MLB Draft: Detroit Tigers Squeeze Value Out of First Round Picks
By Matt Snyder
The Detroit Tigers haven’t always selected players who go on to have tremendous careers in the first round of the MLB Draft, but they’ve typically found a way to squeeze maximum value out of the players they’ve picked.
May 30, 2014; Toledo, OH, USA; Detroit Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski in the stands against the Charlotte Knights at Fifth Third Field. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
Major League Baseball’s first year player draft commences with the first round on Monday, June 8 (6 p.m. on MLB Network).
The Detroit Tigers, as owners of the 22nd overall pick, will look to grab a quality piece to add depth to their thin minor league system. It’s difficult to find a sure-fire star player outside of the top few picks (and even sometimes inside the top ten), but they need to be able to count on getting value out of their top selections if they hope to maintain their recent string of success into the future.
Young, cost-controlled talent is the lifeblood of an organization. No team (well, maybe the New York Yankees) can survive on free agent signings alone to sustain a franchise. Payroll would be astronomical and the club would be eventually be saddled with over the hill veterans making far too much money.
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None of the players drafted by the Tigers with their first pick of the last 10 MLB Drafts have yet turned into superstar players (though some have turned into solid starters), but they’ve done relatively well in squeezing maximum value out of the players they’ve ended up with.
What follows is a look at those players and the value they’ve provided to the Detroit Tigers organization.
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