List of Cleveland Guardians first-round draft picks

The Cleveland Guardians are a Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise based in Cleveland, Ohio. They play in the American League Central division. Since the institution of MLB's Rule 4 Draft, the Guardians have selected 71 players in the first round. Officially known as the "First-Year Player Draft",[2] the Rule 4 Draft is MLB's primary mechanism for assigning amateur baseball players from high schools, colleges, and other amateur baseball clubs to its teams. The draft order is determined based on the previous season's standings, with the team possessing the worst record receiving the first pick.[2] In addition, teams which lost free agents in the previous off-season may be awarded compensatory or supplementary picks.[3]

Manny Ramirez (1991) made four all-star appearances with the Indians and led the majors in runs batted in in 1999 with 165.[1]

Of the 71 players picked in the first round by Cleveland, 30 have been pitchers, the most of any position; 19 of them were right-handed, while 11 were left-handed. Sixteen outfielders, eleven shortstops, four third basemen, four first basemen, four catchers, and one second basemen were also taken. The team also drafted one player, Glenn Tufts (1973), who played as an infielder.[4] Twelve of the players came from high schools or universities in the state of California, and Texas follows with eight players. The Guardians have also drafted two players from their home state of Ohio.[4]

None of the Guardians' first-round picks have won a World Series championship with the team, and no pick has been elected to the Hall of Fame. None of these picks have won the MLB Rookie of the Year award, although Manny Ramirez (1991) placed second in the voting in 1994.[5] CC Sabathia (1998) is the only first-round pick of the Guardians to earn a Cy Young Award with the team, winning in 2007.[6] The Guardians have never held the first overall pick in the draft, but have selected players with the second overall pick five times.[4]

The Guardians have made 11 selections in the supplemental round of the draft and 15 compensatory picks since the institution of the First-Year Player Draft in 1965.[4] These additional picks are provided when a team loses a particularly valuable free agent in the previous off-season,[3][7][V] or, more recently, if a team fails to sign a draft pick from the previous year.[8] The Guardians have failed to sign three of their first-round picks: John Curtis (1966), Calvin Murray (1989), and Alan Horne (2001). They received no compensation for failing to sign Curtis, but received the 39th pick in 1990 and the 41st pick in 2002 for failing to sign Murray and Horne, respectively.[4]

Key

YearEach year links to an article about that year's Major League Baseball Draft.
PositionIndicates the secondary/collegiate position at which the player was drafted, rather than the professional position the player may have gone on to play
PickIndicates the number of the pick
*Player did not sign with the Indians
§Indicates a supplemental pick

Picks

Rick Cerone (1975) is one of three catchers drafted in the first round by the Indians.
Paul Shuey (1992) is one of five players drafted with the second overall pick by the Indians.
Jaret Wright (1994) is one of ten pitchers the Indians drafted from the state of California.
CC Sabathia (1998) is the only Indians first-round pick to win the Cy Young Award.
Jeremy Guthrie (2002) is one of two players drafted by the Indians from Stanford University.
Franisco Lindor (2011) was selected with the eighth pick.
Triston McKenzie (2015) was selected with the 42nd pick.
YearNamePositionSchool (location)PickRef
1965Ray FosseCatcherMarion High School
(Marion, Illinois)
7[9]
1966John Curtis*Left-handed pitcherSmithtown High School
(Nesconset, New York)
12[10]
1967Jack HeidemannShortstopBrenham High School
(Brenham, Texas)
11[11]
1968Robert WeaverShortstopPaxon High School
(Jacksonville, Florida)
6[12]
1969Alvin McGrewOutfielderParker High School
(Birmingham, Alabama)
15[13]
1970Steve DunningRight-handed pitcherStanford University
(Stanford, California)
2[14]
1971David SloanRight-handed pitcherSanta Clara High School
(Santa Clara, California)
9[15]
1972Rick ManningShortstopLaSalle High School
(Niagara Falls, New York)
2[16]
1973Glenn TuftsInfielderRaynham High School
(Bridgewater, Massachusetts)
5[17]
1974Tom BrennanRight-handed pitcherLewis University
(Romeoville, Illinois)
4[18]
1975Rick CeroneCatcherSeton Hall University
(South Orange, New Jersey)
7[19]
1976Tim GlassCatcherSpringfield South High School
(Springfield, Ohio)
14[20]
1977Bruce ComptonOutfielderNorman High School
(Norman, Oklahoma)
11[21]
1978Phil LansfordShortstopWilcox High School
(Santa Clara, California)
10[22]
1979John BohnetLeft-handed pitcherHogan High School
(Vallejo, California)
7[23]
1980Kelly GruberShortstopWestlake High School
(Austin, Texas)
10[24]
1981George AlpertOutfielderLivingston High School
(Livingston, New Jersey)
13[25]
1982Mark SnyderRight-handed pitcherBearden High School
(Knoxville, Tennessee)
12[26]
1983Dave ClarkOutfielderJackson State University
(Jackson, Mississippi)
11[27]
1984Cory SnyderShortstopBrigham Young University
(Provo, Utah)
4[28]
1985Mike PoehlRight-handed pitcherUniversity of Texas at Austin
(Austin, Texas)
9[29]
1986Greg SwindellLeft-handed pitcherUniversity of Texas at Austin
(Austin, Texas)
2[30]
1987no first-round pick[a][4]
1988Mark LewisShortstopHamilton High School
(Hamilton, Ohio)
2[31]
1988Charles NagyRight-handed pitcherUniversity of Connecticut
(Storrs, Connecticut)
17[b][31]
1988Jeff MutisLeft-handed pitcherLafayette College
(Easton, Pennsylvania)
27§[c][31]
1989Calvin Murray*Third basemanW. T. White High School
(Dallas, Texas)
11[32]
1990Tim CostoShortstopUniversity of Iowa
(Iowa City, Iowa)
8[33]
1990Sam HenceOutfielderStone County High School
(Wiggins, Mississippi)
39§[d][33]
1991Manny RamirezThird basemanGeorge Washington High School
(New York, New York)
13[34]
1992Paul ShueyRight-handed pitcherUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
(Chapel Hill, North Carolina)
2[35]
1993Daron KirkreitRight-handed pitcherUniversity of California, Riverside
(Riverside, California)
11[36]
1994Jaret WrightRight-handed pitcherKatella High School
(Anaheim, California)
10[37]
1995David MillerFirst basemanClemson University
(Clemson, South Carolina)
23[38]
1996Danny PeoplesFirst basemanUniversity of Texas at Austin
(Austin, Texas)
28[39]
1997Tim DrewRight-handed pitcherLowndes County High School
(Valdosta, Georgia)
28[40]
1997Jason FitzgeraldOutfielderTulane University
(New Orleans, Louisiana)
41§[e][40]
1998CC SabathiaLeft-handed pitcherVallejo High School
(Vallejo, California)
20[41]
1999no first-round pick[f][4]
2000Corey SmithShortstopPiscataway High School
(Piscataway, New Jersey)
26[42]
2000Derek ThompsonLeft-handed pitcherLand o' Lakes High School
(Land o' Lakes, Florida)
37§[g][42]
2001Dan DenhamRight-handed pitcherDeer Valley High School
(Antioch, California)
17[h][43]
2001Alan Horne*Right-handed pitcherMarianna High School
(Marianna, Florida)
27[i][43]
2001J. D. MartinRight-handed pitcherBurroughs High School
(Ridgecrest, California)
35§[j][43]
2001Mike ConroyOutfielderBoston College High School
(Boston, Massachusetts)
43§[k][43]
2002Jeremy GuthrieRight-handed pitcherStanford University
(Stanford, California)
22[44]
2002Matt WhitneyThird basemanPalm Beach Gardens High School
(Palm Beach Gardens, Florida)
33§[l][44]
2002Micah SchillingSecond basemanSilliman Institute
(Clinton, Louisiana)
41§[m][44]
2003Michael AubreyFirst basemanTulane University
(New Orleans, Louisiana)
11[45]
2003Brad SnyderOutfielderBall State University
(Muncie, Indiana)
18[n][45]
2003Adam MillerRight-handed pitcherMcKinney High School
(McKinney, Texas)
31§[o][45]
2004Jeremy SowersLeft-handed pitcherVanderbilt University
(Nashville, Tennessee)
6[46]
2005Trevor CroweOutfielderUniversity of Arizona
(Tucson, Arizona)
14[47]
2005John DrennenOutfielderRancho Bernardo High School
(San Diego, California)
33§[p][47]
2006David HuffLeft-handed pitcherUniversity of California, Los Angeles
(Los Angeles, California)
39§[q][48]
2007Beau MillsFirst basemanLewis-Clark State College
(Lewiston, Idaho)
13[49]
2008Lonnie ChisenhallThird basemanPitt Community College
(Winterville, North Carolina)
29[50]
2009Alex WhiteRight-handed pitcherUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
(Chapel Hill, North Carolina)
15[51]
2010Drew PomeranzLeft-handed pitcherUniversity of Mississippi
(Oxford, Mississippi)
5[52]
2011Francisco LindorShortstopMontverde Academy
(Montverde, Florida)
8[53]
2012Tyler NaquinOutfielderTexas A&M University
(College Station, Texas)
15[54]
2013Clint FrazierOutfielderLoganville High School
(Loganville, Georgia)
5[55]
2014Bradley ZimmerOutfielderUniversity of San Francisco
(San Francisco, California)
21[56]
2014Justus SheffieldLeft-handed pitcherTullahoma High School
(Tullahoma, Tennessee)
31[56]
2014Mike PapiOutfielderUniversity of Virginia
(Charlottesville, Virginia)
38[56]
2015Brady AikenLeft-handed pitcherIMG Academy
(Bradenton, Florida)
17[57]
2015Triston McKenzieRight-handed pitcherRoyal Palm Beach High School
(Royal Palm Beach, Florida)
42[57]
2016Will BensonOutfielderThe Westminster Schools
(Atlanta, Georgia)
14[58]
2017no first-round pick[59]
2018Bo NaylorCatcherSt. Joan of Arc Catholic Secondary School
(Mississauga, Ontario)
29
2019Daniel EspinoRight-handed pitcherGeorgia Premier Academy
(Statesboro, Georgia)
24
2020Carson TuckerShortstopMountain Pointe High School
(Phoenix, Arizona)
23
2021Gavin WilliamsRight-handed pitcherEast Carolina University
(Greenville, North Carolina)
23
2022Chase DeLauterOutfielderJames Madison University
(Harrisonburg, Virginia)
16[60]
2023Ralphy VelazquezCatcherHuntington Beach High School
(Huntington Beach, California)
23

See also

Footnotes

  • V Through the 2012 draft, free agents were evaluated by the Elias Sports Bureau and rated "Type A", "Type B", or not compensation-eligible. If a team offered arbitration to a player but that player refused and subsequently signed with another team, the original team was able to receive additional draft picks. If a "Type A" free agent left in this way, his previous team received a supplemental pick and a compensatory pick from the team with which he signed. If a "Type B" free agent left in this way, his previous team received only a supplemental pick.[8] Since the 2013 draft, free agents are no longer classified by type; instead, compensatory picks are only awarded if the team offered its free agent a contract worth at least the average of the 125 current richest MLB contracts.[61] However, if the free agent's last team acquired the player in a trade during the last year of his contract, it is ineligible to receive compensatory picks for that player.[62]
  • a The Indians lost their first-round pick in 1987 to the Baltimore Orioles as compensation for signing free agent Rick Dempsey.[63]
  • b The Indians gained a compensatory first-round pick in 1988 from the San Francisco Giants for losing free agent Brett Butler.[64]
  • c The Indians gained a supplemental first-round pick in 1988 for losing free agent Brett Butler.[64]
  • d The Indians gained a supplemental first-round pick in 1990 for failing to sign draft pick Calvin Murray.[65]
  • e The Indians gained a supplemental first-round pick in 1997 for losing free agent Albert Belle.[66]
  • f The Indians lost their first-round pick in 1999 to the Baltimore Orioles as compensation for signing free agent Roberto Alomar.[67]
  • g The Indians gained a supplemental first-round pick in 2000 for losing free agent Michael Jackson.[68]
  • h The Indians gained a compensatory first-round pick in 2001 from the Boston Red Sox for losing free agent Manny Ramirez.[69]
  • i The Indians gained a compensatory first-round pick in 2001 from the Chicago White Sox for losing free agent Sandy Alomar Jr.[69]
  • j The Indians gained a supplemental first-round pick in 2001 for losing free agent Manny Ramirez.[69]
  • k The Indians gained a supplemental first-round pick in 2001 for losing free agent David Segui.[69]
  • l The Indians gained a supplemental first-round pick in 2002 for losing free agent Juan González.[70]
  • m The Indians gained a supplemental first-round pick in 2002 for failing to sign draft pick Alan Horne.[70]
  • n The Indians gained a compensatory first-round pick in 2003 from the Philadelphia Phillies for losing free agent Jim Thome.[71]
  • o The Indians gained a supplemental first-round pick in 2003 for losing free agent Jim Thome.[71]
  • p The Indians gained a supplemental first-round pick in 2005 for losing free agent Omar Vizquel.[72]
  • q The Indians gained a supplemental first-round pick in 2006 for losing free agent Bob Howry.[73]

References

General references
  • "MLB First Round Draft Picks". ESPN.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved July 2, 2010.
  • "Cleveland Guardians 1st Round Picks in the MLB June Amateur Draft". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference, LLC. Retrieved July 2, 2010.
In-text citations