Baseball: TCU 3B Brayden Taylor selected by Tampa Bay Rays in first round of 2023 MLB Draft

Congratulations to Brayden Taylor, the first Horned Frog off the board in the 2023 MLB Draft, being selected in the first round by the Tampa Bay Rays with the 19th overall pick on Sunday night. He becomes TCU Baseball’s first ever position player to be selected in Round One of the MLB Draft, joining pitchers Nick Lodolo (Cincinnati Reds, 2019), Brandon Finnegan (Kansas City Royals, 2014), Andrew Cashner (Chicago Cubs, 2008), and Lance Broadway (Chicago White Sox, 2005) as first round selections. The Big 12 Tournament MVP from West Jordan, Utah started 183 games in the Horned Frogs infield with a career .940 fielding percentage while hitting a slash line of .315/.442/.595 and adding 39 stolen bases over three standout seasons in Fort Worth.

Taylor had a power explosion at the plate in 2023, with 23 HRs and 70 RBI, slugging .631 while leading the team in walks and runs scored in a season that saw the Horned Frogs win the Big 12 Tournament and reach the College World Series semifinals. He broke the TCU career home run record during the Big 12 Tournament semifinals and extended it with bombs in the Big 12 Championship and two dingers in the Fayetteville Regional of the NCAA Tournament to give him 48 for his collegiate career.

While Taylor could return for a senior season with TCU, his slotted signing bonus value for being selected 19th overall is over $3.8 million, per Spotrac. It’s safe to say his playing career with the Horned Frogs has come to a close. Taylor was one of just seven top prospects to attend the 2023 MLB Draft on-site in Seattle on Sunday night; only 64 prospects have ever attended the MLB Draft, including eventual superstars Mike Trout and Aaron Judge. The only previous Horned Frog selected by the Rays was infielder Jake Guenter in the 7th round in 2019. Taylor joins 24 other Horned Frogs currently in professional baseball somewhere in an MLB organization system, whether up in the Major League or throughout a farm system:

We look forward Brayden Taylor continuing to represent the Horned Frogs in pro ball and eventually in The Show. Additional Horned Frogs are expected to be selected as the MLB Draft continues on Monday afternoon with rounds 3-10 and then completes on Tuesday afternoon with rounds 11-20, with a livestream broadcast on MLB.com