The 2023 MLB Draft is in the books and now Ole Miss goes to work for 2024.

Tuesday brought the third and final day of the 2023 MLB First Year Player Draft with little to no fanfare for Ole Miss, which in a way was fanfare in itself.

After a up and down first two days Ole Miss experienced a ho-hum third day as rounds 11-20 came and went without any other current players selected along with remaining top high school signee Campbell Smithwick.

With Monday starting off in a positive way Ole Miss experienced a speed bump when Cooper Pratt was selected in the sixth round by the Milwaukee Brewers. Feelings of Pratt keeping his belongings in a dorm room on campus quickly turned to worry as it began to be reported the standout shortstop from Magnolia Heights would sign with the Brewers.

Pratt’s news came hours after it was reported that Tampa transfer JD Urso left the program, leaving Ole Miss in a bit of a bind a day after shortstop after Jacob Gonzalez was selected as the 15th overall pick by the Chicago White Sox in the first round.

The Rebels are now in search of a shortstop with not a lot of time if the transfer portal becomes the search area.

Ole Miss also lost out on pitchers Zander Mueth and Josh Noth who both were selected in the first two rounds to the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Brewers, repsectively.

The loss of Meuth and Noth are not as big a blow as Pratt’s with the chances of them going high in the draft were expected and signing with a team.

Outside of celebrating the draft selections of Gonzalez, Kemp Alderman, Calvin Harris and Jack Dougherty the first two days of the draft did not bring much good news in terms of Ole Miss and the future.

But Ole Miss experienced a quiet third day and with that brought a sense of relief with what is left.

Ole Miss kept Ethan Groff and Ethan Lege in its ranks as neither got their name called in the 20-round draft.

This means the Rebels have the chance to retain its starting centerfielder from last season. Groff was up and down at the plate but grew into a key defensive piece in the outfield.

Lege is good to retain just for depth purposes but Duke transfer third baseman Andrew Fischer could give him a run at the starting position. The nod would go to Fischer to be manning the hot corner come February.

Further good news came at the draft’s conclusion on Tuesday in the high school signee department. Oxford catcher Campbell Smithwick remained on the board and should remain on campus after the former Top 100 prospect moved in earlier this summer.

The Rebels look at Smithwich as a day-one starter and with Calvin Harris getting taken in the fourth round by the White Sox there is a hole to fill behind the plate this fall.

On the pitching mound Ole Miss got good news with weekend starter Xavier Rivas not being drafted. This should mean the left hander will be back in Oxford next season.

Josh Mallitz did not get drafted either and that ensures the bullpen arm will be back in an Ole Miss uniform and expected to be the presumed closer. Mallitz missed all of this season after undergoing Tommy John surgery last November.

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