MLB Draft: A look back at the 2010 MLB Draft

The 2017 MLB Draft begins on June 12, and teams are hoping to come away with future franchise players and avoid any busts that can set back their organizations. Before this year’s draft takes place, let’s revisit the 2010 MLB Draft’s 10 biggest successes and its 10 biggest busts and how they have impacted the league:

10 Biggest Successes

1. Bryce Harper, Washington Nationals — The 24-year-old slugger and right fielder has lived up to all the hype of being a No. 1 overall pick, as he is one of the game’s best players. In six seasons, he has been a four-time All-Star and was voted the unanimous NL MVP in 2015, when he became the youngest player ever to be named a unanimous MVP.

2. Manny Machado, Baltimore Orioles — Just like Harper, Machado has become one of the league’s top players. Since being chosen with the third pick, the 24-year-old third baseman has been a three-time All-Star, a two-time Gold Glove winner and a two-time top-five finisher in the AL MVP voting in six seasons in Baltimore.

3. Chris Sale, Chicago White Sox — Sale has become a star ace since being drafted 13th overall.. The 28-year-old has finished in the top six in the AL Cy Young voting in each of the last five years while being an All-Star in each of those seasons and is the early favorite to win this year’s Cy Young as the No. 1 starter with the Boston Red Sox after they acquired him from Chicago in the offseason.

4. Jacob deGrom, New York Mets — Despite being picked in the ninth round (272nd overall), deGrom has developed into an ace and one of the most consistent pitchers in the game. He won the Rookie of the Year in 2014, was selected to the All-Star Game in 2015 and helped the Mets reach the World Series during that season.

5. Matt Harvey, New York Mets — Harvey, who was picked seventh, established himself as one of the best pitchers in the game in parts of three seasons while leading the Mets to the World Series in 2015. Though he has not been the same pitcher since the World Series, as he has gone 6-13 with a 5.09 ERA in his last 25 starts, Harvey’s initial successes still make him one of the top players to come out of the class.

6. Noah Syndergaard, Toronto Blue Jays — Chosen 38th overall, Syndergaard eventual gave the Mets another ace in its rotation after the Blue Jays traded him in 2012 as part of a deal to acquire R.A. Dickey. The 24-year-old right-hander helped New York make the World Series and was named an All-Star last season before suffering a partial lat tear this season that will keep him out until after the All-Star break.

7. Aaron Sanchez, Toronto Blue Jays — After being the 34th pick overall, Sanchez worked his way up to the Blue Jays in 2014 as a reliever, but he shined the most last year in his first year as a full-time starter. He went 15-2 and led the American League in ERA (3.00) and winning percentage (.882) while being named an All-Star and helping Toronto reach the ALCS.

8. Joc Pederson, Los Angeles Dodgers — Like deGrom, Pederson overcame being picked in the 11th round (352 overall) to become a standout center fielder for the Dodgers. He made the majors in 2014 and became the National League’s starter in the All-Star in 2015.

9. Drew Pomeranz, Cleveland Indians — The 28-year-old is finally starting to pitch like a fifth overall pick. After being traded to Rockies, then the Athletics and then the Padres, Pomeranz had an All-Star season in San Diego in 2016 until he was then traded to the Red Sox, where he is currently pitching this season.

10. Yasmani Grandal, Cincinnati Reds — Though he hasn’t been bounced around as much as Pomeranz, Grandal finally found a home with the Dodgers. After the Reds traded the 12th overall pick to the Padres in 2011 and the Padres traded him to Los Angeles in December 2014, he earned an All-Star selection in 2015 in his first season with the Dodgers and hit 27 home runs last year.

10 Biggest Busts

1. Christian Colon, Kansas City Royals — For being the fourth overall pick, the 28-year-old has not been able to become a franchise player. He did help the Royals win the World Series in 2015 as a bench player, but is still in that role with the Marlins.

2. Barret Loux, Arizona Diamondbacks — Though Loux was drafted sixth overall, the D-backs did not sign the right-hander due to their concerns about his previously injured shoulder and elbow in his throwing arm. Lou wound up signing with the Rangers, then traded to the Cubs in 2012, but never made it out of the minors.

3. Karsten Whitson, San Diego Padres — Whitson had a chance to play pro ball at 18 years old after the Padres picked him at No. 9 overall, but the Florida native decided to not sign with them and play college ball at the University of Florida. Unfortunately, he missed his junior season in 2013 after needing shoulder surgery, and wound up getting drafted by the Red Sox in the 11th round in 2014, only to be released by the club in 2015 during spring training.

4. Michael Choice, Oakland Athletics — With the 10th pick, the Athletics chose Choice in hopes that he could be an impact center fielder for them. He wound up playing only nine games for them in 2013 before being dealt to the Rangers in 2013, and only played 96 career games. He is now playing for the Brewers’ Double-A club.

5. Deck McGuire, Toronto Blue Jays — The Blue Jays drafted four pitchers in 2010 and they thought McGuire could be a possible starter them for years after selecting him with the 11th pick. He got as high as their 40-man roster, but wound up being traded to the Athletics in 2014 and eventually spending the next four seasons — including this year — in the minors as a member of the A’s, Dodgers, Cardinals and Reds organizations.

6. Jake Skole, Texas Rangers — The Rangers took Skole with the 15th pick in hopes he could be their future center fielder, but that didn’t happen. He spent his entire six years in pro ball in the minors, playing four years in the Rangers’ system and two more in the Yankees’ system. He gave up baseball in the fall of 2016 and decided to commit to the University of Georgia to play football.

7. Hayden Simpson, Chicago Cubs — The Cubs took a pitcher with the 16th pick who they loved, but most draft experts was a huge gamble in that spot. The gamble didn’t pay off, though, as Simpson was released in 2013 after posting a 6.42 ERA in 161 ¹⁄₃ innings pitched in Single-A ball.

8. Josh Sale, Tampa Bay Rays — No relation to Chris Sale, but Josh Sale was raved for his pure hitting and the Rays chose him with the 17th pick in hopes of giving them a quality bat in their outfield. However, Sale had a ton of off-the-field issues and wound up being released after he could not make it past Class A ball.

9. Kolbrin Vitek, Boston Red Sox — The Red Sox thought they were going to get a quality hitter in Vitek with the 20th pick. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case, as Vitek only hit .258 in 304 games in the minors and he wound up retiring in 2014.

10. Alex Wimmers, Minnesota Twins — After a great college career at Ohio State, Wimmers was looking to make an impact for the Twins in their starting rotation after being chosen with the 21st pick. He did manage to pitch 16 games as a reliever for them last year, but he has since been in Triple-A Rochester.