2005 Major League Baseball draft
| Date(s) | June 7–8, 2005 |
|---|---|
| Picks | |
| First selection |
Justin Upton Arizona Diamondbacks |
| Overall selections | 1501 |
The 2005 First-Year Player Draft, Major League Baseball's annual amateur draft, was held on June 7 and 8. It was conducted via conference call with representatives from each of the league's 30 teams. It is widely considered to be one of the best drafts in recent memory.
Source: Major League Baseball 2005 Official Draft Site
The Diamondbacks used the top overall pick on high school shortstop Justin Upton and thus made him and older brother, B.J., the highest selected pair of brothers in the history of the draft. The Devil Rays selected B.J. with the second overall pick of the 2002 draft. With the fourth overall pick, the Nationals chose one of Upton's AAU teammates, third baseman Ryan Zimmerman of the University of Virginia. Zimmerman and B.J. Upton played in the same AAU infield as New York Mets third baseman David Wright in their youth.
College third basemen accounted for three of the top five selections. A total of 13 pitchers went in the first round, 10 of whom came from the college ranks.
Rice pitcher Wade Townsend was the eighth overall pick in the first round for the second straight year. After failing to reach terms with the Orioles last year, Townsend re-entered the draft pool and was selected by Tampa Bay.
Stanford outfielder John Mayberry, the son of the longtime Major League first baseman of the same name, was drafted by the Rangers with the 19th overall pick.
Three 2005 first-round draft choices saw action before the conclusion of the Major League season. Atlanta's Joey Devine became the first Brave since Bob Horner in 1978 to appear in the Majors the same year he was drafted. Devine joined Ariel Prieto (OAK-1995), Chad Cordero (MON-2003) and Ryan Wagner (CIN-2003) as the only draftees of the last 15 years to reach the Majors before September 1 the same year. Zimmerman and Boston's Craig Hansen joined their Major League clubs in September 2005.
Ryan Braun was the first 2005 draftee to be selected to an All-Star Game. He was voted in as a starter in 2008. Jacoby Ellsbury and Clay Buchholz were the first 2005 draftees to win a World Series championship, although Buchholz, drafted in the supplemental first round, was never on the 2007 Red Sox postseason roster. Matt Garza was named MVP of the 2008 ALCS.
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