The MLB Draft's 23rd Pick

With Major League Baseball's amateur draft starting on Monday, people like to look back at the top picks from the past decade. Well, we also happen to care about the 23rd pick. But should we? Also check out the fourth pick and the tenth pick.

2000
23. David Espinosa, Reds, SS

The Reds, in their never ending quest to replace Barry Larkin, did a little reaching for Espinosa. After two years of A ball, he made his way to the Tigers minor league system. Then there was some independent ball. Now there's a little Mariners' minor league system action. Up next, drug muling and Mexican stickball. By the way, Mexican stickball has nothing to do with baseball.

Verdict: We should not care

2001
23. John-Ford Griffin, Yankees, RF

Griffin had a career batting average of .427 at Florida State. After a year in the Yankees' system, he was part of a three team trade that landed him in Oakland and Jeff Weaver in New York. Around seven months later, Griffin was dealt to the Blue Jays. Released, signed by the Dodgers, released, signed by the Dodgers, released, signed by the Cubs, released. Now, I hear he just walks around in a revolving door at the Woodfield Mall all day.

Verdict: We should not care

2002
23. Jeff Francoeur, Braves, OF

Where to begin, where to begin. In 2006, Francoeur played in 162 games, hit 29 home runs and had 103 RBI. He also struck out 132 times, walked 23 times and registered a .293 OBP. The next season was his best when he, again, played 162 games while hitting 19 home runs and .293/.338/.444. He has a career OBP of .312 which seems a little high to me. The Braves eventually dumped the local boy off to, wait for it, Omar Minaya. I'm not sure that guy would know OBP if it punched him in the groin. While Francoeur is technically a major leaguer...

Verdict: We should not care

2003
23. Brandon Wood, Angels, 3B

This is going to be painful and biased. Full disclosure, I am an Angels fan. This is the first season he was given a full shot at third base. But in his random 346 plate appearances in his major league career, he has 9 home runs and averaged .179/.203/.277. Yikers! In eight minor league seasons, he hit 160 home runs and averaged .284/.352/.538. I'm afraid Brandon feels too much pressure to succeed with the Angels and will need a change of scenery to reach his major league potential. And for that...

Verdict: We should care

2004
23. Philip Hughes, Yankees, RHP

Hughes, at one point, was considered the number one pitching prospect in baseball. Then he was rumored to be involved in Johan Santana trade discussions and then jerked around between the rotation and the bullpen. In 2010, the Yankees finally gave Hughes a guaranteed spot in the rotation. So far, he is 7-1 with a 2.54 ERA and 64 strikeouts against 20 walks. Full disclosure, I hate the Yankees. But...

Veridct: We should care

2005
23. Jacoby Ellsbury, Red Sox, CF

Boy, is the jury out on his defense. UZR has his metrics all over the place. All I know is that the Sox do seem to play better defense when he's playing. He led the AL in stolen bases in 2008 (50) and 2009 (70). The kid is fast and will probably get a cameo in Fever Pitch 2: Tahmmy Takes A Wicked Pissah On Hollywood.

Verdict: We should care

2006
23. Maxwell Sapp, Astros, C

I plugged Maxwell Sapp into Baseball-Reference and it laughed at me and contacted the authorities.

Verdict: We should not care

2007
23. Nick Schmidt, Padres, LHP

Schmidt missed all of the 2008 season with the dreaded elbow reconstructive surgery. When I have my first left handed pitcher son, I'm getting him Tommy John surgery for his 13th birthday. Something will have to make up for his poor genetics. Schmidt now pitches for my favorite baseball logo, the Lake Elsinore Storm. But at 25-years-old and in high A, I'm afraid...

Verdict: We should not care

2008
23. Allan Dykstra, Padres, 1B

The Padres draft a player who has a famous sounding last name for the second year in a row. The 23-year-old first baseman/DH is also at high A Lake Elsinore. He doesn't look like much of a prospect.

Verdict: We should not care

2009
23. Jared Mitchell, White Sox, OF

Mitchell is a freak of an athlete. He played on both the LSU football and baseball teams and was the Most Outstanding Player for LSU's 2009 College World Series championship team. He's raw and, unfortunately, will miss the entire 2010 season after tearing a tendon in his ankle during spring training. He has all the tools to be a very good major league outfielder. And before you ask, I am an LSU homer.

Verdict: We should care

Recap: 6 We should not care, 4 We should care

Summary: I've wasted both your time and mine.

Good luck on Monday, boys. The draft is like evens and odds. And I don't appreciate it when you use the middle finger to represent one.

The MLB Draft's 10th Pick

With Major League Baseball's amateur draft starting on Monday, people like to look back at the top picks from the past decade. Well, we also happen to care about the tenth pick. But should we? Also check out the fourth pick.

2000
10. Joe Torres, Angels, LHP

Torres never made it past A ball with the Angels and battled injuries early in his career. Since then he has bounced around with the Rangers and White Sox, all in the minors. Fun fact, Joe Torres played Danny Lightfoot on Nickelodeon's Hey Dude in 1991. I have fact checkers working on if it's the same guy. I'm guessing yes.

Verdict: We should not care

2001
10. Chris Burke, Astros, SS

Burke played four years in Houston averaging .249/.319/.377 before being traded to Arizona in a package for Jose Valverde. He played sparingly in 2008 with Arizona and even less so in 2009 with San Diego. In 2010, he signed with the Reds and broke his finger in spring training. He can play all over the field but can't really, um, hit.

Verdict: We should not care

2002
10. Drew Meyer, Rangers, SS/2B

In 2006, Meyers got 15 plate appearances with the Rangers. He got 3 hits and struck out 8 times. He currently drives a bus in the Astros' minor league system. Or plays in the Astros' minor league system. It's unclear what's going on with the Astros' minor league system.

Verdict: We should not care

2003
10. Ian Stewart, Rockies, 3B

At 25-years-old, Stewart is the everyday third baseman for the Rockies. In his first full season in 2009, Stewart played second, third and the outfield while hitting 25 home runs and .228/.322./464. Obviously, you'd like to see more out of the average and OBP but he's young and this is the first season he will be set at one position.

Verdict: We should care

2004
10. Thomas Diamond, Rangers, RHP

In 2005, the Ranger's highly touted pitching prospect trio, DVD, was being hyped as the greatest thing since the Snuggie. I'm not good with time frames. Thomas Diamond was considered by some to be the best prospect out of himself, Edison Volquez and John Danks. Danks is now a stud for the White Sox and Volquez got a Rookie of the Year vote in his second full season. Meanwhile, Diamond pitches for ears of corn in Iowa for the Cubs.

Verdict: We should not care

2005
10. Cameron Maybin, Tigers, CF

Maybin was the crown jewel in a package that landed the Tigers Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis in 2007. Maybin is still only 23-years-old and the future center fielder for Marlins but his bat isn't developing as most expected it would. He has 56 strikeouts and 14 walks this season. Cameron Diaz could do that. But I still believe in his tools.

Verdict: We should care

2006
10. Tim Lincecum, Giants, RHP

You might have heard of Timmy. In his first two seasons, he won two Cy Youngs. He occasionally likes to smoke pot. He's 5'11 and 170 pounds and led the league in strikeouts in 2009 (261) and 2008 (265).

Verdict: We should care

2007

10. Madison Bumgarner, Giants, RHP

There has been some recent concern about Bumgarner's loss of velocity. While it is puzzling, he is still pitching pretty well in the minors and he was considered the best pitching prospect in the minors just a couple of seasons ago. Oh, and he's 21-years-old. Are you watching this, Pittsburgh? This how you do well picking in the same spot year after year.

Verdict: We should care

2008
10. Jason Castro, Astros, C

The Astros' minor league system is well in the bottom half of the league and it's a franchise heading in the wrong direction. That said, Castro is the 'Stros best prospect. While he doesn't project as a power guy, he should be a pretty good receiver and high OBP guy. He also finished fourth on American Idol season 7. My ex-girlfriend used to vote for him because he played the "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" version by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole.

Verdict: We should care

2009
10. Drew Storen, Nationals, RHP

The Nats had to take Storen here after they drafted Stephen Strasburg with the first overall pick. They had to backup the dump truck filled with gold bars and blood diamonds to Scott Boras' front lawn to sign Strasburg. So with the 10th pick, they drafted a kid who would sign for slot and make it to the majors quickly. Which he did. In 2010, he's pitched 9 innings, given up 2 runs, struck out 6 and walked 5. He's 22-years-old and the heir apparent to the closer role.

Verdict: We should care

Recap: 6 We should care, 4 We should not care

Summary: I've wasted both your time and mine.

Good luck on Monday, boys. The draft is like a coin flip. Sometimes you come out ahead, other times you just fall on your ass.

The MLB Draft's 4th Pick

With Major League Baseball's amateur draft starting on Monday, people like to look back at the top picks from the past decade. Well, we also happen to care about the fourth pick. But should we?

2000
4. Mike Stodolka, Royals, LHP

Stodolka made it as high as AA as a pitcher and as high as AAA as a hitter. Pro career seems to have ended in 2008. He is currently, I assume, a goat farmer in East California.

Verdict: We should not care

2001
4. Gavin Floyd, Phillies, RHP

Floyd was drafted one spot before fellow high school teammate Mark Teixeira. How good was that team? The Phillies traded Floyd and Gio Gonzalez in 2006 to the White Sox for Freddy Garcia. In his four seasons with the White Sox, Floyd is 31-30 with a 104 ERA+. Solid back end of the rotation guy.

Verdict: We should care, but not too much

2002
4. Adam Loewen, Orioles, LHP

Loewen reached the majors in 2006. After 29 starts over the next three seasons, Loewen posted a 85 ERA+ and a 1.26 strikeout to walk ratio. Then he developed control problems. He tried to transition to a positional player and was signed by the Blue Jays in 2008. He's currently barbacking in a Toronto strip club.[citation needed]

Verdict: We should not care

2003
4. Tim Stauffer, Padres, RHP

Stauffer has been up and down with the big club over the past five seasons. During that stretch, he's started 32 games with an 83 ERA+ and a 1.74 strikeout to walk ratio. Tim turned 28 just three days ago. Happy belated!

Verdict: We should not care

2004
4. Jeff Niemann, Rays, RHP

Niemann got a cup of coffee in the bigs in 2008 but really broke in last season. In 2009, Niemann tossed 180 innings with an ERA of 3.94 and an ERA+ of 115. This year he is 5-0 in 11 starts with a 2.79 ERA and a 154 ERA+. Does struggle with basic shaving concepts.

Verdict: We should care

2005
4. Ryan Zimmerman, Nationals, 3B

Zimmerman actually got 62 plate appearances in 2005 and has been the Nationals everyday third baseman ever since. He plays Gold Glove defense (whatever that means) and his bat became special last season. In 2009, he hit 33 home runs and .292/.364./525. This year through 197 plate appearances, he's got 11 home runs and a .309/.411/.594 slash line. Fellow third baseman and first pick overall, Alex Gordon, toils in the minors looking for a new position.

Verdict: We should care

2006
4. Brad Lincoln, Pirates, RHP

We're now entering the Pittsburgh Pirate portion of this segment. Go get your "we should not care" shirts on. Go ahead, I'll wait. Lincoln is 25-years-old and has decent stats in AAA. It's hard to care because Clayton Kershaw went 7th and Tim Lincecum went 10th.

Verdict: We should care, but not too much

2007
4. Daniel Moskos, Pirates, LHP

Moskos is 24 and in his second year of AA. I suppose it's too early to tell but they did pass up Matt Wieters. I'll cut them a little slack since a bunch of other teams also passed on Jason Heyward in the first round.

Verdict: Too early to tell, but I'm not happy about it

2008
4. Brian Matusz, Orioles, LHP

Matusz pitched 44 innings last season and 61 so far this year. The stats aren't pretty but his stuff in nasty. Considering he's been pitching against the AL East, I think the kid has a bright future. Plus, he's only 23-years-old. Now if he can just do something about that whole, being on the Orioles thing.

Verdict: We should care

2009
4. Tony Sanchez, Pirates, C

Sanchez crushed the ball at Boston College and it's too early to tell anything about last year's crop of draftees. I'm not entirely sure why I even included 2009.

Verdict: Too early to tell

Recap: 3 We should not care, 3 We should care, 3 We should care, but not too much, 2 Too early to tell

Summary: I've wasted both your time and mine.

Good luck on Monday, boys. The draft is like a box of chocolates and every third one is filled with toothpaste.