI. He also was teammates with Clark on the gold medal winning USA Baseball U-18 team at the WBSC U-18 World Cup.
Anderson, 21, hit .414/.461/.770 with 20 doubles, two triples, 21 home runs and 70 RBI in 57 games as a junior at Nebraska. Anderson was named a second team All-American and was a unanimous first team All-Big Ten selection. He was also a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award.
In three seasons with the Cornhuskers, Anderson batted .350/.400/.604 with 40 doubles, six triples, 38 home runs and 146 RBI. He was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year, a Freshman All-American, and second team All-Big Ten in 2021.
The 2023 MLB Draft continues on Monday with rounds 3-10. The draft concludes on Tuesday with rounds 11-20.
–TIGERS–
