Ranking the MLB Drafts: 1970s

by user Timothy Moreland(Bball3345)

This is part two of a series, which is an attempt to rank each of the first rounds of the MLB Amateur Draft by decade. Part One ranked the 1960s.

1. 1977

1973, 1974, and 1977 are the clear Big Three first rounds in this decade; however, they are each great for different reasons. 1977 had both a Hall of Famer selected in the first round, as well as tremendous depth. Paul Molitor was chosen by the Milwaukee Brewers with the 3rd overall pick. The first 15 seasons of his career were spent in Milwaukee before ending with three-year stints in Toronto and Minnesota. 1991 was Molitor's best year with the bat. In 665 at bats, he scored 133 runs with 13 triples and a .325/.399/.489 in a tough offensive environment. For his career, Molitor hit .306 with over 500 stolen bases.

Before Molitor, the White Sox chose Harold Baines with the number one overall pick. While Baines has not made the Hall of Fame, his career lasted over twenty years, his best with the Sox. Baines played an above-average fielding rightfielder in his first seven years, before moving primarily to DH. Baines greatest year with the bat was 1991, for Oakland. He slugged 20 home runs and drove in 90 runs with a strong line of .295/.383/.473.

The other most notable players in the round were Bob Welch and Dave Henderson.

2. 1974

This year lacked a Hall of Famer like Molitor, but had more depth than any other draft in the '70s. Atlanta selected Dale Murphy with the fifth pick, as a catcher. Fifteen of his nineteen seasons were spent in Atlanta, primarily as an average-fielding centerfielder. Murphy won the National League MVP in both 1982 and 1983; although, 1987 was arguably Murphy's best year. Murphy set career-highs in HRs(44), OBP(.417), and SLG(.580) in 1987. Unfortunately, a fifth-place finish by Atlanta cost him a shot at the MVP.

While Lance Parrish never won an MVP, the sixteenth pick of the draft was a Gold-Glove catcher. Parrish was never tremendous with the bat, but stayed above average deep into his 30's. Willie Wilson, the eighteenth pick, made a career for himself with his speed. With 668 career stolen bases, Wilson was top five in the league in steals eleven times, leading the league with 83 in 1979. He also led the league in triples five times and won the batting crown in 1982 with a .332 average. Speed also gave Wilson the range to be an above-average centerfielder and a superb leftfielder.

Along with these three, the first round of the 1974 draft produced Garry Templeton, Lonnie Smith, and Rick Sutcliffe.

3. 1973

1977 had both depth and Hall of Fame players, 1974 provided tremendous depth, and 1973 brought two Hall of Famers. These two, Robin Yount and Dave Winfield, were chosen with the #3 and #4 picks, respectively. Yount, a slighty below-average defensive player, spent most of his career at shortstop or in centerfield. Yount won AL MVPs in both 1982 and 1989. Oddly, he was not selected to the All Star Game in 1989. 1982 was without a doubt the best season of Yount's career. He led the league in extra base hits(87) and OPS(.957), drove in 114 runs, and scored 129 times with 14 stolen bases. In 1990, following his second MVP, Yount became the highest paid player in the majors at $3,200,000.

While Winfield never won an MVP, he did attend nine more All-Star Games than Yount. As well, he was a seven-time Gold Glove winner in the outfield. Winfield had many strong seasons with the bat, but none as great as 1979 with the San Diego Padres. Winfield was top five in the league in OBP(.395), SLG(.558), and HRs(34), as well as the league leader in RBIs(118), TB(333), and IBBs(24). His career ended in 1995 at the age of 43.

This first round did not turn out any other useful major leaguers.

4. 1971

It took until the thirteenth pick of the draft before the selection of a major-league caliber player. The star of the first twelve picks was Tom Veryzer and his career line of .241/.283/.294. Finally, the Angels chose lefthander Frank Tanana. Tanana's stretch from 1975-77 was one of the greatest three-year stretches of all-time for a pitcher, especially when considering he was only 23-years-old at the end of the run. 1975-77 included two All-Star appearances, an ERA title, a league-leading WHIP, a first, second, and third place finish in strikeouts, and 14 shutouts. His total ERA for the three seasons stood at a miniscule 2.53.

Two picks after Tanana, the Red Sox selected Jim Rice. Rice spent all sixteen years of his career in Boston. While slightly below average in the outfield, Rice stood out at the plate. The voters awarded him with the AL MVP in 1978, a year in which he led the league in OPS(.970), hits(213), triples(15), home runs(46), and RBIs(139) among others. Rice drove in over 100 runs four times in his career, while topping the 120 mark in four of those eight.

Rick Rhoden and Craig Reynolds were the only somewhat decent players chosen in the rest of the first round, both making the All-Star team twice.

5. 1978

The first four picks of the 1978 draft all went on to play in at least one All Star Game. They were, in order, Bob Horner, Lloyd Moseby, Hubie Brooks, and Mike Morgan. This quartet also combined for a Rookie of the Year award and three Silver Sluggers.

Outside of the first four picks, the twelfth(Kirk Gibson) and fourteenth(Tom Brunansky) were impact players in the majors. Gibson won the 1988 NL MVP with his best all-around year. He hit 28 doubles and 25 home runs, while stealing 31 bases in 35 attempts. Brunansky played rightfield with above-average range and hit for power with a low average at the plate.

The 1978 draft lacked a superstar like the four preceding first rounds.

6. 1979

The final draft of the 70s had a glove-oriented theme. The two standout players from the first round combined for eight Gold Gloves. Contributing five of these was centerfielder Andy Van Slyke. Not only could this man field with the best of them, but he could rake the ball as well. In his best offensive seasons, 1988 and 1992, Van Slyke played like a legitimate MVP. He finished fourth in the voting both years. Van Slyke did not dominate any one category on offense; instead, he did everything well. An average season for him would look something like 80 runs scored, 80 RBIs, 15-18 homeruns, 30 doubles, 10 triples, 25 stolen bases with an extremely high success rate, and a .350 OBP.

Along with the five Gold Gloves of Van Slyke, Tim Wallach pitched in three at the hot corner. Wallach never had an offensive year like Van Slyke's best, but his defense was otherworldly, as he could get to almost any ball in the field of play. At the plate, 28 was his best home run total and the most RBIs for a single season was 123.

7. 1972

As is the pattern with most of the lower-ranking drafts, 1972's first round manufactured one useful major leaguer. Chet Lemon, chosen with the 22nd of 24 picks, almost slipped to the second round. Although selected by the A's, Lemon was traded and played the first seven years of his career for the Chicago White Sox. The final nine he played with the Detroit Tigers. Chet "The Jet" Lemon had tremendous range in centerfield. At the plate, he knew how to get on base. He topped a .350 OBP in eight of his sixteen years, while playing in a low-offense environment. Being hit by the pitch was where Lemon stood out. Four times, he led the league in HBP, with 13 total top ten finishes in the category. He totaled 151 HBPs in his career and stands at seventeenth all-time.

8. 1976

This first round was unable to produce a single star. Instead, it allowed people to see the likes of Bruce Hurst, Mike Scioscia, and Floyd Bannister to play. Hurst and Bannister each made one All-Star game, while Scioscia made two. Hurst was able to pitch at or above average in the majority of his 15 seasons; however, 1986 was clearly his most dominant year. Hurst struck out 8.62 batters per nine, good for second place in the league. His ERA, at 2.99, translated to a 140 ERA+, which means his ERA was 40% better than league average. During the 1986 postseason, Hurst started five games and posted a 3-0 record with a 2.13 ERA. He was 2-0 with a 1.96 ERA in three World Series starts that year.

Scioscia was an above average player, but he was a borderline-MVP candidate in 1985, his best season. He posted a .407 OBP with doubles power in a low-offense environment. Scioscia played Gold-Glove caliber defense behind the plate.

Bannister intermixed above average years with below average years throughout his fifteen years ending up at almost exactly average for his career. In 2388 career innings, Bannister recorded a 4.06 ERA. During his career, a league average pitcher would have had a 4.13 ERA, according to BaseballReference.com.

9. 1970

The 1970s started off with an extremely weak draft, which contributed only one solid player to the majors. This man was Darrell Porter. Throughout his career, Porter was a good player, but in 1979, he was a great player. For starters, his batting line looked like this, .291/.421/.484. He hit 10 triples and 20 home runs, while driving in 112 runs and scoring 101 times. As well, 47% of baserunners were caught stealing by Porter. Porter never won a regular season MVP, but he brought home the postseason hardware, winning the NLCS MVP and World Series MVP in 1982.

10. 1975

This was one of the worst first rounds of a draft in history. Not a single player contributed more than a pinch of value to a major league franchise. Only twelve of the twenty four picks in the first round ever played in the majors. The best of those twelve "major leaguers" was Rick Cerone. Cerone played eighteen seasons, topping 100 games only four times. Offense was not his strong suit, as seen by his career line of .245/.301/.343. Solid defense at catcher was likely the reason he stayed in the majors so long.

Date

Fri 07/21/06, 4:07 am EST