MLB drafts: 10 best selections from 2012-16

Rating the 10 most productive draft picks since the 2012 June MLB draft. The list features three third baseman among the top four.

The June draft is baseball’s version of roulette. Between 2012 and 2016, more than 6,000 prospects were selected by the 30 major league teams, but only about 10 percent have worn a big league uniform for as much as a day.

If a team identifies as few as two players who will eventually go on to become major league regulars, it’s had an excellent MLB draft.

Part of the problem involves baseball’s maturation system. It takes time for even a high pick to percolate through a team’s system to the bigs. Of the roughly 1,200 players taken in the June 2016 draft, only 68 have made a big-league roster. And that figure isn’t unduly influenced by lower-round picks; fewer than half that year’s first-round picks have made their way out of the minors and only a select few – Nick Senzel and Dakota Hudson being the exceptions – have established themselves.

That year’s No. 1 pick, Phillies outfield prospect Mickey Moniak, batted .252 this past season at Double-A.

So when a team watches a draft pick from any round – and especially a high pick – emerge into stardom, it’s worth a salute…particularly because while teams regularly guess wrong during the draft, correct guesses can pay off big.

In fact, draft picks made just since 2012 have played pivotal roles for three of the four most recent World Series winners, the only exception being the Washington Nationals.

Given MLB’s pay structure, drafting wisely is also the most cost-efficient way to produce talent.

Here’s a look at the 10 best draft picks since 2012. The measuring stick is average annual WAR since the player’s draft year, taking into consideration the drafts of 2012 through 2016. Officially that embraces 707 players.

Using average annual WAR since the player’s draft year – as opposed to the more standard average annual WAR – is done in order to underscore the importance of reaching the majors as quickly as possible.