Ten years have gone by since the 2014 MLB Draft, meaning it’s time for a full review. Generally speaking, a full decade is enough time to see whether players selected in the First-Year Player Draft panned out or didn’t work. Yes, there were some busts — and some notable ones, at that. However, this draft produced several stars, several of whom oddly enough star in the City of Brotherly Love. Here’s a look at our 2014 MLB Draft review, starting at the top.
The Astros’ Big Gamble
The 2014 MLB Draft would mark the third consecutive season Houston owned the first overall pick. In 2012, Houston shockingly passed up on Stanford ace Mark Appel and Georgia high school outfielder Byron Buxton to select Carlos Correa, a move that paid off. Correa became a two-time All-Star, Rookie of the Year, and World Series champion. The Astros had a second chance to take Appel in 2013 and took it, although the move didn’t pay off as many expected.
Houston had a deep farm system full of talented hitting prospects, including Correa, George Springer, Domingo Santana, and Jonathan Singleton, among others. The Astros did have some good pitchers on the farm, including Appel and Lance McCullers Jr., and another one sat on the board in 2024, Carlos Rodon. Rodon, the odds-on favorite to go first heading into the spring, saw his strikeout numbers dip (10.7 K/9 in 2014, 12.5 K/9 in 2013) and his hit numbers rise in his junior campaign. Houston didn’t go with Rodon, though, but rather with Brady Aiken.
Aiken, a California high school product, was a strong left-hander who saw his velocity and prospect stock rise during his senior year. He showcased the stuff of an ace, including a strong curveball and fading changeup. However, the Astros didn’t sign the lefty.
The left-hander originally agreed to a below-slot deal, at $6.5M, with the Astros. The move allowed Houston to get a potential ace and sign two other highly-touted pitchers, Jacob Nix and Mac Marshall, to above-slot bonuses. However, a failed physical — one that showed an abnormality in Aiken’s elbow — blew up the deals, and Aiken wound up not signing with the Astros.
Because Houston offered Aiken 40% of the slot after pulling the $6.5M bonus off the table, the Astros were able to select second in the 2015 MLB Draft, a compensation pick for not signing the lefty. The move worked out swimmingly, as the Astros selected LSU shortstop Alex Bregman.
Three picks later, the Astros selected Florida high school outfielder Kyle Tucker. The two combined for almost 300 MLB home runs, and three World Series rings between the two.
As for Aiken, he wound up attending the IMG Academy before the Guardians (fka Indians) selected him in the first round in 2015. Injuries, though, derailed Aiken’s career.
The Phillies Find Their Ace
The Phillies, much like other teams drafting in the top 10 had a major opportunity heading into the 2014 Draft. The Draft was viewed as a college-heavy one, filled with likely regulars and potential stars. Philadelphia nabbed one at #7 when Aaron Nola was selected.
Aaron, the brother of former LSU infielder and Major Leaguer Austin, was the staff ace at LSU from 2013-14. Nola posted a 1.57 ERA and 0.80 WHIP in his sophomore season, then followed it up with a 1.47 ERA and 134 strikeouts over 116.1 IP. Former Georgia head coach Dave Perino said of Nola in 2014, “He’s the best [college baseball] pitcher in the country…and if he’s not, I want to see who’s better.”
Turns out, Nola had the best Major League career out of any pitcher drafted in 2014. Nola posted five 200+ strikeout seasons, three top-10 finishes for the NL Cy Young, and 50 strikeouts over 48.2 MLB Postseason innings.
But before we move on to the next section of our 2014 MLB Draft review, Nola wasn’t the only stalwart Philly nabbed in 2015. Fifth-round Rhys Hoskins turned into one of the game’s best first basemen, as he recorded a .835 OPS over his first 2,667 MLB at-bats.
Other Teams Found Their Ace, Too
Plenty of MLB pitching talent was available in 2014. Logan Webb (Giants, 4th) Jordan Montgomery (Yankees, 4th), and Dylan Cease (Cubs, 6th) were Day 2 picks, while Brandon Woodruff (Brewers, 11th) and John Means (10th) were early Day 3 picks that proved to be hits for their respective teams.
Not all players listed above had a linear rise up. Logan Webb made his MLB debut five years after his selection but struggled mightily over his first two MLB seasons. He made adjustments, namely leveraging his sinker more, which helped turn him into an elite starter. And, he owns the fourth-best bWAR (16.7) among 2014 drafted pitchers.
The selection of Woodruff, meanwhile, was an interesting one. Woodruff owned a career ERA of 4.70 at Mississippi State, spending roughly half of his time with the Bulldogs out of the bullpen. He had control problems, as he walked 25 over 37.1 IP in his junior season and owned a 6.75 ERA. However, things turned up for Woodruff, a two-time All-Star, in the Minors.
The Best First-Round Picks
Here’s a look at the 2014 first-round picks who’ve accrued the highest bWAR in Major League Baseball:
| Name | Pick | Team | bWAR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trea Turner | 13 | Padres | 35.5 |
| Matt Chapman | 25 | Athletics | 34.9 |
| Aaron Nola | 7 | Phillies | 33.2 |
| Kyle Freeland | 8 | Rockies | 17.4 |
| Michael Conforto | 10 | Mets | 16.9 |
| Carlos Rodon | 3 | White Sox | 16.0 |
| Kyle Schwarber | 4 | Cubs | 13.7 |
| Jack Flaherty | 34 | Cardinals | 12..2 |
| Michael Kopech | 33 | White Sox | 4.5 |
| Erick Fedde | 18 | Nationals | 3.7 |
The first round was fruitful. However, it’s interesting that the best player from the first round — and of the draft — never played for the team that drafted him.
Trea Turner was a standout at NC State, thanks to his elite contact and speed skills. However, Turner was not long for the Padres. San Diego swung a deal for Wil Myers, the 2013 AL Rookie of the Year, in December 2014. It was part of a large, three-team deal that included the Nationals and Rays.
Originally, the deal included a player to be named later heading into Washington, with Turner believed to be that player. Per MLB rules at the time, a team couldn’t trade a draft pick until one year after selection. Thus, Turner spent the first two months of 2015 in the Padres’ farm system before being sent to the Nationals
Oakland, meanwhile, landed a power-hitting third baseman in Matt Chapman with a plus glove. Chapman owned the second-best bWAR (34.9) from that first round in July 2024, right behind Turner.
Michael Conforto, Carlos Rodon, and Kyle Schwarber became All-Stars.
Which picks busted?
Not only did Brady Aiken not develop into a MLB starter but also Tyler Kolek. Kolek, selected by Miami second overall, was a dominant high schooler who routinely hit triple-digits in high school. But like Aiken, injuries derailed his career.
Eleven players drafted in the first round in 2014 never made it to the Majors. Seven were high schoolers. Four of the top 12 also didn’t make it, including Max Pentecost and Kodi Medeiros. Pentecost dealt with numerous injuries before retiring in 2019.
The Best Late-Round Picks
Now, a look at the best Day 3 (Rounds 11-40) picks in the 2014 MLB Draft:
| Name | Round | Team | bWAR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brandon Woodruff | 11 | Brewers | 17.4 |
| John Means | 11 | Orioles | 10.3 |
| Ramon Laureano | 16 | Astros | 12.8 |
We won’t count Drew Rasmussen, Joe Ryan, Griffin Canning, or Paul DeJong. All four were selected during the final day of the MLB Draft but didn’t sign.
We went over Woodruff already but the story of John Means is impressive. A product out of West Virginia, Means never flashed plus stuff but excelled with what he had at every level of the Minors. It helped him become an All-Star and a valuable piece for the Orioles during their rebuild.
The Astros were able to get several MLBers from this draft, including J.D. Davis and Daniel Mengden. However, the most notable was Ramon Laureano, who never played with Houston. Laureano proved to be valuable for the A’s, including in 2019 when he hit a career-high 24 home runs.
Now, let’s move on to the last part of our 2014 MLB Draft review: who won?
Which teams did the best?
This section is subjective, for obvious reasons. But based on hard metrics, two teams did the best.
The Cubs landed Kyle Schwarber (13.7) and Dylan Cease (12.9), while the aforementioned Phillies landed Nola and Hoskins. Chicago and Philadelphia were the only two teams that landed multiple players with a bWAR of 10.0.
The Cubs didn’t stop there, as Chicago landed their current ace, Justin Steele, that June. Given the Cubs’ haul, which included a slugger who helped them win it all in 2016 and an elite pitcher, Chicago did fine.
As for Philadelphia, Nola and Hoskins were two of just four MLB players to come out of that draft. The other two were Brandon Leibrandt and Austin Davis. Still, landing two impact players in one year is impressive.
However, the Astros’ big gambit ended up paying off, even though Houston didn’t get much on paper from their 2014 MLB Draft class. Houston did get Alex Bregman a year later, giving the Astros much-needed ammunition for their championship runs.
bWAR figures from Baseball-Reference.