Five Worst No. 1 Overall Picks in MLB Draft History

Bryan BullingtonPhoto by與那嶺勲 on Picasa Web Albums

By Paul M. Banks

The NFL Draft took place this past weekend, and it was a massive spectacle as always. While none of the other major sports' drafts come remotely close to the NFL in hype and media coverage, the MLB Draft has plenty of drama in its own right. The event began in 1965 -- with Arizona State's Rick Monday becoming the first player to be selected, by the then-Kansas City Athletics.

Only three No. 1 overall picks failed to reach the Major League level. We now present those stories, and two additional picks that also went badly awry.

1. 1991, New York Yankees, Brien Taylor, LHP, East Carteret High School

After a stellar 1993 season in Double-A ball, the Yankees wanted Taylor to head to the instructional league. Instead he went home to North Carolina, where he seriously injured his pitching shoulder in a fistfight. He missed the entire next season and was never the same again.

Long after his baseball career ended, his life took another wrong turn as he was indicted on cocaine trafficking charges in 2012. Taylor was released from prison in 2015.

Notable Stats: Season ERAs after that fateful fight: 6.08 (1995), 18.73 (1996), 14.33 (1997), 9.59 (1998), 27.00 (2000)

2. 2013, Houston Astros, Mark Appel, RHP, Stanford

When Appel joined the Quad Cities River Bandits (you got to love Minor League team names!) in 2013, he made history with Carlos Correa. It marked the first time that two consecutive first overall picks played for the same Minor League team. Appel made it as high as Triple-A, with the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs (again, Minor League team names!) in the Phillies’ system.

His career appeared to have ended in 2017 as repeated shoulder injuries took their toll, but he did find his way to the Majors for a brief cup of coffee with the Phillies in 2022 when he made six relief appearances and allowed two runs over 10 1/3 innings (1.74 ERA).

Notable Stats: His $6.35 million signing bonus in 2013 is worth $6.99 million in today's money.

3. 2014, Houston Astros, Brady Aiken, LHP, Cathedral Catholic High School

The Astros seem to be as adept at making No. 1 overall selections as they are at playing by the rules. Aiken didn't sign (becoming the first overall No. 1 not to do so since Tim Belcher in 1983), and re-entered the next year's draft.

Coming off Tommy John surgery, Aiken was selected 17th overall by Cleveland and then struggled for two seasons in their farm system. His career is in doubt after only pitching in two professional games since 2018.

Notable Stat: While Correa is having a fine career, he's the only player of the four selected first overall by Houston to provide them more than one season of Major League service.

4. 1966, New York Mets, Steven Chilcott, C, Antelope Valley High School

Once again, it was a shoulder injury that derailed everything. The only non-pitcher on our list had an injury-plagued career that saw him released by one New York team, and then signed by the other. After baseball, he went into construction.

Notable Stat: After 24 games in the Yankees’ organization, he was done with baseball at age 23.

5. 2002, Pittsburgh Pirates, Bryan Bullington, RHP, Ball State

The only member of this list who found a happy baseball ending, albeit in Japan's NPB league. Fans of Hiroshima know Bullington as a 2011 Central League All-Star. He won one Major League game (against nine losses); over the Yankees and A.J. Burnett.

Notable Stats: All-Star season with the Carp – 2.42 ERA (sixth best in the league), 13-11 W-L

Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.” You can find him on X/Twitter at @paulmbanks.