- In the history of MLB's amateur draft going back to 1965, only two overall number one picks have failed to sign: Tim Belcher, drafted by the Twins and left unsigned by former Senators owner/hated skinflint-racist Calvin Griffith, and Danny Goodwin, drafted by the White Sox in 1971.
- Of all the teams and all the years of drafting players, there have been only six drafts that produced absolutely zero big leaguers, and half of them have connections to DC or the Expos/Nationals franchise. Those drafts were (GMs in parens): the 2001 Reds (Jim Bowden), 1981 Braves (John Mullen), 1980 Blue Jays (Pat Gillick), 1973 Reds (Bob Howsam), 1968 Expos (Jim Fanning), and 1983 Twins (Calvin Griffith). (Update/note--I wasn't totally clear the way I wrote this--these are drafts in which no future big-leaguers where drafted and signed. A number of these drafts included future big-league players drafted but not signed. I should also note that I stole this factoid from Jim Callis and Baseball America.)
- Over the last three drafts, two of the three highest drafted unsigned players were taken by your Washington Nationals. Aaron Crow you knew, but you might not have known that second-rounder Sean Black was the highest unsigned pick in 2006.
Monday, October 6, 2008
A Few Kinda Meaningless Draft Facts
Just a few little items I noticed that don't really mean anything but I thought I would share anyway:
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
7 comments:
http://www.baseball-reference.com/draft/?franch_ID=CIN&year_ID=2001&draft_type=junreg
Jeremy Sowers threw 121 innings for the Indians this year.
He was the 1st pick for the Reds in 2001.
Now, NO ONE ELSE from that draft made the bigs. but Sowers did and that reduces the number to five.
Sowers was not signed by the Reds. So the draft yielded no major-leaguers for the Reds. Markakis was also taken late in that draft by the Reds, and there were other unsigned big-leaguers in the other 6 examples.
And Danny Goodwin was taken #1 overall a second time a few years later after going to college. And after all that, we found out he couldn't play a lick.
Let's hope that's not a lesson the Nationals apply to this year's #1!
From Memory-Spelling lousy
From '56 to `59 the Nats finished last every year. Then Calvin brought in Killebrew, Allison, Versailles (sp?), Battey (An Afr. Am. CA stolen from Bill Veeck.), Mincher (same trade for Roy Sievers who was done), Oliva, Allen and Kaat. Result: WS appearance.
I compare this rebuild to ours all the time.
PS Overrated Veeck sold 1b Norm Cash for cash the year before, and traded CA John Romano to Cleveland, leaving himself with Sherm Lollar who was also done. That's why the White Sox didn't win the WS until a couple of years ago.
@dsfuj: I have no idea what you're talking about, but I like it! Keep it up!!
You encouraged me.
In addition to trading for Earl Battey CA and Don Mincher LHbatting 1b, the Nats/Twins developed Cammillo Pascual, Jim Kaat, Harmon Killebrew 3b-LF-1b, Bob Allison RF, Zoilo Versalles SS,(MVP in Twins pennant winning year), Tony Oliva LF and Bernie Allen 2b in their own farm system. That's how you go from last place to a pennant.
Calvin also traded popular former ROY Albie Pearson to Detroit for Lenny Green CF. So even thou Calvin was a racist, he was a good baseball man who added a couple of black players.
Battey and Green used to eat at a carryout on seventh St. that was owned by a friend of my Dad's. They would leave tickets that would matriculate to me.
A thought about Ed Brinkman. I once saw him run into the duggout after making a good play, kissing his glove. Nelson Fox, who was MVP for the 1959 go-go White Sox, was Ted Williams' bench coach. He helped Brinkman semi-master the art of slap hitting.
My point was that Bill Veeck, who owned the White Sox, got rid of two young 1bmen and two young catchers, but the older guys were done so his team collapsed. Go with the young guys.
Post a Comment