2007 Draft: How They Should Have Done It
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The baseball draft celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2015, and what better way to look back on more than five decades of draft history than with Baseball America? Founding editor Allan Simpson has collected the best information from our rich archives and assembled it in the ultimate draft compendium. You’ll get complete draft lists from every year, with signing information, biggest successes and busts, the most signing bonus information ever published, and all the stories that make draft history so rich. The book will also include all the results from the 2016 draft.
To give you a taste, we’ll share some excerpts of the book each week.
Based on the career WAR (Wins Above Replacement, as calculated by Baseball-Reference.com) numbers achieved by all the players eligible for the 2007 draft through the 2015 season, here’s how the first round should have unfolded. Numbers in parentheses indicate the round when the player was actually drafted.
| Rank, Player | Actual Draft | WAR | Bonus |
| 1. Jason Heyward, of | Braves (1) | 31.2 | $1,700,000 |
| 2. David Price, lhp | Rays (1) | 29 | $5,600,000 |
| 3. Josh Donaldson, c | Cubs (1-S) | 25.1 | $652,500 |
| 4. Giancarlo Stanton, of | Marlins (2) | 25 | $475,000 |
| 5. Madison Bumgarner, lhp | Giants (1) | 23.3 | $2,000,000 |
| 6. Jordan Zimmermann, rhp | Nationals (2) | 20.9 | $495,000 |
| 7. Anthony Rizzo, 1b | Red Sox (6) | 16 | $325,000 |
| 8. Jonathan Lucroy, c | Brewers (3) | 15.8 | $340,000 |
| 9. Freddie Freeman, 1b | Braves (2) | 15.7 | $409,500 |
| 10. Jake Arrieta, rhp | Orioles (5) | 15.5 | $1,100,000 |
| 11. Todd Frazier, ss | Reds (1-S) | 15.3 | $825,000 |
| 12. Matt Wieters, c | Orioles (1) | 14.6 | $6,000,000 |
| 13. Corey Kluber, rhp | Padres (4) | 12.4 | $200,000 |
| 14. Rick Porcello, rhp | Tigers (1) | 11.2 | $3,580,000 |
| 15. Greg Holland, rhp | Royals (10) | 10 | $50,000 |
| 16. Zack Cosart, ss | Reds (2) | 9.6 | $407,250 |
| 17. Mike Moustakas, ss | Royals (1) | 8.9 | $4,000,000 |
| 18. Darwin Barney, ss | Cubs (4) | 8.3 | $222,750 |
| 19. Derek Norris, c | Nationals (4) | 7.9 | $210,000 |
| 20. Josh Collmenter, rhp | Diamondacks (15) | 7.6 | $80,000 |
| 21. Tony Watson, lhp | Pirates (9) | 7.5 | $85,000 |
| 22. Ben Revere, of | Twins (1) | 7.3 | $750,000 |
| 23. Brett Cecil, lhp | Blue Jays (1-S) | 6.6 | $810,000 |
| Tommy Hunter, rhp | Rangers (1-S) | 6.6 | $585,000 |
| 25. Jarrod Parker, rhp | Diamondbacks (1) | 6.1 | $2,100,000 |
| Danny Duffy, lhp | Royals (3) | 6.1 | $365,000 |
| 27. Lucas Duda, 1b | Mets (7) | 5.8 | $85,000 |
| 28. Steve Cishek, rhp | Marlins (5) | 5.4 | $139,500 |
| 29. Stephen Vogt, c | Devil Rays (12) | 4.6 | $6,000 |
| 30. Dillon Gee, rhp | Mets (21) | 4.3 | $20,000 |
| David Lough, of | Royals (11) | 4.3 | $49,500 |
| Mitch Moreland, 1b | Rangers (17) | 4.3 | $60,000 |
| Top 3 Unsigned Players | Actual Draft | WAR | Year Signed |
| 1 Chris Sale, lhp | Rockies (21) | 27.2 | 2010 |
| 2 Craig Kimbrel, rhp | Braves (33) | 13.6 | 2008 |
| 3 Brandon Belt, lhp | Braves (11) | 12.6 | 2009 |
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