Junior RHP Austin Strickland became the first member of Kentucky’s 2023 Super Regional run to hear his name called in the 2023 MLB Draft. The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Strickland with the 227th overall pick. He becomes Pittsburgh’s sixth pick of the draft, joining #1 overall pick RHP Paul Skenes (LSU), 3B Garrett Forrester (Oregon State), RHP Carlson Reed (West Virginia), RHP Patrick Reilly (Vanderbilt), and LHP Hunter Furtado (Alabama).
After spending most of the 2023 season as a reliever, Strickland switched to a starting role near the end of the season. Stricky was extremely efficient in his first two starts against Florida and West Virginia in the Lexington Regional, allowing just three runs over 12.