PHOENIX -- The D-backs grabbed three college players on the first day of the 2023 MLB Draft, selecting Stanford infielder Tommy Troy with the No. 12 overall pick, N.C. State third baseman Gino Groover with the 48th pick and Clemson left-hander Caden Grice with the 68th pick.

The fact that all three picks were out of the collegiate ranks was not intentional.

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“You line them up and you see how they fall,” D-backs scouting director Ian Rebhan said. “And that was how the board fell today, and we're really excited about it. It wasn't a strategy going in or we were targeting certain demographics.

"I think one thing we've done really well as a group here is be extremely thorough and really line that board up from one to however many and that was how they fell today and we're pumped about it.”

Groover, 21, is a fourth-year junior at N.C. State where he played all infield and corner-outfield spots.

The D-backs, though, view Groover as a third baseman.

“We scouted him a lot there,” Rebhan said. “I think he's a player that had to move around a little bit early in his career. We think he's a great athlete and we think that the hands, the feet, all those things that we look for, is going to be enough to play third base.”

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Groover’s calling card is his hit tool. He’s able to send line drives from foul pole to foul pole with good bat-to-ball skills.

“Just really excited about getting a proven college bat there,” Rebhan said. “He's performed. He started at [UNC-Charlotte], he's had a good career now at N.C. State and [he's] just a guy that does a lot of really good things at the plate.”

Grice, 21, is an intriguing prospect who played the outfield and pitched as a fourth-year junior for Clemson.

At 6-foot-6 and 250 pounds, Grice has drawn comparisons to Joey Gallo for his frame and his raw power.

The D-backs, though, selected him as a pitcher and have no plans to use him in the outfield. Instead, they will help him develop his arsenal, which features a fastball that can reach 95 mph, a slider and changeup.

“We think he's got great feel for pitching,” Rebhan said. “ He's obviously got a three-pitch mix with the fastball, curveball and changeup. And we think he's got the mix, the strike-throwing ability, the feel, the size, all of those [attributes] to be a really good left-handed pitcher in the big leagues.”

Day 2 of the MLB Draft starts at 11 a.m. MST on Monday with Round 3 and will run through Round 10.