For Pirates, top-10 picks have been mixed bag of blessings, curses over past two decades
The Pittsburgh Pirates have the No. 7 overall pick in the MLB Draft, and it’s the first chance for Ben Cherington to make his mark as general manager in a way that predecessors David Littlefield and Neal Huntington couldn’t.
If the past two decades for the Pirates are any indication, a top-10 pick could prove to be as much a curse as a blessing. Of the 12 players the Pirates have picked in the top 10 since 2000, only three became All-Stars. Even that brought mixed results: Pedro Alvarez and Gerrit Cole achieved that honor once each with the Pirates, and Austin Meadows did so only after being traded.
The Pirates have actually fared best with the No. 11 pick, which produced a pair of playoff building blocks in Pine-Richland’s Neil Walker in 2004 and five-time All-Star and 2013 NL MVP Andrew McCutchen in ’05.
The Tribune-Review takes a look at who the Pirates have picked in the top 10 over the past two decades and their biggest hits and whiffs:
2001
No. 8, John Van Benschoten, RHP, Kent State
The result: The Pirates attempted to convert one of college baseball’s best hitters into a pitcher, with disastrous results. Van Benschoten was 2-13, with a 9.20 ERA and 2.144 WHIP in 19 starts over three seasons, including 0-7 with a 10.15 ERA in 2007.
The misses: In what was a weak draft after Joe Mauer (No. 1 overall), Mark Prior (second) and Mark Teixeira (fifth), the Pirates missed on the 2004 AL Rookie of the Year in shortstop Bobby Crosby (25th) and seven-time All-Star third baseman David Wright (38th).
2002
No. 1, Bryan Bullington, RHP, Ball State
The result: Proclaimed a middle-of-rotation starter upon being picked, Bullington became an all-time bust. He was 0-3 with a 5.89 ERA in 18 1/3 innings over three starts in two seasons with the Pirates and 1-9 with a 5.62 ERA in five major-league seasons.
The misses: The Pirates passed on six-time All-Stars in pitcher Zack Greinke (No. 6), the 2009 AL Cy Young Award winner, and slugger Prince Fielder (seventh), who hit 50 homers in 2007, as well as four-time All-Star and 2008 World Series MVP Cole Hamels (17th).
2003
No. 8, Paul Maholm, LHP, Mississippi State
The result: Maholm made 185 starts in seven seasons with the Pirates, going 53-73 with a 4.36 ERA, including a 10-win season in 2007, but was never the top-of-the-rotation starter they needed him to be.
The misses: The Pirates passed on future All-Stars in shortstop Aaron Hill (No. 13), right-handers Chad Cordero (20th) and Chad Billingsley (24th) and outfielder Carlos Quentin (29th).
2006
No. 4, Brad Lincoln, RHP, Houston
The result: Lincoln was 7-9 with a 4.62 ERA in 159 2/3 innings over 22 starts in two-plus seasons before being traded to Toronto for Travis Snider, an underwhelming return for a top-five pick.
The misses: This one haunts the Pirates, as they passed on two-time All-Star reliever Andrew Miller (No. 6), three-time Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw (seventh), two-time Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum (10th) and three-time Cy Young winner Max Scherzer (11th).
2007
No. 4, Daniel Moskos, LHP, Clemson
The result: On the day he was drafted — notoriously selected one spot ahead of four-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove catcher Matt Wieters — the Pirates and Moskos couldn’t agree on whether he would be a starter or reliever. The pick only contributed to Littlefield being fired. Moskos spent one season with the Pirates, going 1-1 with a 2.96 ERA in 31 appearances in 2011.
The misses: Not only did the Pirates pass on Wieters, but they also picked Moskos ahead of four-time All-Star and 2014 World Series MVP Madison Bumgarner (10th), as well as All-Stars Jason Heyward (14th) and Devin Mesoraco (15th). Bumgarner made them pay in the 2014 NL wild card, throwing a four-hit shutout.
2008
No. 2, Pedro Alvarez, 3B, Vanderbilt
The result: Alvarez produced the middle-of-the-order power the Pirates were hoping for by hitting 27 or more home runs three times, including 36 homers and 100 RBIs in his lone All-Star campaign in 2013. But his erratic throws from third forced his move to first base, and he had a slash line of .236/.309/.473 in six seasons before the Pirates released him.
The misses: The Pirates passed Buster Posey (No. 5), a six-time All-Star catcher who was the 2012 NL MVP and batting champion and led the Giants to three World Series titles. Other All-Stars included Eric Hosmer (third), Yonder Alonso (seventh), Jason Castro (10th) and Justin Smoak (11th).
2009
No. 4, Tony Sanchez, C, Boston College
The result: Sanchez never amounted to more than a light-hitting backup catcher whose strength (defense) ultimately became a liability. He slashed .259/.303/.378 with four homers and 18 RBIs in 51 games over four years.
The misses: The Pirates passed on future All-Stars in Mike Minor (No. 7), Aaron Crow (12th), A.J. Pollock (17th) and Shelby Miller (19th) but the big miss was at No. 25, where Mike Trout is an eight-time All-Star and three-time AL MVP who is regarded as the game’s best player.
2010
No. 2, Jameson Taillon, RHP, The Woodlands (Texas) HS
The result: Taillon overcame Tommy John surgery and testicular cancer to become the Pirates ace in 2018, going 14-10 with a 3.20 ERA in 32 starts. He is 29-24 with a 3.67 ERA in 82 starts over four seasons but underwent a second TJ surgery last August and is out for 2020.
The misses: The Pirates whiffed on Manny Machado (No. 3), a four-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove winner, as well as All-Star pitchers Drew Pomeranz (fifth) and Matt Harvey (seventh) and catcher Yasmani Grandal (12th). But the best players in the class are proving to be pitcher Chris Sale (13th), a seven-time All-Star, and outfielder Christian Yelich (23rd), the 2018 NL MVP.
2011
No. 1, Gerrit Cole, RHP, UCLA
The result: Cole developed into an All-Star and staff ace in 2015, going 19-8 with a 2.60 ERA and 202 strikeouts. But after he went 19-22 in the next two seasons, and the Pirates traded him to Houston, where he was 35-10 the past two years and had 326 strikeouts last season. The Yankees made Cole the highest-paid pitcher in history, signing him to a nine-year, $324 million contract.
The misses: The 2011 draft was loaded with first-round talent, including nine All-Stars. Most notable are pitcher Trevor Bauer (No. 3), third baseman Anthony Rendon (sixth), shortstop Francisco Lindor (eighth), infielder Javier Baez (ninth), outfielder George Springer (11th) and the late pitcher Jose Fernandez (14th).
2012
No. 8, Mark Appel, RHP, Stanford
The result: Appel made it clear he would refuse to sign if he wasn’t the No. 1 overall pick and held true to that promise. He returned to Stanford and Houston made him the top pick in 2013, but injuries and command issues derailed his career. He was traded to Philadelphia for closer Ken Giles in 2015 and retired without reaching the majors.
The misses: The risk wasn’t worth it, as the first round produced six All-Stars — David Dahl (No. 10), Addison Russell (11th), Lucas Giolito (16th), Corey Seager (18th), Michael Wacha (19th) and Marcus Stroman (22nd) — and there were four more in the supplemental round. The Pirates could have strengthened their playoff teams and built for the future with any of those players, and it stings even more that Wacha beat the Pirates in Game 4 to even their 2013 NL Divisional series with St. Louis.
2013
No. 9, Austin Meadows, OF, Grayson (Ga.) HS
The result: The compensation pick for Appel, his rise through the minors was slowed by injuries before a red-hot first month with the Pirates in 2018. Meadows was traded to Tampa Bay in the Chris Archer deal and became an All-Star while hitting 33 homers last season.
The misses: The No. 11 pick, San Diego Padres outfielder Hunter Renfroe, has 85 homers the past three seasons, but the best first-rounder has been Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson, the 2019 AL batting champion. The best overall? Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge was a supplemental pick at No. 32 and has 110 homers in four seasons.
2018
No. 10, Travis Swaggerty, OF, South Alabama
The result: Swaggerty, who was known for his bat in college, has struggled at the plate. He slashed .265/.347/.381 with 20 doubles, nine homers and 40 RBIs and 23 stolen bases last season at Class A-advanced Bradenton. He is ranked the team’s No. 6 prospect in 2020.
The misses: It’s too early to tell, but the Pirates already have fared better than the team that picked directly ahead of them. The Oakland A’s selected outfielder Kyler Murray ninth, only for the Oklahoma quarterback to win the Heisman Trophy and go No. 1 overall to the Arizona Cardinals in the NFL Draft. Murray returned his signing bonus, but the A’s received no compensation for the pick.
Kevin Gorman is a TribLive reporter covering the Pirates. A Baldwin native and Penn State graduate, he joined the Trib in 1999 and has covered high school sports, Pitt football and basketball and was a sports columnist for 10 years. He can be reached at kgorman@triblive.com.
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