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No sure thing with top picks

With the annual amateur draft finishing up today, the Rays have high hopes for their top pick, B.J. Upton.

But a look at their past six No. 1 picks shows mixed results. One has been released, one has reached the majors and the others wear a "prospect" label.

The Rays' first pick may stand as their worst. Paul Wilder was selected 29th overall in the 1996 draft and released this spring after never advancing past Class A. Wilder played 247 games during his six-year career, hitting .204 with 28 homers and 108 RBIs.

Conversely, their next first-round pick ranks as their most successful.

Jason Standridge (30th overall in 1997) pitched the first no-hitter in team history in 1999 and made his major-league debut last season. Standridge pitched three innings with the Rays this season but was sent to Triple-A Durham, where he is 4-3 with a 3.44 ERA.

The Rays didn't have a pick until the fourth round in 1998. They chose Josh Pressley. After battling injuries early in his career, Pressley made his Double-A debut last year, hitting .279 in 30 games.

That promise has continued to show this season with Pressley batting .328 with 12 doubles and 24 RBIs. Entering Tuesday's games, Pressley was 11-for-25 (.440) with five RBIs and five runs in his past five games.

After Wilder, perhaps the most scrutinized pick in Rays history was high school outfielder Josh Hamilton, first overall in 1999. Hamilton, named the organization's top prospect last season by Baseball America, was named to the South Atlantic League All-Star team in 2000, hitting .301 with 13 home runs and 61 RBIs despite missing the last month of the season with a torn meniscus in his knee.

Last season he began at Double-A Orlando after becoming a late cut in spring training, but he suffered through an injury-riddled season, which saw him play 27 games. Hamilton is back in Class A playing for Bakersfield and being named to the California League All-Star team along with 2000's top pick, Rocco Baldelli.

Hamilton is hitting .321 with five home runs and 19 RBIs. Baldelli has been among the league leaders all season and is hitting .340 with 30 RBIs.

Dewon Brazelton, the team's top choice last year (third overall) was upset this spring when he was sent to the minor-league camp. The former Middle Tennessee State University standout said he believed he could pitch on the major-league level soon. His numbers at Orlando aren't great, but they show Brazelton's prediction of an imminent major-league appearance might not be far off.

Brazelton is 1-3 with a 3.50 ERA in 11 games. Through 641/3 innings he has one complete game (a loss) and has a team-high 54 strikeouts with 28 walks.

BLAZING STARS: Besides Hamilton and Baldelli, Bakersfield also placed third baseman Juan Salas and pitchers Mark Malaska and Evan Rust on the All-Star team. The California League All-Stars play the Carolina League All-Stars June 18 in Wilmington, Del. The selection of Malaska and Rust was a no-brainer.

Malaska is 5-3 with a 2.51 ERA, 69 strikeouts and 9 walks in 68 innings. Rust leads minor-league baseball with 17 saves and carries a 2.73 ERA after saving a total of 13 games his first two years.

Blaze pitchers lead the minors with 539 strikeouts and have issued the fewest walks (158) in the California League.

ANOTHER FIRST: Less than two weeks after he earned his first win in nearly two years, Durham pitcher Luis de los Santos picked up his first shutout in six years. He retired 14 of the 16 batters he faced between the third and seventh innings, earning the complete game, striking out six and walking two. He is 3-0 with a 0.45 ERA in his past three starts as the 24-year-old took a major step in his recovery from elbow and knee surgeries the past two seasons.

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