2005 MLB Draft Revisited: 5 Biggest Losers
2005 MLB Draft Revisited: 5 Biggest Losers
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
The MLB amateur draft is important in order to develop talent and sustain a strong farm system in the minor leagues with players who are hopefully capable of becoming big league contributors one day.
In the 2005 MLB draft, only one of the top 15 players selected did not reach the big leagues. Stay tuned to see which ball club’s talent evaluators made the mistake of vesting the eighth overall pick in a right-handed pitcher from Rice University.
The other four clubs on this list did not make the best use of their resources, either. While some of the players inside the top 15 did make appearances in MLB, it’s clear they did not have what it took to compete at that level over an extended period of time. In order to appear on this dubious list, the overall draft class from 2005 will be considered.
5. New York Mets
David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
The Mets held the ninth overall pick in 2005. After missing on their first round pick from the year before by selecting Philip Humber third overall, the Metropolitans again elected to draft a pitcher.
Mike Pelfrey may have made a name for himself in MLB, but he was by no means a bright spot on the Mets’ rotation during his seven seasons in New York. Debuting in 2006 at 22, the Wichita State Shockers alumnus started four games and went 2-1 despite a 5.48 ERA. In his 2007 season, Pelfrey made starts in April and May before being sent down. His final line through 13 starts was a 3-8 record with a 5.57 ERA and a FIP of 5.06. He walked only six fewer hitters than he struck out that season.
All in all, Pelfrey was nothing special in New York. By far his best season came in 2010 when he went 15-9 with a 3.66 ERA. If anything, he was good at eating innings for the Mets — though not quality ones. His lifetime numbers as a Met present a 50-54 record with a 4.36 ERA, a 1.46 WHIP and zero shutouts. For a top 10 pick, Pelfrey is somewhat considered a bust when you realize that pitchers like Matt Garza and Jaime Garcia were selected well after him in the draft.
Pelfrey now plays for Minnesota and has posted a 5-16 record with a 5.56 ERA in two seasons there. His career WAR is a lowly 5.4.
If anything is salvageable from the Mets’ 2005 draft, they can take solace in their 209th pick, LHP Jon Niese, and to a lesser degree, their 269th pick which they used on RHP Bobby Parnell.
Of the 48 players drafted by the club in 2005, eight of them reached the pros so far. They have posted an overall WAR of 9.6, or 1.2 per major leaguer.
4. Toronto Blue Jays
John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
The Blue Jays’ 2005 draft can’t be considered a total disappointment, but it was pretty bad outside of their first round pick. Outside of Ricky Romero, only two other of the 48 players drafted by Toronto reached the majors.
RHP Robbie Ray was taken in the seventh round. He appeared in seven games for the Jays in 2009 and 2010, last pitching in Triple-A for the Marlins’ affiliate in 2012.
Infielder Brett Wallace was traded at the 2010 trade deadline for OF Anthony Gose. In 971 at-bats over four seasons with the Houston Astros, Wallace his .242 with 29 home runs and 102 runs batted in. He was released by the Astros in spring training of last year and currently is a member of the San Diego Padres’ farm system.
Back now to Toronto’s sixth overall pick. Romero was a LHP for Cal State Fullerton who made his first MLB appearance in 2009. He managed fairly well as a rookie, going 13-9 over 29 starts with a 4.30 ERA. In 2010, Romero improved some, knocking his ERA down to 3.73 and his FIP to 3.64. But control issues began to foreshadow a sign of things to come that year, as he led the league with 18 wild pitches.
Before self-imploding, Romero managed a career year in 2011. Placing 10th in AL Cy Young balloting amidst a dangerous AL East schedule, Romero posted a 2.92 ERA. He went 15-11 across 32 starts and 225 IP, but he was still averaging over three walks per nine innings pitched and had a FIP of 4.20, suggesting luck was more often on his side than not in 2011.
In 2012, Romero was still a mainstay in the Blue Jays’ rotation but he posted a 5.77 ERA and led the league in walks. He was a shell of his former self. He made two starts and four total appearances for the Jays in 2013, accumulating an treacherous ERA of 11.05. Playing only in the minors in 2014, Romero has a long road back to playing big league baseball again. At 30-years old, he’s is set to be a free agent after 2016.
In total, all of the Jays’ 49 draft picks from 2005 have a combined WAR of 9.2 at the MLB level.
3. Tampa Bay Rays
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
The Rays — or Devil Rays as they were known in 2005 — have the unfortunate distinction of being the only team whose top 10 draft pick did not make the big leagues. Before getting things right in 2007 by selecting an NCAA pitcher in the form of David Price from Vanderbilt with their first overall pick, the Rays missed hugely on RHP Wade Townsend out of Rice University.
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Townsend was oddly enough also drafted eighth overall the year before by the Orioles, but terms could not be agreed upon. Baltimore’s lucky miss became Tampa Bay’s ultimate loss. Plagued by injuries that included Tommy John surgery and a torn labrum in the minors, Townsend never played higher than Double-A ball and was out of baseball by 2011.
There were a few positives the Rays can take away from the 2005 draft, though. They picked up Jeremy Hellickson (pictured) 118th overall. Hellickson won 40 games for the Rays and now is a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The Rays also used some draft picks on pretty good high school players who opted not to sign with them and instead went on to play collegiately. Tommy Hunter (18-538) played for the University of Alabama before being drafted again by the O’s in 2007. Ike Davis (19-568) played for Arizona State and signed with the Mets in 2008. Lastly, Wade Miley (20-598) pitched for Southeastern Louisiana and signed with the D-backs in 2008.
While seven of the 50 players drafted by the Rays made the majors — when you factor in the three above never played in their organization and Townsend was a huge bust — the total WAR of 7.9 is not a very impressive number. Hellickson can be thanked for contributing 86 percent to that number.
2. Seattle Mariners
Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Before making a poor decision to deal pitcher Michael Pineda for catcher Jesus Montero in 2012, the Mariners struck out with selecting catcher Jeff Clement as the third overall pick out of USC in 2005.
The M’s seem to certainly have a thing for highly touted catching prospects. In 2012, Mike Zunino was taken third overall out of the University of Florida and in last years draft, the club selected high school catching product Alex Jackson sixth overall.
Clement, however, will undoubtedly have less of an impact than all of the above names. He debuted in 2007 with Seattle having only nine appearances as a 23 year old. In 2008 he slashed .227/.295/.360 in 230 at-bats. Clement bounced around between the minors and the majors for the next few years, last playing with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2012. In 2013, he hit .220 for the Twins’ Triple-A affiliate, retiring as a player on March 31, 2014. Clement’s -1.2 WAR is hardly worthy of his third overall price tag.
The M’s also drafted RHP Lance Lynn (6-173) in 2005, but he did not sign. RHP Anthony Varvaro (pictured) was taken 353rd overall that year as well. He played poorly for the Mariners in 2010 and was claimed off waivers by the Braves. He’s strung together a pretty nice relief career since then, owning a 2.99 ERA over four seasons in Atlanta. He will play for the Boston Red Sox in 2015.
The 2005 draft totalled 48 selections by the Mariners. Eight of them reached the majors, culminating in a WAR of 9.8. But when it’s pointed out that 8.3 of that number belongs to Lynn who never pitched in the M’s organization, the 2005 draft can be considered a learning experience at best.
1. Chicago Cubs
Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports
The Cubs managed to secure four picks inside the top 110 of the 2005 draft. Donnie Veal (pictured) is the only one who reached the majors, never as a pitcher for the Cubs though. He was re-drafted as a Rule-5 player in 2008 by the Pirates and pitched from 2012-14 for the crosstown rival White Sox. His career ERA of 4.87 is nothing to write home about.
With the 20th overall pick in the draft, the Cubs selected LHP Mark Pawelek out of Springville High School in Utah. The southpaw never managed to even reach Double-A ball, accumulating only six total wins in his minor league pitching career over 32 appearances.
After that, it gets really bad. Only OF Tyler Graham (14-430) has appeared in a game for a MLB club. His career has been Moonlight Graham-esque, with two at-bats in 2012 for the D-backs. In 2013, Graham played for five different independent league teams with no affiliation to MLB. In 2014, playing in 106 games for the Giants’ Double-A affiliate as a 31-year old, he hit .255 with three HRs and 27 RBI. Graham is the definition of a career minor leaguer.
51 players were drafted by the Cubs in 2005, with only two of them reaching the majors. That’s a three percent efficiency rate, combining for a total big league WAR of 0.3 — absolutely pitiful. And Cubs fans wonder why they have not won a World Series in over a century?