1973 Major League Baseball draft
Baseball draft of amateur players
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The 1973 Major League Baseball draft took place during the 1973 MLB season. The draft saw the Texas Rangers select David Clyde first overall.
Texas Rangers
- SS Robin Yount
- OF Dave Winfield
- 1B Eddie Murray
| 1973 Major League Baseball draft | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| First selection | David Clyde Texas Rangers |
| First round selections | 24 |
| Hall of Famers | 3
|
First round selections
| = All-Star | = Baseball Hall of Famer |
The following are the first round picks in the 1973 Major League Baseball draft.[1]
* Did not sign
Other notable selections
| = All-Star | = Baseball Hall of Famer |
| Round | Pick | Player | Team | Position |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 41 | Fred Lynn | Boston Red Sox | Outfielder |
| 3 | 49 | Len Barker | Texas Rangers | Pitcher |
| 3 | 57 | Ruppert Jones | Kansas City Royals | Outfielder |
| 3 | 63 | Eddie Murray | Baltimore Orioles | Catcher-First Baseman |
| 3 | 71 | Floyd Bannister* | Oakland Athletics | Pitcher |
| 3 | 72 | Mitchell Page | Pittsburgh Pirates | Outfielder |
| 5 | 109 | LaMarr Hoyt | New York Yankees | Pitcher |
| 7 | 159 | Mike Flanagan | Baltimore Orioles | Pitcher |
| 7 | 167 | Matt Keough | Oakland Athletics | Third Baseman-Pitcher |
| 8 | 170 | Randy Lerch | Philadelphia Phillies | Pitcher |
| 8 | 184 | Mike Krukow | Chicago Cubs | Pitcher |
| 8 | 185 | Butch Hobson | Boston Red Sox | Third Baseman |
| 8 | 188 | Ken Landreaux* | Houston Astros | Outfielder |
| 9 | 210 | Bob Stanley* | Los Angeles Dodgers | Pitcher |
| 13 | 294 | Jack Clark | San Francisco Giants | Pitcher-Outfielder |
| 17 | 404 | Joe Sambito | Houston Astros | Pitcher |
| 23 | 527 | Jeff Reardon* | Montreal Expos | Pitcher |
* Did not sign
Background
Five dominant players of the late 1970s and 1980s were selected in the June regular phase. Infielder Robin Yount (Milwaukee) and outfielder Dave Winfield (San Diego) were first-rounders, while outfielder Fred Lynn (Boston) was selected in the second round, infielder Eddie Murray (Baltimore) was selected in the third round and starting pitcher Mike Flanagan (Baltimore) was picked in the seventh round.
Winfield stepped off the University of Minnesota campus—where he lettered in three sports—and into the Padres' outfield. He was one of three players from this draft to go directly into the bigs. Highly touted David Clyde was chosen by Texas as the nation's number one pick. He jumped from high school to the majors and won his first game as a Ranger shortly thereafter. But the hard-throwing left-hander developed arm problems and had a short-lived career. Besides Clyde and Winfield, Arizona State's Eddie Bane (Minnesota, 11th overall) went directly to the majors. Other selections of interest included, Jack Clark (San Francisco), who was drafted as a pitcher, and Lee Mazzilli (New York Mets). In the January secondary phase, Dick Ruthven (Philadelphia), Jim Sundberg (Texas) and Donnie Moore (Chicago Cubs), who was drafted as an outfielder, were chosen.