Philadelphia Phillies: Top Ten Drafts in Phillies History

With the NFL Draft underway, much has been made of the difficulty in efficiently projecting how prospects will translate to the highest level of professional football. 

Compared to the same task in baseball, though, estimated impact of amateur players on the football field seems like an exact science.

The Major League Baseball Draft, as it's currently constructed, has fifty rounds of selections, where the NFL Draft has only seven.  In those fifty rounds, finding four players who can contribute at the Major League level is considered a great draft. 

The Philadelphia Phillies, in a manner consistent with their struggles as a franchise over the years, have not been one of the better drafting teams since the Draft was instituted in 1965. 

Every dog has his day though, and even the team that lost 10,000 games faster than any franchise in any sport has found a way to come away with good players once in a while, both at the top of the draft and in the later rounds. 

Here, now, is a look at the 10 best drafts in the history of the Philadelphia Phillies.

10. 1999 Draft

Notable Selections:

12th overall: Brett Myers, RHP, Englewood Senior HS (Jacksonville, FL)

156th overall: Joe Saunders, LHP, West Springfield HS (Springfield, VA)

306th overall: Marlon Byrd, OF, Georgia Perimeter College (Covington, GA)

Myers' impact as a Philly was palpable.  In eight seasons with the club, he won 73 games, and was the Opening Day starter for a World Series winning club in 2008.  He also was the team's closer in 2007, saved 21 games in that role, including a win over the Marlins on the last day of the season which clinched the National League East crown, and ignited the run of division titles which is still going in 2012.

Saunders didn't sign, deciding instead to attend Virginia Tech.  It was still a good selection by the Phillies, as Saunders was worth the risk as a high school graduate.  He would be a first round pick of the Angels three seasons later, and go on to appear in an All-Star Game.

Byrd would finish fourth in the Rookie of the Year voting in 2002, and batted .271 in four years as a Phillies outfielder.  He would go on to make an All-Star team as well, in 2010 with Chicago.

9. 2003 Draft

Notable Selections:

115th overall: Michael Bourn, OF, University of Houston (Houston, TX)

205th overall: Kyle Kendrick, RHP, Mount Vernon HS (Mt. Vernon, WA)

595th overall: Brad Ziegler, RHP, Missouri State University (Springfield, MO)

Bourn's impact as a Philly came in his trade value.  He hit .277 at a situational outfielder and pinch hitter/runner in his only season in Philadelphia. 

Bourn has gone on to win two Gold Gloves and appear in an All-Star game as a Houston Astro, after being the key piece of the trade that brought Brad Lidge to Philadelphia.  He has also led the National League in stolen bases in each of the last three seasons.

Kendrick has carved out a pretty good career as a spot starter and long reliever for the Phillies.  His value peaked in 2011, when, between 15 starts and 19 relief appearances, he won eight games and posted a 3.22 ERA.

Ziegler, a submariner, never made it out of Low-A ball as a Phillies minor leaguer.  He was released before the start of the 2004 season, and signed with Oakland.  With the Athletics, he finished eighth in Rookie of the Year voting in 2008, and started his ML career with 39 consecutive scoreless innings, a Major League record.  He is the proud owner of a career 2.39 ERA in the big leagues.

8. 2001 Draft

Notable Selections:

4th overall: Gavin Floyd, RHP, Mount St. Joseph's HS (Baltimore, MD)

140th overall: Ryan Howard, 1B, Missouri State University (Sprinfield, MO)

Before being shipped off to the White Sox, as a part of the package (with Gio Gonzalez, in a pretty atrocious trade in hindsight) to acquire Freddy Garcia, Floyd was a struggling young pitcher for the Phillies. 

In 24 games as a Philly (19 starts), between 2004 and 2006, he posted an ERA of 6.96.  He has figured it out, to a degree, in Chicago, winning 52 games and posting an ERA of 4.16, including a 17-8 season in 2008. 

The coup of this draft, though, was clearly Howard.  The Big Piece, winner of the 2005 Rookie of the Year and the 2006 NL MVP, has led the league in home runs twice, in RBI's three times, and is the active leader in at bats per homer, at 13.3.  

While he has always struck out too frequently, has never been a great (or even good) defender, and gets paid too much, there are few people scarier when they step into the box, and to get a bopper like this in the fifth round is a steal.

7. 1985 Draft

Notable Selections:

34th overall - Bruce Ruffin, LHP, University of Texas (Austin, TX)

96th overall - Wally Ritchie, Glendale Community College (Glendale, CA)

252nd overall: Jason Grimsley, Tarkington HS (Cleveland, TX)

On the surface, this doesn't look like a very good class.  Ruffin had a few years as a serviceable player for the Phillies, winning 42 games and posting a 4.16 ERA from 1986 to 1991.  Ritchie was a capable reliever from 1987-1992 with the Phils, compiling a 3.14 ERA in 147 appearances out of the bullpen.

The pick here that changed the course of baseball in Philadelphia was Grimsley. 

After starting 27 games in three seasons, going 5-12, Grimsley was traded for an under-performing starter named Curt Schilling.  So that's the value the Phillies got at 252 overall—a Hall of Fame pitcher.

6. 2006 Draft

Notable Selections:

18th overall: Kyle Drabek, RHP, The Woodlands HS (The Woodlands, TX)

97th overall: Jason Donald, SS, University or Arizona (Tucson, AZ)

607th overall: Domonic Brown, OF, Redan HS (Stone Mountain, GA)

Another group that appears underwhelming at first glance, it was more about the end game than the initial crop.

Drabek, son of Major League starter Doug Drabek, was a key component in the trade for Roy Halladay.  He has since become a capable starter for the Blue Jays.

Donald was a part of the package that brought Cliff Lee to Philadelphia the first time, with Carlos Carrasco and Lou Marson.  He is a serviceable shortstop for the Indians today.

Brown is the only one from this class that has a chance to directly effect the outcome of games for the Phillies, although he hasn't done so yet (career WAR 0.4).  If he never comes the everyday left fielder, as he has long been expected to by scouts everywhere, then he will undoubtedly join Drabek and Donald as draft picks who became chips to bring stars to the Phillies.

One more cool note about this draft—Riley Cooper, now an Eagles wide receiver, was drafted in the 15th round by the Phillies, at 457 overall.  He was destined to play in this city.

5. 1997 Draft

Notable Selections:

2nd overall: J.D. Drew, OF, Florida State University (Tallahassee, FL)

54th overall: Randy Wolf, LHP, Pepperdine University (Malibu, CA)

146th overall: Derrick Turnbow, RHP, Franklin HS (Franklin, TN)

506th overall: Johnny Estrada, C, College of the Sequoias (Visalia, CA)

Drew refused to sign, and was forever marked as a villain in Philadelphia. Moving on.

Before leaving the team as a free agent following the 2006 season, Wolf left his mark in Philly, as a part of the renaissance of young players who transformed the team from a laughing stock to a perennial competitor, with Pat Burrell, young Jimmy Rollins, Jim Thome, Bobby Abreu, Mike Lieberthal, and Brett Myers.

In eight years with the club, Wolf was 69-60 with a 4.21 ERA, and made one All-Star game. His career-adjusted ERA+ of 102 is 48th among active pitchers. 

Turnbow never made it out of A-ball with the Phils, as he was a Rule 5 pick of the Angels after a solid season in 1999.  He wouldn't make his mark until 2005, as a Brewer, when he became their closer, and saved 39 games. He would save 65 games in his career and make one All-Star game, in 2006.  He also is noted as the first Major Leaguer to fail a steroid test, in 2003, as a part of Olympic qualifying testing.

Estrada was a serviceable backup catcher for the Phils during his rookie season, playing solid defense when called upon. He didn't blossom until after he was traded to Atlanta, in a trade that netted the Phillies Kevin Millwood.  In 2004, his first season as a full time catcher, Estrada hit .314, was an All-Star, won a Silver Slugger, and finished 18th in MVP voting.

4. 1990 Draft

Notable Selections:

3rd overall: Mike Lieberthal, C, Westlake HS (Westlake Village, CA)

374th overall: Mike Williams, RHP, Virginia Tech (Blacksburg, VA)

535th overall: Marvin Benard, OF, Los Angeles Harbor College (Wilmington, CA)

Lieberthal was a staple behind the plate for years, and the asset that made the aforementioned Estrada available.  In his 13 seasons in Philly, he became a fan favorite.  The two-time All-Star enjoyed his best season in 1999, when he hit 31 homers, batted .300, and won a Gold Glove.

From 1992 to 1996, Williams occupied what has become the "Kyle Kendrick" role for the Phillies, as a long reliever and spot starter.  Later in his career, though, he would turn into a top-of-the-line closer for Pittsburgh, saving 140 games as a Pirate, including 46 in 2002.  He was a two-time All-Star as well.

Benard never played for the Phillies, but was a career .271 hitter for the San Francisco Giants in nine seasons, and was a starting outfielder for the team when they went to the 2002 World Series.

3. 1998 Draft

Notable Selections -

1st overall: Pat Burrell, OF, University of Miami (Coral Gables, FL)

104th overall: Jason Michaels, OF, University of Miami (Coral Gables, FL)

254th overall: Ryan Madson, RHP, Valley View HS (Moreno Valley, CA)

614th overall: Nick Punto, SS/2B, Saddleback HS (Mission Viejo, CA)

"Pat the Bat" certainly had his ups and downs in his nine seasons in Philadelphia.  The ups, though, were pretty high up there.  He finished fourth in Rookie of the Year voting in 2000, and twice finished in the top 14 of MVP voting.  He smashed 30 or more homers four times as a Philly, and was a pivotal member of the 2008 World Champions. Although he never quite lived up to the billing of a number one overall pick, Burrell certainly wasn't a disappointment.

His college teammate, Michaels, was a pretty reliable part-time player and pinch hitter in his five seasons in Philadelphia, hitting .291 with 75 extra base hits in 808 at bats.  He was traded in January 2006, after some off the field troubles.

Madson had a much more prolonged impact. After a failed experiment with starting him in 2006, Madson settled in brilliantly as the primary set-up man in the bullpen dubbed "The Bridge to Lidge."  In four years as the set-up man, his ERA never got above 3.26.  When Lidge began to become too injury prone and unreliable to be the closer, Madson was awarded the role, and in 2011, he saved 32 games and posted a 2.37 ERA.

Punto only played in 77 games in three seasons with the Phillies, but became a regular player later with the Twins and Cardinals, and hit .278 for the World Champs in 2011.

2. 2008 Draft

Notable Selections:

102nd overall: Vance Worley, RHP, Cal State Long Beach (Long Beach, CA)

136th overall: Trevor May, RHP, Kelso HS (Kelso, WA)

346th overall: Michael Stutes, RHP, Oregon State (Corvallis, OR)

436th overall: Michael Schwimer, RHP, University of Virginia (Charlottesville, VA)

1156th overall: Jarred Cosart, RHP, Clear Creek HS (League City, TX)

This is the deepest pitching class I have ever come across, for any team.  This group really could include two ones (May and Cosart) a two (Worley), a setup man (Stutes), and closer (Schwimer).  That's an entire pitching staff in one draft.

Worley has already made a name for himself at the big league level, as the fourth ace in the Phillies' terrorizing rotation.  After finishing third in ROY voting in 2011, he is even better in 2012.  His 2.16 ERA is almost as impressive as his 9.72 K/9. 

May entered the season as a top pitching prospect, but after what he's done this season, he may have made himself "untouchable." Through four starts, he is 4-0 with a 2.35 ERA, 0.870 WHIP, and 10.2 K/9 as a 22 year-old at AA Reading.  He is filthy, and has "ace" written all over him.

Stutes opened some eyes with the big club last year, but has battled fatigue and injury recently.  Once he gets healthy, he will be right back into late inning situations with the big club.

Schwimer has the most potential of any bullpen arm in the system, save for maybe Phillipe Aumont.  In 2010, at AAA Lehigh Valley, he posted a 1.35 ERA.  That ERA grew to 1.85 in 2011, but his K/9 did too, to 11.4.  He profiles as a back of the rotation stud, and it's only a matter of time.

And then there's Cosart.  How you go from a 38th round pick in 2008 to the 70th best prospect, according to Baseball America, by 2011 is a feat I cannot comprehend.  To then be one half of a trade (with Jonathan Singleton) that brings back one of the best young hitters in the Majors (Hunter Pence) is even more impressive.  So far this season, for Houston's AA Corpus Christi Cosart hasn't allowed a run in 9.1 innings, spanning two starts, and is 1-0.

1. 1971 Draft

Notable Selection:

30th overall: Michael Jack Schmidt, SS/3B, Ohio University (Athens, OH)

Sometimes, it doesn't take a bounty to have a good draft.  When you can hit a home run with one pick, that's all you really need. 

Schmidt is arguably the best Philly ever to put on the uniform.  He was a three time MVP, finishing in the top 16 of MVP voting 12 times.  He was a twelve time All-Star, and won 10 Gold Gloves.  He led the league in home runs seven times, and with 548, is the Phillies' all-time leader in the category.  And, although he was before the time of the stat, he led the league in WAR seven times, too.

He might be the best third baseman ever to play the game, and that's about as good as drafts get.