#1 Overall Picks, 1974-1977

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#1 Overall Picks, 1974-1977

Post by recte44 » Sun Aug 21, 2016 6:36 pm

by Cliche

The amateur draft is one of the more popular events in the MBBA, especially if your team happens to stink. I've decided to take a look back at the 19 first overall selections since the league began, beginning all the way back in 1974. Today I'll cover '74 to '77.

1974 - CF George Kobayashi, Lexington Lightning.

Kobayashi was selected by the Lightning ahead of such names as Braggo Franco, Tom Laverierre and Johnny Fever. He would spend three full seasons in the minors before arriving in the MBBA in 1977. He never played a game as a Lexington Lightning, as the franchise had relocated and become the Austin Riverbats by then. A slow developer, Kobayashi was only mildly effective until the 1980 season. His swing really seemed to blossom at the age of 25, seeing him club 32 homers and drive in 100 runs. He also put up 20.2 OWS and saw his strikeout total skyrocket. He would post remarkably consistent numbers in each of the next three seasons, never hitting below 23 homers or driving in less than 90 runs. 1983 saw his All-Star debut, and he returned in 1984 despite watching his batting average and OBP plummet. He struggled again in 1985, in what should have been the prime of his career. 1986 saw him traded from Austin to Manhattan, in a deal that sent Tim Bombardier to Texas. He seemed to rediscover his swing in New York, hitting .300/.363/.597 with the Myst to clinch his third career 30 HR/100 RBI season. He was on the move again in 1987, despite putting up big numbers for the Myst again. This time he made his way to Des Moines where he would remain for the next three seasons. He finished that '87 season with 38 homers, a career high. He has never recaptured the form his showed during his best seasons with Austin or Manhattan, but he provided a steady bat in the outfield for the Kernels as he hit .280, .277, 281 during his three full seasons in Des Moines. He also tallied 60 homers over those three seasons before being traded to Baltimore in the spring in 1991. He collected his 2000th hit, 350th homer and 1200th RBI with the Monarchs and is their starting rightfielder this season despite the fact that he turns 37 in just a few weeks. Although Kobayashi was never the true franchise player a team hopes to draft first overall, he has produced steady offense for a trio of teams during his 16 seasons. He's currently fourth in games played, 14th in homers and 11th in RBI. He's also second in strikeouts and will pass 2000 in that category this season.

1975 - SS Christopher Williams, Seattle Storm.

Picked ahead of the likes of Jack Maverick and Davis Birch, Williams would become a Storm lifer. The gifted infielder took three years in the minors before he arrived in the big leagues in 1978. Already 26, he stepped right in and contributed to the ballclub. He showcased blazing speed from day one, stealing 55 bases as a rookie and legging out 12 triples. '79 saw him debut as an All-Star as he made 55 seem like an off year. He stole 88 bases while raising his batting average to .301, hitting 16 homers, 14 triples and 39 doubles. He also hit .409 in a short-lived playoff appearance for the Storm. He continued to impress in 1980 and '81 stealing 143 bases over those two seasons, as well as 368 hits and 95 doubles. His OWS figure climbed to a gaudy 27.2 in '81. We would never see that offensively dominant Williams again, as he would never hit 20 OWS in a season again or hit north of .300. Rumor is that he suffered an undisclosed injury in the offseason, but regardless his swing lost some of its quickness and his play suffered. He was still an effective starter without question, but was never again a superstar as he appeared to be that '81 season. He did continue to steal bases by the bundle, swiping 40-plus every season until 1987, his final year in the league. He made his final All-Star appearance in 1984, this time at shortstop (his first three appearances had been at second base) and Williams likely stretched his career as a starter by a season or two on the back of that switch. He reached that superstar pinnacle, if only briefly. His career numbers place him 18th in doubles, 15th in triples and 15th in stolen bases. He's also currently up for election to the Hall of Fame.

1976 - 1B Bombo Vadabonceour, Calgary Marauders.

Bombo was the first pick in what would become a huge draft for the first two teams. Henry Jones went second, giving this class a nice 1-2 Hall of Fame lock punch. Unlike Williams and Kobayashi, Vadabonceour jumped right into the big leagues from day one, slamming 22 taters as a rookie in a small sign of things to come. He won his first Batter of the Year award the very next season, slugging 31 homers and 36 doubles to go with a .337 batting average. '77 also marked the first of 9 straight All-Star selections for Bombo, one of the longest streaks in baseball history. He hit .363 in back-to-back seasons (78 and 79) while capturing a pair of Batter of the Years awards and doing his best to lead Calgary to greener pastures. Things started to come together for the club in 1980 despite Bombo having his lowest numbers since his rookie campaign. The club grew into a perennial contender and would remain so for the next six seasons. Despite limited playoff success (one series win and a 7-17 record), the Marauders had become a regular face at the top of the FLP thanks to Bombo's antics at the plate. He won his fourth FL Batter of the Year award in 1984, splitting the record for winning that particular award the most with Sawyer Silk. Sadly with the Marauders sliding from contention despite Vadabonceour's best efforts, he was traded in 1987, his 12th year with the club. He spent the next four and a half seasons with Madison, managing to contribute in a more limited role until he returned to Calgary in August of 1991 via waivers, and retired as a Marauder. When you think of a #1 overall pick, you think of a player like Bombo. He appears on the leaderboards in a ton of categories including 3rd in hits, 14th in OPS, 1st in RBI and 4th in runs scored. He's basically a lock to make the Hall of Fame this season.

SS Jack Hanski, Calgary Marauders.

Jack Hanski was far from your typical shortstop. You have to be special to get drafted ahead of Randy Spratt and Timothy Regina. Unlike many of his positional peers, Hanski was always a bit of an adventure with the glove and was extremely dangerous with the bat. He spent just one year in the minors before joining Calgary and socking 22 homers as a rookie. He posted a .988 OPS as a sophomore and established himself as a player who could hit for power and take a lot of walks. He also made his All-Star debut that year, the first of seven trips to the mid-summer classic for Hanski. Although he hit above .270 only twice in his season, he was a consistent offensive force for 10 seasons. Six times he slammed more than 30 homers, and six times he drew more than 80 walks. He also drove in 100 or more runs six times, and posted back to back 40/100/80 seasons in '86 and '87. That '87 season was spent in Las Vegas, after the veteran was traded by Calgary as the struggling franchise attempted to rebuild. His second season in Las Vegas was less successful, as he hit just 13 homers and had an average of just .228. He would finish his career with Birmingham, spending two seasons with the Bandits although neither of them were very impressive. Hanski's career has given us some interesting statistics. In 1981 he hit just .189 but still managed a .791 OPS. He committed 20 or more errors in 10 of his 13 years in the MBBA, but wasn't moved to another position until 1988 when he played primarily at 2B. He finished his career 16th in slugging percentage, 22nd in OPS, 11th in homers and 4th in walks. He's also 15th in RBI and 24th in runs scored. Although his defensive miscues cost his team some wins, they certainly don't measure up to his tremendous offensive impact. He's not as dominant a figure as Bombo is (but then how many are?) but he certainly more than made his mark on the league as a #1 pick.

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