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For Dodgers, 2009 MLB Draft was a swing and a miss

No true first-round pick, the top two picks converted to and from the mound, and one future bullpen catcher mark the general failure that was the 2009 draft for the Dodgers.

Second-round pick Garrett Gould just might be the Dodgers' best bet for another 2009 draftee to reach the majors, but that's not saying much.
Second-round pick Garrett Gould just might be the Dodgers' best bet for another 2009 draftee to reach the majors, but that's not saying much.
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I'm not sure just how long one must wait before accurately measuring the performance of a single draft, but let's assume it's slightly longer than immediately after the draft is over. Five years seems reasonable enough, and the Dodgers' draft in 2009 looks like one huge disappointment.

The first ingredient of a bad draft is to not have a first-round pick. The Dodgers forfeited their No. 17 pick in the 2009 draft when they signed second baseman Orlando Hudson to a one-year, $3 million deal plus incentives and he pretty much gave them exactly what they wanted: an All-Star, a Gold Glove winner at second base and even the franchise's first cycle in 39 years. Hudson was a cog of a 95-win team, though one who ended his year riding the pine in favor of red hot Ronnie Belliard.

The Dodgers got a pair of picks when fellow Type-A free agent Derek Lowe signed with the Braves. Because Atlanta had a top 15 pick (No. 7 overall), their first-round pick was protected, so the Dodgers got the Braves' second-round pick (No. 56) plus a supplemental pick between the first and second rounds (No. 36).

Those picks were used on Aaron Miller and Blake Smith, both of whom converted in 2013 to the outfield and the mound respectively. The Dodgers' own second-round pick was used on right-handed pitcher Garrett Gould, who is still a pitcher but has a 6.33 ERA in 300 innings between Class-A and Double-A since the start of 2012. His claim to fame just might be getting nearly dealt to Houston in 2012, a deal that died when Carlos Lee exercised his no-trade clause.

Of the 31 draft picks the Dodgers signed in 2009, only one to date has reached the majors. Steve Ames, the 17th-rounder who was traded to the Marlins last year for Ricky Nolasco, pitched four games in relief for Miami in 2013. He pitched in two games for Triple-A New Orleans in April before getting shut down with a right shoulder injury.

A total of 109 players drafted and signed in 2009 have at some point made the major leagues, an average of 3.63 per team. Those players have accumulated a total of 190.8 Wins Above Replacement (the Baseball-Reference version).

Like the Dodgers, the Rays and Marlins also had one player each reach the majors. The one Tampa Bay draftee to reach the majors, Zac Rosscup, did so with the Cubs, not the Rays. The Mets and Orioles haven't yet had a single player reach the majors but Baltimore at least had a pair of 2009 draftees (Tim Berry and Michael Ohman) among its top 10 prospects by Baseball America.

Ames has accumulated 0.0 WAR to date.

Outside of Ames, only three Dodgers 2009 draftees have even reached Triple-A. That includes Bryant Hernandez, who played five games with the Isotopes at the end of 2011, his final professional season; and Steve Cilladi, who played two games in two years with Albuquerque as a player/coach.

Brian Cavazos-Galvez has played 62 total games in Triple-A, but is now 27 and since the beginning of 2013 has only played five games with Albuquerque, mostly confined to Double-A Chattanooga.

There are eight players signed and drafted by the Dodgers still playing organized minor league baseball in 2014. Outside of minor parts in deadline trades for pitchers Ted Lilly and Ricky Nolasco, it seems like the most memorable pick by the Dodgers in 2009 is their current bullpen catcher.

Round Pick Player Position Highest Level 2014 Age 2014 Level Comment
1s 36 Aaron Miller LHP Double-A 26 Class-A Converted to OF
2 56 Blake Smith OF Double-A 26 Class-A Converted to RHP
2 65 Garrett Gould RHP Double-A 22 Double-A In rejected 2012 C.Lee trade to Houston
3 96 Brett Wallach RHP Class-A 25 out of baseball traded for T.Lilly in 2010
4 127 Angelo Songco OF Double-A 25 independent released on April 13
5 157 J.T. Wise C Double-A 28 independent realeased in April
6 187 Jan Vasquez C Double-A 23 independent
7 217 Brandon Martinez RHP Class-A 23 low Class-A
8 247 Jon Garcia OF Double-A 22 Class-A hit three home runs Saturday
9 277 Bryant Hernandez SS Triple-A 26 out of baseball played 5 games in Triple-A
10 307 Andy Suiter LHP Class-A 27 out of baseball
12 367 Brian-Cavazos-Galvez OF Triple-A 27 Double-A
13 397 J.B. Paxson RHP low Class-A 27 out of baseball
14 427 Casio Grider SS Double-A 26 Double-A
15 457 Jeffrey Hunt 3B low Class-A 23 out of baseball
16 487 Michael Pericht C Class-A 26 out of baseball
17 517 Steve Ames RHP MLB 26 Triple-A in R.Nolasco trade; sang 'Dick in a Box'
18 547 Greg Wilborn LHP Class-A 27 out of baseball
19 577 Nick Akins OF Class-A 26 out of baseball
21 637 Chris Henderson 3B low Class-A 26 out of baseball
22 667 Stetson Banks OF low Class-A 26 out of baseball
23 697 Jimmy Marshall RHP Rookie 27 out of baseball
28 847 Bobby Hernandez RHP Rookie 27 out of baseball
30 907 Nick Gaudi RHP low Class-A 27 out of baseball
31 937 Austin King OF Rookie 25 out of baseball
32 967 Graham Miller LHP Rookie 27 out of baseball
33 997 Steve Cilladi C Triple-A 27 out of baseball now Dodgers bullpen catcher
34 1027 Justin Dignelli RHP Rookie 27 out of baseball
35 1057 David Iden 2B low Class-A 27 out of baseball
36 1087 Kevin Childs RHP Rookie 27 out of baseball
41 1237 Chris Handke RHP Rookie 27 out of baseball