Before the 2023 draft, the last time the Orioles selected a pitcher before the third round was in 2018 when they took a right-hander named Grayson Rodriguez No. 11 overall.

The organization has displayed a clear preference for position players early in drafts since executive vice president and general manager Mike Elias took over in November 2018, with the Orioles using all 13 of their first- and second-round selections from 2019 to 2022 on hitters.

That changed earlier this month when the Orioles selected Florida State right-handed pitcher Jackson Baumeister No. 63 overall in Competitive Balance Round B following the second round. Shortly before Tuesday’s 5 p.m. deadline for MLB teams to sign their draft picks, the Orioles announced they agreed to terms with Baumeister, who will be joining the No. 1-ranked farm system in the sport, according to Baseball America.

Baumeister signed for just north of $1.6 million, according to a source with direct knowledge of the agreement. The bonus is about $360,000 more than the slot value for the 63rd pick.

The 6-foot-4, 224-pound righty posted a 5.09 ERA with 95 strikeouts in 69 innings this past spring with the Atlantic Coast Conference school. In his two seasons with the Seminoles, the 21-year-old struck out 31.4% of batters he faced and cut his walk rate from 15.8% in 2022 to 9.4% in 2023.

Orioles director of draft operations Brad Ciolek said Baumeister’s fastball averages 93-94 mph but can reach 98 mph.

“We’ve been monitoring Jackson for a while now, ever since high school. We’ve always liked the arm that he has,” Ciolek said after Day 1 of the draft. “I think the thing that really made us intrigued with Jackson is how the fastball plays. We think that we can maximize his arsenal by having him pitch further up in the zone with his fastball. He also has a complete repertoire as far as starting pitcher is concerned. A [sweeping] slider that is conducive to getting chases for right-handed hitters, curveball’s a little bit of a softer breaker, but we think we can add some velocity to improve that, and we’re going to also look to up his repetition of his changeup.”

Baumeister was the first of 13 pitchers the Orioles took with the 22 selections, which is the highest number of arms the organization has selected through 20 rounds during Elias’ tenure.

Of the 22-player class, the Orioles announced they agreed to terms with 19 of them, including No. 17 overall outfielder Enrique Bradfield Jr., second-round outfielder Mac Horvath and the rest of their first 16 selections. They did not exceed their $10.5 million bonus pool, according to a source with direct knowledge of the agreements.

The three players Baltimore did not sign were: 15th-round high school outfielder Qrey Lott, 18th-round college pitcher Tanner Witt and 19th-round high school shortstop Kollin Ritchie. Lott and Ritchie are committed to play at Northwest Florida State College and Oklahoma State, respectively, while Witt announced he will return to Texas for another season after struggling in 2023 following Tommy John elbow reconstruction surgery.

Many of the draftees will begin their professional careers in the Florida Complex League, with some advancing to Low-A Delmarva before season’s end.

Baltimore Sun reporter Nathan Ruiz contributed to this article.

Here are the 19 players the Orioles selected and signed in the 2023 draft:

Round 1 (17th overall): Vanderbilt outfielder Enrique Bradfield Jr.

Round 2 (53rd overall): North Carolina outfielder Mac Horvath

Round 2 (CBB, 63rd overall): Florida State right-hander Jackson Baumeister

Round 3 (86th overall): Washington right-hander Kiefer Lord

Round 3 (100th overall): Arkansas outfielder Tavian Josenberger

Round 4 (118th overall): Texas State right-hander Levi Wells

Round 5 (154th overall): UNC Charlotte outfielder Jake Cunningham

Round 6 (181st overall): Samford right-hander Jacob Cravey

Round 7 (211th overall): Coastal Carolina right-hander Teddy Sharkey

Round 8 (241st overall): Dallas Baptist right-hander Braxton Bragg

Round 9 (271st overall): Troy right-hander Zach Fruit

Round 10 (301st overall): Southern Mississippi outfielder Matthew Etzel

Round 11 (331 overall): Seattle right-hander Nestor German

Round 12 (361 overall): LSU right-hander Blake Money

Round 13 (391 overall): LSU left-hander Riley Cooper

Round 14 (421 overall): State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota right-hander Michael Forret

Round 16 (481 overall): Cal State Fullerton catcher Cole Urman

Round 17 (511 overall): Hillsdale College right-hander Zane Barnhart

Round 20 (601 overall): North Greenville University shortstop Jalen Vasquez

()