Call to the pen
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A look at the #5 picks in the MLB Draft in the 2000s

By Benjamin Chase

Oct 2, 2016; Bronx, NY, USA; New York Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira (25) bats in his first plate appearance of the final game of his Major League career against the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 2, 2016; Bronx, NY, USA; New York Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira (25) bats in his first plate appearance of the final game of his Major League career against the Baltimore Orioles at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Danny Wild-USA TODAY Sports /
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Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

Justin Wayne, RHP, Montreal Expos, -1.5 bWAR

Taken with a 9th round selection out of high school in Hawaii, Justin Wayne was your prototypical “quick to the majors” college ace with less-than-elite stuff, but what projected to be excellent command that should take him quickly to the major leagues when he was selected 5th overall by the Expos out of Stanford in 2000.

That assumption wasn’t necessarily incorrect, either. After being drafted, Wayne went immediately to high-A Jupiter in the Florida State League, where his performance wasn’t excellent, but it was still a good performance in peripherals for a pitcher just out of college at a fairly advanced league.

He made it to AA in his first full season as a minor leaguer, and in 2002, after being traded to the Marlins, he made his major league debut, just two seasons after his draft season.

Interestingly, the five starts he made in 2002 with the Marlins were the most starts he’d ever make in a big league season. His stuff never was good enough to get big league hitters out, with a final tally of a 6.13 ERA over 61 2/3 professional innings from 2002-2004. He was out of professional baseball in 2005.

Since we highlighted Teixeira already, we’ll skip over 2001…

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