SAN DIEGO — The Pittsburgh Pirates won the first lottery of the MLB Draft on Tuesday and will be the first pick in the amateur draft in July.
The Washington Nationals will pick second after finishing last with a major league-worst 55-107 record. The Detroit Tigers will pick third parties.
The Minnesota Twins were the big winners. They rose from 13th in the order according to their record in 2022 to fifth when the ping pong balls came out at the winter meetings.
Oakland was the big loser, after finishing with the second worst mark they were left with the sixth selection.
The Nationals, A’s, and Pirates entered the lottery with the highest chance of winning first place, at 16.5% for each franchise.
It’s the sixth time the Pirates have picked first or second in three years. They took the catcher from Louisville as the first pick in 2021.
LSU outfielder Dylan Cres, Tennessee right-hander Chase Dollander and Mississippi shortstop Jacob González are the top prospects in the 2023 Draft, along with outfielders Max Clark and Walker Jenkins.
The lottery was instituted this year as part of MLB’s collective bargaining agreement with the players’ association in March, and is intended to discourage teams from losing on purpose to receive draft picks.
The 18 clubs that did not reach the 2022 postseason were part of the lottery and eligible to win first place.
After the Nationals, A’s and Pirates, the Cincinnati Reds had the best chance to be first at 13.2%. They will choose seventh.
Pittsburgh and Cincinnati were tied for the third-worst record in the majors at 62-100, but the Pirates were among the top spots due to their worst record in 2021.
Kansas City, which had 10% of being first, will choose eighth. Detroit started with a 7.5% chance and moved up to third.
After the first six, the remaining teams will make their selections in winter order of 2022 winning percentage.