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Biggest Draft Misses of the Last 25 Years…
At this year’s GM Meetings, the Editor of the Kodiak Chronicle sat down with Denver GM Carlos to discuss the upcoming season. The conversation quickly turned to the season that ‘Icebox’ Cobb is having and the incredible pain that Carlos is under now watching him dominate it New Orleans. This got us to thinking about some of the greatest draft missed in the last 20 years. In order to be considered a draft miss, the missed player must have been closely followed by the player that the team missed with, and of the same position. In other words, no 9th round cards show up in this list.
2022 – Syracuse and Wilmington
Both clubs were eyeing pitching early in this draft as this was the year for offence (Swope, Brooksher, Tibbs, Davis, etc.) flew off the board early. With the 7th pick, Syracuse went with Zachary Beechy, fresh off of coming in 2nd in the balloting for Outstanding College Pitcher and with the 10th pick, Wilmington chose two-time college champion and 2022 Outstanding pitcher, Jimmy Dow. At the time, both were seen as slam dunks. However, at pick 11, Denver selected pitcher Manabu Hamada from Stanford. Hamada ended up fashioning a career that saw him make 5 All Star teams, win three Pale Ales, and take home a 2037 Brewmaster Title with Carolina!
2025 – Dallas
In the year of the pitcher, we see one of the greatest What Ifs in BLB history. EIGHT pitchers taken in the first round amassed at least 20 WAR!! The team that invented Pitching and Defence was up at the end of the first with few pitching options left. They decided to go with the unremarkable Aiden White out of Long Beach State. The very next pitcher off the board…. JJ Plumley. His career, SO FAR, has 8 All Star selections, 4 Pale Ales, a 2035 Brewmaster, and potentially, the title of Greatest BLB Pitcher of All Time…. Ouch!
2027 – Philadelphia
Eight pitchers were taken in the first ten picks this year. The one that got away, happened to Philadelphia. Needing an ace to anchor a rotation for a franchise that has never won a Brew in the history of the BLB, the Freedom instead selected the top relief pitcher on the board in Orleans Tyrese Carter. Fresh off finishing third for the Outstanding Pitcher Award in college, he fashioned an unremarkable 4 year career. With the very next pick, Maine selected Big Game Kevin Alston. All he’s done in his career to this point has anchor the rotation of Maine, California, and Washington for three Brewmaster titles!
2029 – New York and California
There were three big first baseman this year that all had Hall of Fame potential. With the 4th pick California chose Ed King, who had just finished an astounding high school career with a 0.412 average and 51 home runs! With the 5th pick, Indianapolis selected Ian Melnik, who had just put the finishing touches on a high school career that ended with a 0.443 career average. Both players are in the midst of fine workman like careers. However, just a few picks later with pick 12, the Baltimore Bulldogs selected Poly Prep superstar JD Rice. A certain Hall of Famer, he has already amassed 7 All Star appearances, 4 Designated Driver awards, 2 Stout Sluggers, and 338 home runs…. All by the age of 30!
2031 – Indianapolis
For a team that won it all in 2025 and 2034, a big what might have been in this draft. Looking for an infielder that could anchor their team well into its next championship run, the Racers selected SS Edwin Briggs. The 2030 Outstanding College Hitter was also a fabulous defender, and seemed the obvious choice here. Briggs went on to play 431 mostly unforgettable BLB games. With the very next pick, the Windy City Blues drafted a true game changer in 2b ‘Wedge’ Davis. Davis has been on a tear even since, taking home a Refreshing New Brew, a DWI, a Designated Driver, 3 All Star appearances, and for good measure the 2041 Brewmaster title with the very same Windy City!
2034 – Denver, Toronto, and Carolina
This was the year of the outfielder, as 5 went in the first 6 picks. Joey Robertson was the easy first choice for California, but that left a small group of very different outfielders for each team to choose from. With the 2ndpick Denver grabbed Fritz Finnerty, who has had a solid career, but has not put up the remarkable numbers he did in College. With the 4th pick, Toronto chose Darren Davis. A spectacular fielder and runner, Davis has yet to be more than a utility outfielder for various teams. With the 5th pick, Carolina went with the unforgettable Andre Powell, who has yet to fashion a single BLB at bat. Who did these teams miss on? With the 6th pick, Wilmington grabbed CF Cayden Huff. So far in his short career, he’s already had 3 All Star appearances, a gold glove, and swatted 99 career home runs!
2037 – Maine
The year of the pitcher 2.0 saw 13 pitchers come off the board In the first 20 picks. With very few quality bats available teams were reaching for something to put in the offensive side of the ledger. The likes of James Vandehey (Maine), Melchior Werth (New York), Karson Blair (Toronto), Reid Cole (Chicago), Chance Maki (Maine), and Chalmers (California). Although it is still early in all of their careers, and some of the aforementioned (Cole and Chalmers) have had nice starts to their career, it looks as though they all missed on a generational talent. We tabbed Maine here though, because they had two chances to grab Domique Graham, and now, most unfortunately, thanks to a keen trade by GM Jim will be facing him in their division for the next 10-15 years. What has Graham done in his short career? Win the New Brew, go to an all star game and absolutely destroy the competition in the 2041 playoffs that saw him take home the MVP in EVERY round, which may have included the Brew if Windy City had not taken the title in game 7…. Wow!
That is all for now…. I’m sure we’ve missed a few, but happy reading!
At this year’s GM Meetings, the Editor of the Kodiak Chronicle sat down with Denver GM Carlos to discuss the upcoming season. The conversation quickly turned to the season that ‘Icebox’ Cobb is having and the incredible pain that Carlos is under now watching him dominate it New Orleans. This got us to thinking about some of the greatest draft missed in the last 20 years. In order to be considered a draft miss, the missed player must have been closely followed by the player that the team missed with, and of the same position. In other words, no 9th round cards show up in this list.
2022 – Syracuse and Wilmington
Both clubs were eyeing pitching early in this draft as this was the year for offence (Swope, Brooksher, Tibbs, Davis, etc.) flew off the board early. With the 7th pick, Syracuse went with Zachary Beechy, fresh off of coming in 2nd in the balloting for Outstanding College Pitcher and with the 10th pick, Wilmington chose two-time college champion and 2022 Outstanding pitcher, Jimmy Dow. At the time, both were seen as slam dunks. However, at pick 11, Denver selected pitcher Manabu Hamada from Stanford. Hamada ended up fashioning a career that saw him make 5 All Star teams, win three Pale Ales, and take home a 2037 Brewmaster Title with Carolina!
2025 – Dallas
In the year of the pitcher, we see one of the greatest What Ifs in BLB history. EIGHT pitchers taken in the first round amassed at least 20 WAR!! The team that invented Pitching and Defence was up at the end of the first with few pitching options left. They decided to go with the unremarkable Aiden White out of Long Beach State. The very next pitcher off the board…. JJ Plumley. His career, SO FAR, has 8 All Star selections, 4 Pale Ales, a 2035 Brewmaster, and potentially, the title of Greatest BLB Pitcher of All Time…. Ouch!
2027 – Philadelphia
Eight pitchers were taken in the first ten picks this year. The one that got away, happened to Philadelphia. Needing an ace to anchor a rotation for a franchise that has never won a Brew in the history of the BLB, the Freedom instead selected the top relief pitcher on the board in Orleans Tyrese Carter. Fresh off finishing third for the Outstanding Pitcher Award in college, he fashioned an unremarkable 4 year career. With the very next pick, Maine selected Big Game Kevin Alston. All he’s done in his career to this point has anchor the rotation of Maine, California, and Washington for three Brewmaster titles!
2029 – New York and California
There were three big first baseman this year that all had Hall of Fame potential. With the 4th pick California chose Ed King, who had just finished an astounding high school career with a 0.412 average and 51 home runs! With the 5th pick, Indianapolis selected Ian Melnik, who had just put the finishing touches on a high school career that ended with a 0.443 career average. Both players are in the midst of fine workman like careers. However, just a few picks later with pick 12, the Baltimore Bulldogs selected Poly Prep superstar JD Rice. A certain Hall of Famer, he has already amassed 7 All Star appearances, 4 Designated Driver awards, 2 Stout Sluggers, and 338 home runs…. All by the age of 30!
2031 – Indianapolis
For a team that won it all in 2025 and 2034, a big what might have been in this draft. Looking for an infielder that could anchor their team well into its next championship run, the Racers selected SS Edwin Briggs. The 2030 Outstanding College Hitter was also a fabulous defender, and seemed the obvious choice here. Briggs went on to play 431 mostly unforgettable BLB games. With the very next pick, the Windy City Blues drafted a true game changer in 2b ‘Wedge’ Davis. Davis has been on a tear even since, taking home a Refreshing New Brew, a DWI, a Designated Driver, 3 All Star appearances, and for good measure the 2041 Brewmaster title with the very same Windy City!
2034 – Denver, Toronto, and Carolina
This was the year of the outfielder, as 5 went in the first 6 picks. Joey Robertson was the easy first choice for California, but that left a small group of very different outfielders for each team to choose from. With the 2ndpick Denver grabbed Fritz Finnerty, who has had a solid career, but has not put up the remarkable numbers he did in College. With the 4th pick, Toronto chose Darren Davis. A spectacular fielder and runner, Davis has yet to be more than a utility outfielder for various teams. With the 5th pick, Carolina went with the unforgettable Andre Powell, who has yet to fashion a single BLB at bat. Who did these teams miss on? With the 6th pick, Wilmington grabbed CF Cayden Huff. So far in his short career, he’s already had 3 All Star appearances, a gold glove, and swatted 99 career home runs!
2037 – Maine
The year of the pitcher 2.0 saw 13 pitchers come off the board In the first 20 picks. With very few quality bats available teams were reaching for something to put in the offensive side of the ledger. The likes of James Vandehey (Maine), Melchior Werth (New York), Karson Blair (Toronto), Reid Cole (Chicago), Chance Maki (Maine), and Chalmers (California). Although it is still early in all of their careers, and some of the aforementioned (Cole and Chalmers) have had nice starts to their career, it looks as though they all missed on a generational talent. We tabbed Maine here though, because they had two chances to grab Domique Graham, and now, most unfortunately, thanks to a keen trade by GM Jim will be facing him in their division for the next 10-15 years. What has Graham done in his short career? Win the New Brew, go to an all star game and absolutely destroy the competition in the 2041 playoffs that saw him take home the MVP in EVERY round, which may have included the Brew if Windy City had not taken the title in game 7…. Wow!
That is all for now…. I’m sure we’ve missed a few, but happy reading!
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