Getting to Know: Cubs 16th Rounder Daniel Brown |
We are getting down to the final stretch run in our getting to know the Cubs draft picks series as the final five picks took the stage. When you look back at what the Cubs did in this area of the draft, it was a mix of 3B and college-level arms for depth pieces, but all of their picks were college-level players.
That was one of the things the Cubs focussed on this season more than most, and it is a big reason why all 20 of their picks signed and committed to the team this year. With their 16th-round pick in the 2023 MLB draft, the Cubs selected Daniel Brown, LHP from Campbell University. The 6-3 200-pound lefty will be a legend around the Chicago organization one or another, as he has drawn plenty of comparisons to a young Brailyn Marquez or even Luke Little. Playing for one of the more underrated yet successful baseball programs in the NCAA, Brown is known for his high velocity, which we will get into in a minute. After hitting .555 as a prep senior, Brown was destined to be one of the best position players in his draft class, especially considering he only threw eight innings a senior. However, his pure dominance in those eight innings had teams intrigued as he struck out 21 out of a possible 24 outs. Once he arrived on the Campus of Campbell University, the Camels saw the potential in his arm and made him a pitcher in 2022. After playing in just four games in 2021 and picking up hits in all those games, Brown made his pitching debut in 2022, where he threw two games that season. He allowed four runs in those outings, with two coming each outing. You could see his overall potential on the mound, and Campbell was expecting big things from him in 2023. Instead, he struggled to see time on the mound again, appearing in just four games and throwing fewer than seven innings in the process. Given his limited workload on the mound, you have to wonder what the Cubs saw in him to make this selection. Well, for starters, when he did pitch this season, he dominated as he struck out the side in his first appearance and came away with nine strikeouts across those four games. Secondly, Brown has a massive arm and was clocked at 102 MPH this season to become the first Campbell player in program history to reach triple digits. While that is fine and dandy, there is another concern with Brown, which happens to be his command, as he walked more than he struck out last season and even walked nine hitters in one outing. That is almost impossible to do as a starter, let alone a reliever which makes this selection from the Cubs even more strange. No one is going to deny the sheer arm strength that Brown has. You don't reach triple digits by accident, and when you have a guy that throws that hard, it is nearly impossible to pass him up. His biggest issue with the lack of experience is that Brown has no idea where his pitches are going when he lets them go. He has no feel for pitching and is just up there trying to throw the ball as hard as possible. That can get you to buy sometimes, but not at this level, as he will need to figure out how to harness his command, or this is a wasted pick. Along with that heater, Brown has a sharp slider that could be a great secondary pitch, but for that to happen, he needs to harness that heater. He faced 18 hitters this season, walked nine, and hit two. He also didn't allow a hit, which is almost impossible no matter how innings you throw. Given his velocity on the mound, Brown comes with a ton of intrigue, but of course, there are a lot of concerns for him. Brown will either flame out in rookie ball, become a legend, or both. Clearly, he could be a dominating closer, but the odds are probably a thousand-to-one against it. The Cubs doubtlessly think the Pitch Lab can improve on those odds significantly.
