The Los Angeles Dodgers selected outfielder Kendall George from Atascocita High School (Texas) with their first pick in the 2023 MLB Draft. The Dodgers made their initial selection in Competitive balance round A at No. 36 overall.
The pick dropped 10 spots as a result of the Dodgers exceeding the luxury tax threshold by more than $40 million during the 2022 season.
Last year the Dodgers didn’t pick until the second round of the Draft, taking Dalton Rushing at No. 40 overall. Rushing just represented the team in the 2023 MLB All-Star Futures Game at T-Mobile Park. Rushing caught five innings and was hit by a pitch in his lone plate appearance.
George is considered an elite athlete with tremendous speed. That figures to project well moving forward considering the shift with new rules encouraging more dynamic play.
George, 18, is currently committed to attend the University of Arkansas. He joins James Loney (2002), Corey Seager (2012) and Gavin Lux (2016) as recent high school position players the Dodgers have drafted with their first pick.
The No. 36 pick in the 2023 MLB Draft comes with a $2,362,700 slot value. Overall, the Dodgers have a $7,274,600 bonus pool for the 2023 Draft, which is 24th overall. Bonus pools are calculated by adding the slot values of every pick through the first 10 rounds.
Any bonus amount a player receives that exceeds $125,000 for draft picks made after the 10th round also count against the pool money.
Consequences for exceeding that allotment include a 75% tax on any overage amount that is up to 5% over the pool. If a team goes more than 5% over their pool, they lose their first-round pick in the next year’s draft.
Thus, the Dodgers theoretically can spend nearly $7.63 million on draft pick bonuses and only face a monetary penalty.
The second round of the 2023 MLB Draft is also being held Sunday, with Day 2 on featuring rounds 3-10, and rounds Nos. 11-20 are being held Tuesday.
Remaining Dodgers picks in 2023 MLB Draft
Round 2: 60th overall ($1,336,900)
Round 3: 95th overall ($705,500)
Round 4: 127th overall ($516,800)
Free agency compensation for Tyler Anderson: 136th overall ($473,700)
Free agency compensation for Trea Turner: 137th overall ($469,000)
Round 5: 163rd overall ($364,400)
Round 6: 190th overall ($290,100)
Round 7: 220th overall ($228,000)
Round 8: 250th overall ($189,300)
Round 9: 280th overall ($173,600)
Round 10: 310th overall ($164,600)
Round 11: 340th overall
Round 12: 370th overall
Round 13: 400th overall
Round 14: 430th overall
Round 15: 460th overall
Round 16: 490th overall
Round 17: 520th overall
Round 18: 550th overall
Round 19: 580th overall
Round 20: 610th overall
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