Baltimore Orioles: Five Biggest Draft Busts In Team History

Baltimore Orioles: Five Biggest Draft Busts

By Ben Palmer | Nov 22, 2016

Apr 25, 2016; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher Brian Matusz (17) throws a pitch during the sixth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Baltimore Orioles 2-0. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

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Oct 1, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; A Baseball glove and ball rest on the field prior to a game between the Philadelphia Phillies and the New York Mets at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Derik Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports /

4. Billy Rowell (2006 Draft) – Never played in majors

How bad was Billy Rowell? So bad that I couldn’t even find a useable picture of him (seriously, even Getty Images didn’t have any).

The Orioles selected Rowell with the ninth-overall pick in the 2006 draft and that was probably the highlight of his career, because it all went downhill from there.

Rowell was supposed to become one of the better bats in the MLB, but he could never get things together in the minors, never making it beyond Double-A level.

In an effort to try and get something out of their first-round draft pick, the Orioles attempted to convert Rowell into a pitcher, but during that process, Rowell got suspended for 50 games after testing positive for marijuana. After that, the Orioles cut ties with him and he hasn’t joined a team since.

Players drafted later: Tim Lincecum (#10), Max Scherzer (#11), Chris Perez (#42)

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