Open Mic: MLB's #1 Draft Picks Tough To Beat

            The 2008 NBA draft will happen tonight and in case you haven’t switched on the TV, logged onto a sports website or visited your local tailor, this is kind of a big deal.  The “Who’s Going Number One?” debate started ever since OJ Mayo was touted the Next Lebron before he even graduated from high school.  The NBA draft is excessively overweight with hype as the lottery selection gets televised with an analysis crew even before the ping pong balls float in a machine.

While Bulls fans everywhere wait in anticipation for the ending of, “With the first pick in the 2008 NBA draft, the Chicago Bulls select…” other sports fans should pay attention to another draft development: the number one pick in the MLB draft.  Who cares, you say?  Well, what if I told you that the number one pick in the baseball draft has been as dominant as those in the NBA and NFL? 

            Take a look at the #1 picks in baseball and what they’ve done not only this year but in years past.  

2001 #1 pick Minnesota Twins catcher Joe Mauer

            Drafted ahead of two of the biggest pitching disappointments in recent history (Mark Prior and Dewon Brazelton), Joe Mauer hasn’t disappointed the Twins.  Just five years after the draft, he made history by becoming the first AL catcher to win the batting title. 

This year, he’s looking to earn his second batting title before he turns 26.  He’s batting .325, just behind league leader Milton Bradley who will likely return to his career .278 batting average.  Not only that, but his .411 OBP places him third in OBP in the AL.

A little more power would be nice but the Twins can’t complain with their homegrown talent’s success early in his career.

2000 #1 pick San Diego Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez

Adrian has been involved in two trades with significant implications.  Along with two scrubs, the Marlins traded their former #1 pick Adrian Gonzalez mid-season to the Texas Rangers for Ugueth Urbina.  On the surface, the deal seems like a steal for the Rangers but keep in mind that Ugey collected 4 saves in the post season when the Marlins won the World Series.

Also keep in mind that Urbina is in jail indefinitely.  The Marlins always seem to know when to let their players go.

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