With all of this draft talk, I thought I’d change it back to baseball…
Five years later, the 2005 draft is probably one of the strongest we’ve seen. It’s given us 3 All Stars and 33 Majors Leaguers.
Here’s the order of picks:
1. Justin Upton, Diamondbacks
2. Alex Gordon, Royals
3. Jeff Clement, Mariners
4. Ryan Zimmerman, Nationals
5. Ryan Braun, Brewers
6. Ricky Romero, Blue Jays
7. Troy Tulowitzki, Rockies
8. Wade Townsend, Rays
9. Mike Pelfrey, Mets
10. Cameron Maybin, Tigers
11. Andrew McCutchen, Pirates
12. Jay Bruce, Reds
13. Brandon Snyder, Orioles
14. Trevor Crowe, Indians
15. Lance Broadway, White Sox
16. Chris Volstad, Marlins
17. C.J. Henry, Yankees
18. Cesar Carrillo, Padres
19. John Mayberry, Rangers
20. Mark Pawelek, Cubs
21. Cliff Pennington, Athletics
22. Aaron Thompson, Marlins
23. Jacoby Ellsbury, Red Sox
24. Brian Bogusevic, Astros
25. Matt Garza, Twins
26. Craig Hansen, Red Sox
27. Joey Devine, Braves
28. Colby Rasmus, Cardinals
29. Jacob Marceaux, Marlins
30. Tyler Greene, Cardinals
Here are the supplemental picks:
31. Matt Torra, Diamondbacks
32. Chaz Roe, Rockies
33. John Drennen, Indians
34. Ryan Tucker, Marlins
35. Cesar Ramos, Padres
36. Travis Buck, Athletics
37. Trevor Bell, Angels
38. Eli Iorg, Astros
39. Henry Sanchez, Twins
40. Luke Hochevar, Dodgers*
41. Beau Jones, Braves
42. Clay Buchholz, Red Sox
43. Mark McCormick, Cardinals
44. Sean West, Marlins
45. Jed Lowrie, Red Sox
46. Tyler Herron, Cardinals
47. Mike Bowden, Red Sox
48. Garrett Olson, Orioles
* Hochevar didn’t sign with the Dodgers, in a bizzare chain of events. He was drafted #1 overall by the Royals a year later.
9 of the top 10 picks have seen time in the majors; 4 of those are considered to be, if not already, elite players for their position (Upton, Zimmerman, Braun, Tulowitzki).
There were a few big misses:
Wade Townsend – Wade was considered one of the top pitching prospects, even sitting out a year when he didn’t sign witht he Orioles the year before. Some think that missed year hurt his development and that’s the reason he’s not moved along with Jeff Nieman.
C.J. Henry – Henry was drafted for tools, as he was considered a better basketball player when he was drafted. Those tools never developed. He was traded to the Phillies as part of the package for Bobby Abreu and soon quit baseball. He went back to school to play basketball.
Mark Pawelek – Pawelek got bitten by the injury bug – bad. Not all of those injuries were legit either; he once injured his non-throwing arm from tripping over his Xbox 360. Other issues included being sent home for “a violation of team rules” and failing to get a passport for a series in Vancouver. The Cubs ended up cutting Pawelek loose in 2009; he was signed to a minor league deal by the Reds.
There were 8 good outfield prospects from this draft, including Ryan Braun; Braun was a third baseman in college, but ended up in the outfield in his second season due to brutal defense.
The top pitcher would have to be Matt Garza; he was one of the key pitchers in the Rays turn around. Clay Buchholz and Mike Pelfrey are both coming along nicely; Buchholz even has had a no hitter. Volstad, Carillo, Romero still have the potential to be a front of the rotation starter.
To have a little fun, lets change the pick for the best player now and see how things would have changed:
1 Ryan Braun Diamondbacks
2 Troy Tulowitzki Royals
3 Justin Upton Mariners
4 Ryan Zimmerman Nationals
5 Matt Garza Brewers
6 Andrew McCutchen Blue Jays
7 Clay Buchholz Rockies
8 Mike Pelfrey Rays
9 Jay Bruce Mets
10 Jacoby Ellsbury Tigers
11 Cameron Maybin Pirates
12 Colby Rasmus Reds
13 Alex Gordon Orioles
14 Chris Volstad Indians
15 Jeff Clement White Sox
16 Travis Buck Marlins
17 Mike Bowden Yankees
18 Jed Lowrie Padres
19 Cliff Pennington Rangers
20 Joey Devine Cubs
21 Cesar Carrillo Athletics
22 Ricky Romero Marlins
23 Sean West Red Sox
24 Trevor Bell Astros
25 Garrett Olson Twins
26 John Mayberry Red Sox
27 Tyler Greene Braves
28 Ryan Tucker Cardinals
29 Cesar Ramos Marlins
30 Trevor Crowe Cardinals
31 Lance Broadway Diamondbacks
32 Craig Hansen Rockies
33 Aaron Thompson Indians
34 Brian Bogusevic Marlins
35 Brandon Snyder Padres
36 Chaz Roe Athletics
37 Matt Torra Angels
38 John Drennen Astros
39 Eli Iorg Twins
40 Henry Sanchez Dodgers
41 Tyler Herron Braves
42 Jacob Marceaux Red Sox
43 Beau Jones Cardinals
44 Mark Pawelek Marlins
45 Wade Townsend Red Sox
46 Mark McCormick Cardinals
47 C.J. Henry Red Sox
48 Luke Hochevar Orioles
Of these guys, there were 2 players that ended up with the same team: Ryan Zimmerman and Mark McCormick.
