By James Bailey
You wouldn’t know it by the first few pitchers taken in the 2002 draft, but that was a pretty good year for pitching. Eight of Friday’s starting pitchers were selected that June, including the hottest pitcher in the game today, Royals righthander Zack Greinke. The No. 6 pick in the first round that year, he’ll put his 6-1 record and 0.51 ERA on the line tonight against the Orioles.
Three other first-rounders from the Class of ’02 take the hill today. Lefthander Joe Saunders, who’s off to a 5-1, 2.66 start, was picked by the Angels at No. 12. Three picks later the Mets took lefthander Scott Kazmir, who they later dealt to Tampa Bay. Kazmir, 4-3 with a 5.92 ERA, is home tonight against the Indians. The A’s selected righthander Joe Blanton 24th overall. Off to a 1-3, 6.82 start this year, he takes his turn for the Phillies tonight at Washington.
Red Sox starter Jon Lester (2nd round) faces the Mariners in Seattle tonight. He’s 2-3 with a 6.31 ERA. Kevin Correia, the Padres’ scheduled hurler against the Reds, was picked by the Giants in the 4th round. He’s 0-2 with a 5.34 ERA. The Dodgers took lefthander Eric Stults in the 15th round. He’ll represent them tonight at Florida. He’s 4-1 with a 3.58 ERA and tossed a complete game four-hit shutout against San Francisco in his last start. The eighth member of our group was actually drafted as a catcher in the 38th round. Randy Wells moved to the mound after hitting .153 in 124 at-bats over his first two years in the Cubs organization. He threw five shutout innings against the Brewers in his first start of the season, last Friday.
Other first-round success stories include Jeff Francis (Rockies, No. 9), Cole Hamels (Phillies, No. 17), Jeremy Guthrie (Indians, No. 22), and Matt Cain (Giants, No. 25). Second round finds include Dave Bush (Blue Jays, No. 55), Lester (Red Sox, No. 56), Jonathan Broxton (Dodgers, No. 60), and Jesse Crain (Twins, No. 61). Later-round hits include Josh Johnson (Marlins, 4th round), Rich Hill (Cubs, 4th round), Scott Olsen (Marlins, 6th round), Pat Neshek (Twins, 6th round), Matt Capps (Pirates, 7th round), Matt Lindstrom (Mets, 10th round), and Joel Zumaya (Tigers, 11th round).
That’s a lot of major league talent, which is why it hurts to be a Pirates, Reds, Orioles or Expos/Nationals fan. Those four teams each selected a pitcher early in the first round, right before the string of Greinke, Francis, Saunders, Kazmir, and Hamels went. In fact, four of the first five picks in the 2002 draft were pitchers, with the lone exception being then-shortstop B.J. Upton, selected No. 2 overall by the then-Devil Rays. Despite his underwhelming performance this year, that pick has been a successful one for the franchise. Unfortunately, the Pirates, Reds, Orioles and Expos can’t say the same.
The Pirates blew the No. 1 overall pick, and $4 million, on Ball State righthander Bryan Bullington. Including four relief appearances for Toronto in April, Bullington has pitched in 13 big league games, with a 0-5 record and 5.08 ERA to show for his efforts. The Pirates are well on their way to a 17th straight losing season. There may be some connection here.
The Reds drafted Chris Gruler at No. 3. He last played Organized Baseball in 2006, in an attempt to rehab from shoulder surgery. The highest level he reached was the low Class A Midwest League in 2002, months after he was drafted. It was a speedy ascent for a high school kid, and may or may not have any relation to him missing most of the following season due to tears in his labrum and rotator cuff.
One pick later, the Orioles scooped up lefthander Adam Loewen, a Canadian high schooler who eventually signed for more than $4 million and a big league contract. He pitched in Baltimore for parts of three seasons, from 2006-08, before giving up pitching. He’s attempting to reach the big leagues again as a lefthanded hitting outfielder. He’s currently hitting .212 in 52 at-bats for Class A Dunedin in the Blue Jays organization.
At No. 5, the Expos grabbed righthander Clint Everts out of Cypress Falls High in Houston. Now 24, Everts has yet to climb above Class A. He’s still in the Nationals organization, currently pitching out of the bullpen for Potomac in the Carolina League. In six games he has a 0.93 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 9.2 dominating innings.
In addition to Capps, the Pirates also added outfielder Nyjer Morgan in the 33rd round. It doesn’t help soothe the pain of blowing the No. 1 pick—or their second-rounder on righthander Blair Johnson, for that matter. The high schooler reached Double-A Altoona last year, but has yet to pitch in the big leagues. Wouldn’t their rotation look a little better with Greinke and Lester right about now?
The question this year is whether the Nationals will draft solely on talent, in which case San Diego State righthander Stephen Strasburg is the clear No. 1 pick. He’s rumored to be seeking as much as a $50 million deal, which would completely blow away all previous records. Bullington was not a signability pick. The Pirates viewed him at the time as the best talent available, and when they couldn’t work out a pre-draft deal they then looked at others, including Upton, before returning to Bullington. He held out until October 30 (which wouldn’t happen now, with the new Aug. 15 deadline) before settling for his $4 million bonus. Didn’t turn out to be money well spent on the Pirates side, but that was typical of the Dave Littlefield era.
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I touched on the 2002 draft during the World Series last season (because of Hamels/Kazmir/Blanton). A lot of talent in that first round.
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