Cleveland Indians: Redrafting First Round Picks from 2010-2016

CLEVELAND, OH - JUNE 15: First baseman Cody Bellinger #35 of the Los Angeles Dodgers pauses on the field during the fifth inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field on June 15, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
CLEVELAND, OH - JUNE 15: First baseman Cody Bellinger #35 of the Los Angeles Dodgers pauses on the field during the fifth inning against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field on June 15, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images)
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CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – SEPTEMBER 16: Starting pitcher Lucas Giolito #27 of the Chicago White Sox throws the baseball in the against the Minnesota Twinsat Guaranteed Rate Field on September 16, 2020 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – SEPTEMBER 16: Starting pitcher Lucas Giolito #27 of the Chicago White Sox throws the baseball in the against the Minnesota Twinsat Guaranteed Rate Field on September 16, 2020 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images)

The Pick

With the 15th pick in the 2012 Draft, the Indians selected Texas A&M outfielder Tyler Naquin. The outfielder got off to a hot start to his pro career but since has not quite lived up to his potential.

In 2016, Naquin played in 116 regular season games and slashed .298/.372/.514 with 14 home runs and 43 RBI’s to finish third in AL Rookie of the Year voting.

Since then, however, he has struggled to stay on the field as he has not played more than 89 regular season games in 2019 and 40 out of 60 in the shortened 2020 season.

Redraft

With Naquin’s struggles in the last four seasons, he would not be the Indians pick in a redraft. Notable names selected after Naquin include Corey Seager, Marcus Stroman and Josh Hader, but none stand out more than Lucas Giolito.

Giolito was selected one pick after Naquin going 16th to the Washington Nationals. After just six games with the Nationals in 2016, he was traded to the Chicago White Sox and there has developed into an ace.

In 2019, he made his first All-Star team and posted a 3.41 ERA with a 14-9 record in 29 starts. He followed that up in 2020 by posting a 3.48 ERA with a 4-3 record, threw a no-hitter against the Pittsburgh Pirates and earned a victory in his first career postseason start in the Sox Wild Card Series with the Oakland A’s.

If he was selected by Cleveland, an already loaded Indians rotation would be that much better and the Indians would not have to worry about him joining a division rival.

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