FanPost

Before we put too much stock in the draft....


I have written here in the past about past Pirates draft mishaps, and while they seem to be getting better at taking chances on mid round players with upside, over the last 17 years, they have drafted so poorly, it's no wonder that they have had so many losing seasons in a row. So before we bemoan the fact that we took someone way too early again in this draft, know that it's been modus operandi for a long time now.

I did a cursory review of the Pirates drafts from 1993-2005 and the effect drafts have had on the roster is minimal at best, with only a couple players in each draft ever making it to the majors, which, out of 50 and multiplied by 13 years is an astounding percentage of misfires. I will show the 1st round pick and anyone who had more than a cup of coffee in the bigs:

2005 - Andrew McCutcheon: Steve Pearce (8th) Total:2

2004 - Neil Walker Total:0

2003 -Paul Maholm, Tom Gorzelanny (2), Josh Sharpless (24) Total:3 Not signed - Dallas Buck (19)

2002 - Bryan Bullington: Brad Eldred (6), Matt Capps (7), Nyjer Morgan (33) Total:4

2001 - John Van Beneschoten, Jeff Keppinger (4), Chris Duffy (8), Zach Duke (20), Chris Shelton (33), Rajai Davis (33) Total:6 Not signed: Jeremy Guthrie (3), Stephen Drew (11)

2000 - Sean Burnett, Chris Young (3), Jose Bautista (20), Nate McClouth (25), Ian Snell (26) Total:5

1999 - Bobby Bradley, Ryan Doumit (2), J.R. House (5), Brian Tallet (20) Total:3

1998 - Clint Johnson, Dave Williams (17), Joe Beimel (18), Steve Sparks (28) Total:3

1997 - J.J. Davis, John Grabow (3), Mike Gonzalez (30) Total:2

1996 - Kris Benson, Tike Redman (5), Willie Harris (28) Rob Mackowiak (53) Total:3 Not signed: Chris Capuano (45)

1995 - Chad Hermansen, Bronson Arroyo (3) Total:2

1994 - Mark Farris, Jimmy Anderson (9) Total:1

1993 - Charles Peterson, Jermaine Allensworth (1), Kane Davis (13), Chris Peters (38) Total:4

So, there you have it, out of 13 drafts, the Pittsburgh Pirates were able to find a total of 38 players good enought to play in the majors. 13 of them were relief pitchers. 10 were good enough to be regulars in the Pirates lineup or rotation. That is 1.5% of the 650 players drafted by the Buccos during that time. 5 of them are currently on the Pirates roster.

There is hope on the horizon, NH is looking to build through the draft. I don't understand why the previous regimes didn't see that as a goldmine possibility. There were some injuries and some blatant misfires (see my old post about Bullington being the worst #1 of all time in any sport) but if you can't afford the free agents, why wouldn't you spend more on the draft, where the playing field is somewhat more level. Hopefully we have turned the corner, as there is no way it can get much worse.

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