MLB Draft 2012: 5 Teams That Had Huge Nights

The 2012 MLB Draft held Monday night certainly had some theatrics attached to it, something you rarely ever see with the lesser-appreciated drafts of any of the Big Four (NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL) drafts.

Houston selected first-overall for the first time since 1992, when they selected Phil Nevin. However, the presumed first overall selection was not the man the Astros decided to go with in the draft, picking, instead, a 17-year-old out of Puerto Rico, shortstop prospect Carlos Correa.

With that surprise pick, a number of teams made some big impacts in this year's draft, making their move for the future in the hopes of seeing their prospects reward them with future production.

Here is a look at five teams that filled major needs that their current roster lacks, giving them the potential for future gains.

Chicago Cubs

If there was one team that needed to make a splash with the draft it was the Chicago Cubs.

With the Cubs, there are a number of things going wrong, but most of the problems stem from lack of production from their players.

Starlin Castro and Bryan LaHair are the two most valuable players on the Cubs roster and neither has been in the league for more than a year or two. This speaks to a problem in the roster that is much bigger than just dipping into the trade market and free agent pools to build their team back up.

The Cubs needed to sure up their future and they did a nice job in selecting outfield prospect Alberto Almora with the sixth pick in the draft.

Almora brings an energy and a work ethic to a club that desperately needs someone who is willing to give his all in an effort to become a great player, much like they have in Castro and LaHair.

Almora also provides a nice replacement option for Alfonso Soriano, who all but appears to be nearing his way out of town in the somewhat near future. Along with a nice future of potential ahead of him, Almora brings the youth factors that is crucial to the growth of a struggling franchise.

Pittsburgh Pirates

Pittsburgh potentially got the steal of the draft by having top-rated prospect, Stanford pitcher Mark Appel, fall straight into their lap with the number eight selection.

Even though the Pirates have drafted a number of pitchers over the last few drafts, they could not pass up on such a highly anticipated pick to go for a bat.

With the success the Pirates have had thus far in 2012, the addition of Appel brings some much needed fire power to a rotation that currently sees James McDonald having a stellar season.

If the Pirates can duplicate the maturation of McDonald with Appel, Pittsburgh may be seeing more success than failure in the future.

Minnesota Twins

One position the Minnesota Twins have always been able to develop into solid players it is the outfield.

Torii Hunter, Michael Cuddyer, Denard Span and Ben Revere have proved this statement to be true and now, hopefully for the Twins, second-overall pick Byron Buxton will continue this trend.

Buxton has the tools to be duplicate the success of his predecessors for a club that desperately needs some good news with their recent string of poor play.

At 6'2'' and 190 pounds, Buxton hit .513 with 35 RBI for his high school club. Another factor for Buxton is his speed, as he stole 38 bases last season. He was also spotted running a 60-yard dash in 6.6 seconds.

Minnesota likes their outfielders and knows how to produce them. Buxton has the tools to maintain that successful trend.

Atlanta Braves

With young pitchers Tommy Hanson, Craig Kimbrel and Jair Jurrjens dominating for the Atlanta, the Braves took a shot at another young arm with the 21st pick in the draft by selecting Lucas Sims.

Sims threw for a 1.19 ERA with an 8-1 record for Brookwood High School in Georgia, something the Braves could not overlook while choosing.

Many believed that a bat would be the way Atlanta would go, but with a raw talent like Sims waiting in the wings, and considering their recent pitching prospects doing so well right now, why not take a gamble on the young arm.

Atlanta has the tools to build pitchers in their farm system, so Sims is in good hands for development.

Kansas City Royals

Kansas City is a team on the rise in the American League with a plethora of young bats. One thing the Royals lack, however, is the young arms to match.

In University of San Francisco pitcher Kyle Zimmer, the Royals have an ace in the making that can make it to the big leagues sooner rather than later, a big luxury for Kansas City right now.

Zimmer posted a 2.85 ERA, tossing 104 strikeouts and only 17 walks with a 5-3 record, three of those being shutouts.

For the Royals, the future is suddenly approaching and waiting around is no longer an option as all of their young talent is getting older.  In order to continue to grow, the arms must catch up with the bats and the Royals are hoping Zimmer is that arm they have been waiting for.

The future is now for Kansas City and Kyle Zimmer is now along for the ride.