In Part 1, I covered the first 10 picks of 2004. I think we can agree that Justin Verlander (the #2 pick) is the stand-out player of that group. Let's look at picks 11-20.
2010 Topps Allen & Ginter #117 Neil Walker
#11 pick by the Pirates. Neil played a few games in 2009 but 2010 was his rookie year. As of 2014 he is still with the Pirates. He is mainly a 2nd baseman but played some 3rd base in 2010. He has a career fielding percentage at 2nd base of .989 which puts him 12th in active players. He's a career .274 hitter with some power, with 75 home runs in his career, including a career high this year of 21.
2007 Topps Turkey Red #142 Jered Weaver
#12 pick by the Angels. Jered came up with the Angels in 2006 and is still playing for them. He is a 3-time All-Star with a 130-68 record over that time. He as 1,393 strikeouts and a career ERA of 3.27. In 4 post-season games he has a 2-1 record with an ERA of 2.61.
2007 Topps Heritage #376 Bill Bray
#13 pick by the Expos. I have earlier cards of Bray but this is the only one I have scanned. He spent most of his career with the Reds anyway. Although drafted by the Expos, by the time he came up in 2006 he was with the Nationals. He was part of an 8-player deal between the Nationals and Reds in July 2006. In his 2006-2012 career he compiled a 13-12 record as a middle reliever. He picked up 3 saves as well.
2005 Bowman #277 Billy Butler
#14 pick by the Royals. Billy's had a pretty solid career with the Royals since coming up in 2006. His career batting average is .294 and he's hit 127 home runs. His numbers in 2014 have dipped considerably however. He's listed on the back of this card at 3rd base but he's spent almost all his time in the field at 1st base. He's also used quite frequently as the DH (725 games compared to 400 games in the field).
2005 Bowman Draft Picks Chrome X-Factor Autograph #166 Stephen Drew
#15 pick by Diamondbacks. Drew was a highly touted prospect and I was pretty happy to pull this card in 2005. Beckett valued it at $100. He's unfortunately not had the great career expected of him and has been a part-time player since 2011. I should have sold the card in 2005. Today, it's got a Beckett value of $15-$30 although there are several being offered on eBay for much more than this.
2008 Stadium Club #110 David Purcey
#16 pick by the Blue Jays. Purcey started 21 games with the Blue Jays in 2008-2009 but has only been in 44 games since, all in relief. He was released by the White Sox this year.
2004 Topps Traded Chrome Refractor #79 Scott Elbert
#17 pick by the Dodgers. Elbert has been used for short relief by the Dodgers since 2008. And by short I mean he's appeared in 123 games but only has 94.3 innings pitched. He does have a 3-3 record with 2 saves.
2008 Topps #457 Josh Fields
#18 pick by the White Sox. Josh hit a home run during his first at bat on 9/13/06. It may have been the highlight of his career. 216 games later he was out of the major leagues. After catching on with several teams in the minors, he currently playing in Mexico.
2009 Topps Heritage #118 Chris Lambert
#19 pick by the Cardinals. Chris made his major league debut on 8/23/08. He pitched his final game on 9/27/09. He was 1-3 with a 7.86 ERA in that time. He did not return to the majors and is out of organized baseball.
2011 Topps Update #279 Trevor Plouffe
#20 pick by the Twins. Plouffe didn't make it into the majors until 2010. Plouffe seems to be the ultimate utility player. He gets into a lot of games, primarily as a 3rd baseman, but has also made appearances at SS, 2nd, 3rd, RF, LF and DH. He's hit 62 home runs since 2010.
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