Rank the #1 Draft Disappointments

[now]

Who has been most disappointing to you as a #1 draft choice, over the last 20 years?

Your choice can be objective ("This means WAR!") or subjective (personal disappointment).

It can reflect injuries, a career that stalled, or sheer overhype ("the switch-hitting Jesus").

Fire away!

PS Poll limit is 10, so I stopped short of Chris Smith, Beau Hale, Mike Paradis, et al.

[Can_of_corn]

You know a guy was bad when you can't even get his name right!

All but two of the picks were defensible at the time.

[now]

14 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

You know a guy was bad when you can't even get his name right!

All but two of the picks were defensible at the time.

Duly noted, thx. So was he one of the two indefensible ones for you?

[Can_of_corn]

Just now, now said:

Duly noted, thx. So was he one of the two indefensible ones for you?

Yep, I was very vocal about it in the draft thread.

Clearly a reach.

History would have viewed it more kindly if one of the two bonus babies had panned out.

[Moose Milligan]

Rowell.

I understand the frustration with the Hobgood situation, but that wasn't that kids fault.  It's not his fault that the Orioles are stupid.  I didn't like the pick, I don't think anyone really did.  But I'm not going to hold the Orioles stupidity against that guy.

Rowell was just a big flameout.  And then he started hitting the reefer with Corn and got an attitude problem.  

[Can_of_corn]

5 minutes ago, Moose Milligan said:

Rowell.

I understand the frustration with the Hobgood situation, but that wasn't that kids fault.  It's not his fault that the Orioles are stupid.  I didn't like the pick, I don't think anyone really did.  But I'm not going to hold the Orioles stupidity against that guy.

Rowell was just a big flameout.  And then he started hitting the reefer with Corn and got an attitude problem.  

I'm looking at it from the opposite angle.  I don't fault the O's for the Rowell pick since he was a reasonable selection at that point in the draft.  Hobgood wasn't.  I don't blame Hobgood for getting hurt and not being good but it was a bad pick, why pick a high risk guy with a relatively low ceiling in the top 5?

So while I was more disappointed with Rowell as a player I was more disappointed with the Hobgood selection.

[Moose Milligan]

1 minute ago, Can_of_corn said:

I'm looking at it from the opposite angle.  I don't fault the O's for the Rowell pick since we was a reasonable selection at that point in the draft.  Hobgood wasn't.  I don't blame Hobgood for getting hurt and not being good but it was a bad pick, why pick a high risk guy with a relatively low ceiling in the top 5?

So while I was more disappointed with Rowell as a player I was more disappointed with the Hobgood selection.

I hear ya.  I don't necessarily disagree and I understand where you're coming from.  But as you said, we're looking at it from different angles.  

I was disappointed with the Hobgood selection, too.  But knowing that he was a reach made me adjust expectations accordingly.  Rowell was a prep stud, lit it up in his first season and then just couldn't hack it.  Hobgood was a big question from the start.

But to answer your question....Orioles stupidity.  I'm not sure why they went that route but they did.  It was dumb.

[Palmoripken]

Tie between Hobgood and Rowell. 

[atomic]

Hobgood everyone should have known was a terrible pick when he was selected. Obese high school student who wasnt even consistently  fast.

I would say Matusz as he was most hyped and turned out to be a total dud.

[Jagwar]

Definitely Hopgood. He was no Carl Ripken. 

[atomic]

3 minutes ago, Jagwar said:

Definitely Hopgood. He was no Carl Ripken. 

But he wasnt rated high. I dont consider him a draft bust.  Instead it was just a terrible pick.  

[Enjoy Terror]

Unquestionably Hopgood. 

Some of these guys were just not great players, and at the very worst an indictment of the development or scouting departments.

Hobgood was a failure of ownership, who punted on the draft at a time when they needed a miracle the most. It was a truly reckless maneuver to cost cut here.

[Moose Milligan]

Man, atomic and I are on the same side of the fence.  Maybe I should be reconsidering life. 

[Can_of_corn]

16 minutes ago, Enjoy Terror said:

Unquestionably Hopgood. 

Some of these guys were just not great players, and at the very worst an indictment of the development or scouting departments.

Hobgood was a failure of ownership, who punted on the draft at a time when they needed a miracle the most. It was a truly reckless maneuver to cost cut here.

That was Townsend not Hobgood.  O's spent 8.8M on the Hobgood draft.  They gave Coffey a million and Ohlman somewhere around the same.

[TonySoprano]

1 minute ago, Can_of_corn said:

That was Townsend not Hobgood.  O's spent 8.8M on the Hobgood draft.  They have Coffey a million and Ohlman somewhere around the same.

Townsend was a last minute audible when Angelos went in the draft room and demanded they draft a college pitcher.  They were set to draft a SS, either Chris Nelson or Stephen Drew.