The First 7 Rounds (06/05/01)
The first 10 picks
Well, the draft started out just as predicted. The Twins started by selecting high school catcher Joe Mauer with the first pick. The Cubs followed the script by picking USC pitcher Mark Prior, followed by MTSU pitcher Dewon Brazelton to the D-Rays and Severna Park high school pitcher Gavin Floyd to the Phillies.
The Rangers went counter to their needs and selected Georgia Tech third baseman Mark Teixeira. While they certainly can afford him, after their first round pick, they did not get another pick until the 4th round due to free agent compensation. With as pitching poor as they are in the majors and minors, picking a hitter, even as good as Teixeira will be, was somewhat of a surprise. Also a surprise was the Expos selection of UCLA pitcher Josh Karp. Karp has a great deal of upside, but questions about his health and desire led most evaluators to view him as a low first round/high second pick. The O's continued with string of mild surprises by selecting Cumberland lefty pitcher Chris Smith. Smith, a transfer from Florida State, is often compared to Mike Gosling, a highly regarded lefty who mysteriously fell to the Diamondbacks in the second round.
The Pirates took one of the best college athletes - John VanBenschoten - in this draft with the 8th pick. The Royals took high school fireballer Colt Griffin with the 9th pick and lucked into two-sport star centerfielder Roscoe Crosby with their pick in the second round. The Astros finished the first 10 picks with their selection of UTenn shortstop Chris Burke. Burke doesn't really have the arm to stay at short, but is essentially a younger version of the man he will most likely replace, Craig Biggio.
The Winners
Based on how much first round talent they got, the teams that really helped themselves in this draft were the Royals, Padres, Cubs, Orioles, Indians and Blue Jays.
Although they are still raw talents, Griffin and Crosby have all the tools to become dominating players. However, they have a long way to go.
The Pads picked up 2 more quality third basemen; last year they selected Xavier Nady and Sean Burroughs the year before. Tulane's Jake Gautreau was probably the best all around collegiate hitter in 2001. USF cornerman Taggert Bozied had a down year this year but had posted 2 very solid years previously, although there are some concerns about his bat speed. Even though Matt Harrington was the 7th pick overall last year, he was widely regarded as the best pick in the draft. His bonus demands kept him from signing, but after a year in the Northern League and his value dropping fast, his demands should be considerably more reasonable this time around. Should the Pads sign all three of these players, they will have scored a major coup in 2001.
As if getting Prior wasn't enough, the Cubs picked up a good shortstop/leadoff hitter in Ryan Theriot and also picked up a top 30 arm with Sisco.
In addition to Smith, the O's picked up second baseman Mike Fontenot and high school shortstop Bryan Bass. Bass is a terrific athlete - he has accepted a football scholarship to U of Alabama - and has the physical talent to become a pretty decent switch hitter. Fontenot is simply a terrific hitter.
The Tribe picked up 3 very good arms. Denham, Horne and Martin were all considered high-to-mid first round picks.
The Jays didn't help themselves where they really needed it - starting pitching - but did manage to pick up two very promising outfielders. Gross projects to be a high average hitter with good power. Last year, Godwin was considered one of the top talents in the draft but his value dropped considerably after a pedestrian 2001 season.
The Losers
Although it's still early and there are always guys who were selected in the late rounds who emerge to become star players, the vast majority of the star players come from the first several rounds. Some teams had glaring needs and yet seemed to ignore them entirely.
Teixeira will help the Rangers on the left side of the infield, but they really could have used some quality arms. They have one decent pitching prospect in the minors (Joaquin Benoit) and nothing notable at the major league level.. Baker is the only guy they picked up today who shows up on the radar screen as far as talent is concerned. The other guys are strictly hunches.
The Dodgers didn't have any early round picks but spent their first 4 selections on pitchers. For a team that desperately needs help in the middle infield and in center, it's hard to conceive why they would pass on guys like Theriot and Godwin.
With talent evaluator supreme Paul Snyder retired, the Braves had something to prove in this draft. Snyder oversaw a farm system that drafted Chipper Jones, Ryan Klesko and Tom Glavine and signed guys like Andruw Jones, Bruce Chen and Raphael Furcal. In the couple of years he wasn't running the farm, they drafted guys like AJ Zapp and Troy Cameron. They did not want to have another AJ Zapp fiasco. Well, if first impressions are any indicator, they came closer to Zapp than they did to Chipper Jones. The local angle will help soften the blow as McBride, Burrus and Lewis are all from Georgia. But talent-wise, there were better picks available.
Team by Team through 7 rounds
Minnesota Twins
1. Twins. Joe Mauer, c, Cretin-Derham Hall HS, St. Paul.
45. Twins. Scott Tyler, rhp, Downingtown (Pa.) HS.
77. Twins. Jose Morales, ss, Academia de Providencia HS, Rio Piedras, P.R.
107. Twins. Angel Garcia, rhp, Nicolas Sevilla HS, Dorado, P.R.
137. Twins. Jeremy Brown, rhp, Georgia
167. Twins Vince Serafini,
198. Twins Matt Vorwald, rhp, IllinoisChicago Cubs
2. Cubs. Mark Prior, rhp, U. of Southern California.
46. Cubs. Andy Sisco, lhp, Eastlake HS, Sammamish, Wash.
78. Cubs. Ryan Theriot, ss, Louisiana State U.
108. Cubs. Ricky Nolasco, rhp, Rialto (Calif.) HS.
138. Cubs. Brendan Harris, 2b, William & Mary
168. Cubs Adam Wynegar, lhp, James Madison
199. Cubs Sergio Mitchwright, rhp, San Diego CCTampa Bay Devil Rays
3. Devil Rays. Dewon Brazelton, rhp, Middle Tennessee State U.
47. Devil Rays. Jon Switzer, lhp, Arizona State U.
79. Devil Rays. Chris Flinn, rhp, Stony Brook U.
109. Devil Rays. David Bush, rhp, Wake Forest U.
139. Devil Rays. Chris Seddon, lhp, Canyon HS, Santa Clarita, Calif.
169. Devil Rays Matt Rico, of, Fresno (Calif.) City Coll.
200. Devil Rays Timothy King, lhp, Deer Park (Texas) HSPhiladelphia Phillies
4. Phillies. Gavin Floyd, rhp, Mt. St. Joseph HS, Baltimore.
110. Phillies. Terry Jones, ss, Upland (Texas) HS.
140. Phillies. Ryan Howard, 1b, Southwest Missouri State
170. Phillies Bryan Hansen, of, Longwood HS, N.Y.
201. Phillies Vince DeChristofaro, lhp, Richmond Hill (Ga.) HSTexas Rangers
5. Rangers. Mark Teixeira, 3b, Georgia Tech.
111. Rangers. Josh Baker, rhp, Memorial HS, Houston.
141. Rangers. Chris Wilson, lhp, Loyola Marymount
171. Rangers Ben Keiter, rhp, Wichita State
202. Rangers Patrick Boyd, of, ClemsonMontreal Expos
6. Expos. Josh Karp, rhp, UCLA.
50. Expos. Donald Levinski, rhp, Weimar (Texas) HS.
82. Expos. Mike Hinckley, lhp, Moore (Okla.) HS.
112. Expos. Nick Long, rhp, Shaw HS, Columbus, Ga.
142. Expos. Reggie Fitzpatrick, of, McNair HS, Atlanta
172. Expos John Labandiera, ss, Fresno State
203. Expos Chad Bentz, lhp, Long Beach StateBaltimore Orioles
7. Orioles. Chris Smith, lhp, Cumberland (Tenn.) U.
19. Orioles. Mike Fontenot, 2b, Louisiana State U.
31. Orioles. Bryan Bass, ss, Seminole (Fla.) HS.
83. Orioles. David Crouthers, rhp, Southern Illinois U.-Edwardsville.
113. Orioles. Rommie Lewis, lhp, Newport HS, Bellevue, Wash.
143. Orioles. James Johnson, rhp, Union-Endicott (N.Y.) HS
173. Orioles Dustin Whiteside, c, Delta State (Miss.)
204. Orioles Joseph Coppinger, rhp, Seminole (Okla.) StatePittsburgh Pirates
8. Pirates. John VanBenschoten, 1b-of, Kent State U.
84. Pirates. Jeremy Guthrie, rhp, Stanford U.
114. Pirates. Jeff Keppinger, ss, U. of Georgia.
144. Pirates. Travis Chapman, 1b, Indian River CC, Fort Walton Beach, Fla.
174. Pirates Drew Friedberg, lhp, Arizona State
205. Pirates Michael McCuistion, c, HS, Calif.Kansas City Royals
9. Royals. Colt Griffin, rhp, Marshall (Texas) HS.
53. Royals. Roscoe Crosby, of, Union HS, Buffalo, S.C.
85. Royals. Matt Ferrera, 3b, Westminster Academy, Fort Lauderdale.
115. Royals. John Draper, c, Cal State Los Angeles.
145. Royals. Chamar McDonald, 1b, Madison (Miss.) Central HS
175. Royals Clint Frost, rhp, Jordan HS, Columbus, Ga.
206. Royals Chris Tierney, lhp, Rockport (Ill.) HSHouston Astros
10. Astros. Chris Burke, ss, U. of Tennessee.
54. Astros. Mike Rodriguez, of, U. of Miami.
86. Astros. Kirk Saarloos, rhp, Cal State Fullerton.
116. Astros. Phil Barzilla, lhp, Rice U.
146. Astros. Charlton Jimerson, of, Miami
176. Astros Russell Rolacek, lhp, Long Beach State
207. Astros Ryan Stegall, ss, MissouriDetroit Tigers
11. Tigers. Kenny Baugh, rhp, Rice U.
32. Tigers. Michael Woods, 2b, Southern U.
55. Tigers. Preston Larrison, rhp, U. of Evansville.
65. Tigers. Matt Coenen, lhp, Charleston Southern U.
87. Tigers. Jack Hannahan, 3b, U. of Minnesota.
117. Tigers. Mike Rabelo, c, U. of Tampa.
147. Tigers. Ryan Raburn, 1b, South Florida CC
178. Tigers Jason Craedler, of, Miami
208. Tigers Thomas Farmer, rhp, MiamiMilwaukee Brewers
12. Brewers. Mike Jones, rhp, Thunderbird HS, Phoenix.
56. Brewers. J.J. Hardy, ss, Sabino HS, Tucson.
88. Brewers. Jon Steitz, rhp, Yale U.
118. Brewers. Brad Nelson, 1b, Bishop Garrigan HS, Algona, Iowa.
148. Brewers. Judd Richardson, rhp, Miami (Ohio)
179. Brewers Calvin Carpenter, rhp, Natchitoches (La.) HS
209. Brewers Taylor McCormack, 3b, Dunedin (Fla.) HSAnaheim Angels
13. Angels. Casey Kotchman, 1b, Seminole (Fla.) HS.
33. Angels. Jeff Mathis, c, Marianna (Fla.) HS.
57. Angels. Dallas McPherson, 3b, The Citadel.
81. Angels. Steven Shell, rhp, El Reno (Okla.) HS.
89. Angels. Jake Woods, lhp, Bakersfield (Calif.) JC.
119. Angels. Mike Nickoli, rhp, Birmingham-Southern U.
149. Angels. Brad Pinkerton, lhp, Elon College
180. Angels Quan Crosby, of, Marsh (Texas) HS
210. Angels Richard Hill, lhp, MichiganSan Diego Padres
14. Padres. Jake Gautreau, 3b, Tulane U.
58. Padres. Matt Harrington, rhp, St. Paul (Northern).
90. Padres. Taggert Bozied, 3b, U. of San Francisco.
120. Padres. Josh Barfield, 2b, Klein HS, Spring, Texas.
150. Padres. Greg Sain, c-3b, San Diego
181. Padres Jason Reidmeyer, lhp, Memphis
211. Padres Doc Brooks, of, GeorgiaToronto Blue Jays
15. Blue Jays. Gabe Gross, of, Auburn U.
59. Blue Jays. Brandon League, rhp, St. Louis School, Honolulu
91. Blue Jays. Tyrell Godwin, of, U. of North Carolina.
121. Blue Jays. Chris Sheffield, rhp, U. of Miami.
151. Blue Jays. Mike Rouse, ss, Cal State Fullerton
182. Blue Jays Lee Delfino, ss, East Carolina
212. Blue Jays Jason Colson, rhp, WinthropChicago White Sox
16. White Sox. Kris Honel, rhp, Providence Catholic HS, New Lenox, Ill.
39. White Sox. Wyatt Allen, rhp, U. of Tennessee.
71. White Sox. Ryan Wing, lhp, Riverside (Calif.) CC.
103. White Sox. Jonathan Zeringue, c, E.D. White HS, Thibodeau, La.
133. White Sox. Jay Mattox, of, Conway (Ark.) HS.
163. White Sox. Andy Gonzalez, ss, Florida Air Academy
194. White Sox Stevie Daniel, 2b-ss, Tennessee
224. White Sox Brandon Camardese, lhp, Madonna HS, Cooper City, Fla.Cleveland Indians
17. Indians. Dan Denham, rhp, Deer Valley HS, Antioch, Calif.
27. Indians. Alan Horne, rhp, Marianna (Fla.) HS.
35. Indians. J.D. Martin, rhp, Burroughs HS, Ridgecrest, Calif.
43. Indians. Mike Conroy, of, Boston College HS, Dorchester, Mass.
51. Iindians. Jake Dittler, rhp, Green Valley HS, Henderson, Nev.
97. Indians. Nick Moran, rhp, Fresno State U.
127. Indians. Travis Foley, rhp, Butler HS, Louisville.
157. Indians. Marcus Mendoza, lhp, San Diego State
188. Indians Jim Ed Warden, rhp, Tennessee Tech
218. Indians Josh Noviskey, of, Newton (N.J.) HSNew York Mets
18. Mets.Aaron Heilman, rhp, U. of Notre Dame.
38. Mets. David Wright, 3b, Hickory HS, Chesapeake, Va.
70. Mets. Alhaji Turay, of, Auburn (Wash.) HS.
76. Mets. Corey Rangsdale, ss, Nettleton HS, Jonesboro, Ark.
102. Mets. Len DiNardo, lhp, Stetson U.
132. Mets. Brian Walker, lhp, U. of Miami.
162. Mets. Daniel Garcia, ss-2b, Pepperdine
193. Mets Jason Weintraub, rhp, Jefferson HS, Tampa
223. Mets Tyler Beuerlein, c, Grand Canyon (Ariz.) U.Cincinnati Reds
20. Reds. Jeremy Sowers, lhp, Ballard HS, Louisville.
64. Reds. Justin Gillman, rhp, Mosely HS, Panama City, Fla.
96. Reds. Alan Moye, of, Pinetree HS, Longview, Texas.
126. Reds. Steve Kelly, rhp, Georgia Tech.
156. Reds. Daylan Childress, rhp, McClellan (Texas) CC
187. Reds Michael Light, rhp, Elon
217. Reds Bobby Basham, rhp, RichmondSan Francisco Giants
21. Giants. Brad Hennessey, rhp, Youngstown State U.
30. Giants. Noah Lowry, lhp, Pepperdine U.
41. Giants. Todd Linden, of, Louisiana State U.
74. Giants. Jesse Foppert, rhp, U. of San Francisco.
106. Giants. Julian Benavidez, 3b, Diablo Valley (Calif.) JC.
136. Giants. Josh Cram, rhp, Clemson U.
166. Giants. Justin Knoedler, rhp, Miami (Ohio)
197. Giants David Cash, rhp, California
227. Giants Jamie Athas, ss, Wake ForestArizona Diamondbacks
22. Diamondbacks. Jason Bulger, rhp, Valdosta State U.
66. Diamondbacks. Mike Gosling, lhp, Stanford U.
98. Diamondbacks. Scott Hairston, 2b, Central Arizona JC.
128. Diamondbacks. Justin Wechsler, rhp, Ball State U.
158. Diamondbacks. Rich Barrett, of, Ursinas () Coll.
189. Diamondbacks Matt Fox, rhp, Douglas HS, Coral Springs, Fla.
219. Diamondbacks Chad Tracy, 3b, East CarolinaNew York Yankees
23. Yankees. John-Ford Griffin, of, Florida State U.
34. Yankees. Bronson Sardinha, ss, Kamehameha HS, Honolulu.
42. Yankees. Jon Skaggs, rhp, Rice U.
62. Yankees. Shelley Duncan, of, U. of Arizona.
63. Yankees. Jason Arnold, rhp, U. of Central Florida.
95. Yankees. Chase Wright, lhp, Iowa Park (Texas) HS.
125. Yankees. Aaron Rifkin, 1b, Cal State Fullerton.
155. Yankees. Jeff Christensen, of, Tennessee
186. Yankees Rik Currier, rhp, Southern California
216. Yankees Andy Cannizaro, ss, TulaneAtlanta Braves
24. Braves. Macay McBride, lhp, Screven County HS, Sylvania, Ga.
29. Braves. Josh Burrus, ss, Wheeler HS, Marietta, Ga.
40. Braves. Richard Lewis, 2b, Georgia Tech.
52. Braves. J.P. Howell, lhp, Jesuit HS, Sacramento
73. Braves. Cole Barthel, 3b, Decatur (Ala.) HS.
105. Braves. Adam Stern, of, U. of Nebraska.
135. Braves. Kyle Davies, rhp, Stockbridge (Ga.) HS.
165. Braves. Matt Escovel, of, McArthur HS, San Antonio
196. Braves William McCarthy, of, Rutgers
226. Braves Raymond Nieves, rhp, De Gracis HS, Vega Alta, P.R.Oakland A's
25. Athletics. Bobby Crosby, ss, Long Beach State U.
26. Athletics. Jeremy Bonderman, rhp, Pasco (Wash.) HS.
37. Athletics. John Rheinecker, lhp, Southwest Missouri State U.
69. Athletics. Neal Cotts, lhp, Illinois State U.
101. Athletics. J.T. Stotts, ss, Cal State Northridge.
131. Athletics. Marcus McBeth, of, U. of South Carolina.
161. Athletics. Jeff Bruksch, rhp, Stanford
192. Athletics Austin Nagle, of, Barbe HS, Lake Charles, La.
222. Athletics Dan Johnson, 1b, NebraskaSt. Louis Cardinals
28. Cardinals. Justin Pope, rhp, U. of Central Florida.
72. Cardinals. Dan Haren, rhp, Pepperdine U.
104. Cardinals. Joe Mather, ss, Mountain Pointe HS, Phoenix.
134. Cardinals. Josh Brey, lhp, Liberty U.
164. Cardinals. Jared Schumaker, ss, UC Santa Barbara
195. Cardinals John Killalea, lhp, Seminole (Fla.) HS
225. Cardinals Tyler Adamcheck, rhp, Westlake (Calif.) HSSeattle Mariners
36. Mariners. Michael Garciaparra, ss, Don Bosco HS, La Habra Heights, Calif.
49. Mariners. Rene Rivera, c, Papa Juan XXIII HS, Bayamon, P.R.
67. Mariners. Michael Wilson, of, Booker T. Washington HS, Tulsa, Okla.
80. Mariners. Lazaro Abreu, c, Southridge HS, Miami.
99. Mariners. Tim Merritt, ss, U. of South Alabama.
129. Mariners. Bobby Livingston, lhp, Trinity Christian HS, Lubbock, Texas.
159. Mariners. John Cole, 2b-of, Nebraska
190. Mariners Justin Ockerman, rhp, Garden City (Mich.) HS
220. Mariners John Axford, rhp, Assumption Coll., OntarioColorado Rockies
44. Rockies. Jayson Nix, ss, Midland (Texas) HS.
75. Rockies. Trey Taylor, lhp, Mansfield (Texas) HS.
94. Rockies. Jason Frome, of, Indiana State U.
124. Rockies. Jay Mitchell, rhp, La Grange (Ga.) HS.
154. Rockies. Gerrit Simpson, rhp, Texas
185. Rockies Jamie Tricoglou, rhp, Kennesaw State
215. Rockies Corey Sullivan, of, Wake ForestBoston Red Sox
48. Red Sox. Kelly Shoppach, c, Baylor U.
61. Red Sox. Matt Chico, lhp, Fallbrook (Calif.) HS.
93. Red Sox. Jon DeVries, c, Irvine (Calif.) HS.
123. Red Sox. Stefan Bailie, 1b, Washington State U.
153. Red Sox. Eric West, ss, Southside (Ala.) HS
184. Red Sox Justin James, rhp, Yukon (Okla.) HS
214. Red Sox Rolando Viera, lhp, CubaFlorida Marlins
60. Marlins. Garrett Berger, rhp, Carmel (Ind.) HS.
92. Marlins. Allen Baxter, rhp, Varina HS, Sandston, Va.
122. Marlins. Chris Resop, of, Barron Collier HS, Naples, Fla.
152. Marlins. Tyler Lumsden, lhp, Cave Spring HS, Roanoke, Va.
183. Marlins Adam Bostick, lhp, Greensberg-Salem HS, Pa.
213. Marlins Lincoln Holdzkom, rhp, Arizona Western CCLos Angeles Dodgers
68. Dodgers. Brian Pilkington, rhp, Santiago HS, Garden Grove, Calif.
100. Dodgers. David Taylor, rhp, Southlake HS, Clermont, Fla.
130. Dodgers. Kole Strayhorn, rhp, Shawnee HS, Seminole, Okla.
160. Dodgers. Steve Nelson, rhp, Cole Harbour District HS, Nova Scotia
191. Dodgers Edwin Jackson, of, Shaw HS, Columbus, Ga.
221. Dodgers David Cuen, lhp, Sabola (Ariz.) HS