New York Mets: Top 5 Players Drafted That Went Unsigned
1. Roger Clemens, 139.2 WAR
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In the 12th round of the 1981 draft, the New York Mets selected Roger Clemens out of Spring Woods High School, in Houston, Texas. The Rocket did not sign instead opting to pitch at a community college just outside Houston. He would later transfer to the University of Texas to pitch for the Longhorns.
In two years pitching with the Longhorns he was 25-7 and took the team to the College World Series both years. He was the winning pitcher in the ’83 CWS title game over Alabama. Clemens reentered the draft in ’83 and was taken in the 1st round, 19th overall, by the Boston Red Sox. The Mets selected fourth that year and took first baseman Eddie Williams.
Clemens put together 24-years of pitching magic between the four major league cities he made stops in. New York was one of them, but he was not pitching for the Mets. Clemens won 354 games with a lifetime earned run average of 3.12. He has seven Cy Young Awards, including the one he earned at age 41 with the Houston Astros.
Clemens was an MVP in ’86 when he was 24-4 and took the Red Sox to the World Series, to lose to the Mets, and ranks third on the all-time strikeout list. He would bring a couple more rings back to New York later in his career, though as a member of the Yankees.