Surprise endings part of draft fun
Diamond gems worth the wait ... if you’re lucky
RICHARD GRIFFIN The MLB draft takes place over three days this week. The fact is that once you get past the first 15 picks, it becomes a major crapshoot.
In most years, it won’t become evident for at least three or four years whether your team’s draft has been a success or failure. As such, it will be difficult to pick winners and losers by the end of this year’s process.
For example, the current 25man Blue Jays roster (plus disabled list) features left-handed reliever Tim Mayza from the 2013 draft, then nobody else taken after 2011. The Jays selected 12th on Monday night and have picks ranging from 52nd to 146th in the first five rounds.
The following is a Hot Corner special on draft history since 1965, when Rick Monday became the first-ever pick, by the Kansas City Athletics. BACK-TO-BACK HITS: In 1971, using the 28th and 29th picks, the Royals and Phillies rolled the dice on a couple of young shortstops. One was an 18-yearold high school star from California, the other a 21-year-old senior from Ohio University.
They went on to become the best third basemen of their generation: George Brett of the Royals and Mike Schmidt of the Phillies.
How did they last that long? Because it’s a crapshoot.
Selecting 27th, just before the two hall of famers went, the Expos chose left-hander Dan Warthen, a decent enough swingman and went on to become a very good major-league pitching coach. His only hall-of-fame moment came in the rookielevel Pioneer League in Lethbridge, Alta. Warthen, the legend goes, cleared out a bar all by himself, throwing people through the saloon door after African-American teammate Tony Scott was harassed on a road trip.
As for the other teams that missed out on Brett and Schmidt, there were eight shortstops among the first 27 picks, including future majorleaguers Dale Soderholm (Twins), Craig Reynolds (Pirates) and Mike Miley (Reds). The Expos chose Warthen because they believed they already had their shortstop.
At No. 4, they selected a high schooler from the state of Ala- bama named Condredge Holloway. He rejected the Expos and became the first African-American quarterback at the University of Tennessee, before moving on to star in the CFL. I recall a conversation with the late Jim Fanning, who was the Expos’ GM at the time. He had flown to visit the family right after the draft to convince them that playing baseball in Canada was the right decision.
The truth may be lost in the mists of time, but Fanning said: “I knew we were in trouble when we drove up the long driveway to the home and there was a brand new (Tennessee) Volunteer Orange Cadillac parked in front of the house.” Strike three. MULTI-TASKING: Speaking of Holloway, here is one man’s top-five list of multi-sport players in the MLB draft era. 1. DAVE WINFIELD The hall-of-fame outfielder was a key piece of the puzzle for the Jays when they beat the Braves to win the 1992 World Series. He was a star baseball and basketball player with the NCAA’s Minnesota Golden Gophers from 1969-73 before being selected fourth by the Padres in June 1973, right after fellow hall-of-famer Robin Yount of the Brewers. In the spring of ’73, Winfield was also selected by the Vikings (NFL), Atlanta Hawks (NBA) and Utah Stars (ABA). 2. BO JACKSON It can be argued that Jackson was the greatest all-around athlete to play in the majors. He was a force in the NFL as a running back for the Raiders and in the outfield with baseball’s Royals, who chose him in the fourth round in 1986 after he had won the 1985 Heisman Trophy at Auburn. His career was cut short by injury, but he had hall-of-fame skills in both sports. 3. DEION SANDERS Primetime is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a cornerback, kick returner and sometime wide receiver, after Super Bowl wins with the Niners and Cowboys. He was a late-round pick by the Yankees, and was an important part of the Atlanta Braves of the early 1990s. In 1992, Sanders was criticized by CBS broadcaster Tim McCarver for playing an NFL game on a Sunday afternoon before helicoptering to Fulton-County Stadium for a playoff game against the Pirates. Later in the same post-season, Sanders was the runner who evaded — or not — the diving tag by Blue Jay Kelly Gruber that would have completed a triple play in the World Series. 4. BRIAN JORDAN The Maryland high school and University of Richmond athlete was selected by baseball’s Cardinals in ’88 and the Buffalo Bills in ’89. He was released by the Bills and played three seasons with the Falcons (1989-91) before the Cards paid him a bonus to stick to baseball. He went on to play outfield for the Braves, Dodgers and Rangers. 5. TOM GLAVINE Maybe we’re just including him because he was a 300-game winner with the Braves and a hall of famer, and is one of the few major-leaguers to be drafted by an NHL team — in the fourth round by the Kings in 1984. Canadian pitcher Kirk McCaskill was also an NHL pick, in the fourth round in 1981 by the Jets and the fourth round by the California Angels in 1982 out of Vermont.