Top 10 Baseball Draft Picks 2003
Delmon Young Selected by Tampa Bay No. 1
1. Delmon Young, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, OF, Adolfo Camarillo HS
Before Young made his MLB debut in 2006, he served a 50-game suspension for throwing a bat at a minor league umpire. Young had a promising 2007 campaign with 13 home runs and 93 RBI with a .288 average in Tampa Bay. He was then traded to Minnesota and played 152 games in 2008 with 10 home runs, 69 RBI, 14 stolen bases and a .290 average.
2. Rickie Weeks, Milwaukee Brewers, 2B, Southern U A&M
Weeks reached the Majors in 2003 for a September call-up. He played 2004 at Double-A and finished the next season in Milwaukee. He dealt with injuries in 2006 and played only 95 games for the Brewers. In 2007 he hit 16 home runs with 36 RBI, and in 2008 he had 14 home runs and 46 RBI. But Weeks has regularly struggled at the plate with a career average of .245.
3. Kyle Sleeth, Detroit Tigers, RHP, Wake Forest U.
Sleeth reached Double-A in 2004. He missed all of 2005 and most of 2006 with Tommy John surgery. He advanced back to Double-A Erie in 2007 but announced his retirement before the 2008 season.
4. Timothy Stauffer, San Diego Padres, RHP, U. Richmond
Stauffer worked his way into the San Diego rotation in 2005 with a 3-6 record and 5.33 ERA in 15 games. But since then he only pitched in three major league games, giving up 19 earned runs in 13.2 innings. He did not pitch professionally in 2008
5. Christopher Lubanski, Kansas City Royals, OF, Kennedy-Kenrick Catholic HS
Lubanski is still climbing the Kansas City minor league ladder, finishing the 2007 season and playing all of 2008 in Triple-A. In 2008, he hit .242 with 15 home runs and 54 RBI in 116 games.
6. Ryan Harvey, Chicago Cubs, OF, Dunedin HS
Harvey has slowly moved his way up the Cubs system and played at High-A and Double-A in 2008. He struggled with the bat, hitting below .220 while combining for 13 home runs and 46 RBI in 95 games between the two levels in 2008.
7. Nick Markakis, Baltimore Orioles, OF, Young-Harris College
Markakis started the 2006 season with Baltimore and had a strong rookie campaign with 16 home runs, 62 RBI and a .291 average. He upped those numbers to 23, 112 and .300 in 2007. And Markakis remained one of Baltimore's main young pillars in 2008 with 20 home runs, 87 RBI and a .306 average.
8. Paul Maholm, Pittsburgh Pirates, LHP, Mississippi State U.
Maholm reached the Major in 2005 and made the Pittsburgh rotation each of the past three seasons. In 2008, he went 9-9 with a 3.71 ERA in 31 starts.
9. John Danks, Texas Rangers, LHP, Round Rock HS
Danks advanced to Triple-A for Texas in 2006 and then was dealt to the White Sox. He struggled at times as a rookie for Chicago in 2007 - going 6-13 with a 5.50 ERA. But he was excellent at times in 2008 with a 12-9 record and a 3.32 ERA and just 57 walks in 195 innings.
10. Ian Stewart, Colorado Rockies, 3B, La Quinta HS
Stewart earned a brief call-up in 2007 and then landed a starting spot at 3B midway through 2008, hitting .259 with 10 home runs and 49 RBI in 81 games.
Other First Rounders of Note:
12. Lastings Milledge, New York Mets, OF, Lakewood Ranch HS
13. Aaron Hill, Toronto Blue Jays, SS, LSU
15. Brian Anderson, Chicago White Sox, OF, U. Arizona
17. David Murphy, Boston Red Sox, OF, Baylor U.
19. Conor Jackson, Arizona Diamondbacks, 3B, U. California
20. Chad Cordero, Montreal Expos, RHP, California St. U.
24. Chad Billingsley, Los Angeles Dodgers, RHP, Defiance Sr. HS
28. Daric Barton, St. Louis Cardinals, C, Marina HS
29. Carlos Quentin, Arizona Diamondbacks, OF, Stanford U.
What do you think about this article?
Latest Articles