Top 5 Draft Picks in Arizona Diamondbacks’ History

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May 13, 2015; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks center fielder A.J. Pollock (11) hits an RBI single in the fifth inning against the Washington Nationals at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

Thanks to MLB Network, the Major League Baseball Draft has gained more stature over the past five years. Social media has also played a huge part in the rise over what was once strictly the domain of the NFL and NBA. Over the weekend, our own Guillermo Salcido put together our thoughts of who the Arizona Diamondbacks would take with first pick in the 2015 Draft. Fellow staff member Chuck Jackson added a mock draft, predicting the first round selection of all 30 teams’ first pick. From trying to guess the future, we have now decided to go back in time.

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The staff at venomstrikes took an poll among ourselves to decide on the best draft selections in D’backs’ history. The criteria revolved the career that player had while with the Diamondbacks. It would not include a guy such as Max Scherzer who, although drafted by Arizona in 2006, did not become one of the premier pitchers in the game until after he left the D’backs. Also, where the player was drafted relative to his contribution was a factor in our final analysis. In scanning the list of franchise draft picks, it is worth noting that the Snakes have a smaller pool of selections as the first time they went through the process was 1996.

After much hand-wringing, debating and hair pulling, here are our top five draft picks in D’backs’ history. A year from now, these players could change as someone like A.J. Pollock could show up on this list (he did receive two votes). Feel free to chastise us for any slights or give us a round of applause for a job well done. Spoiler alert: the number 8 is a very lucky one.