MLB Draft

With unpredictability comes great opportunity for franchises to find hidden gems late in the 2016 MLB draft.

The MLB Draft is officially underway, and there was some top talent taken at the top.

The Philadelphia Phillies may have taken the next transcending outfielder in baseball, while the Oakland Athletics and Boston Red Sox both drafted some steals.

Here are some grades and the best and worst from Thursday. 

The MLB draft is always a combination of homework, guesswork and gut feeling.

This year, with ample amateur talent available in the high school and college ranks but no consensus No. 1 overall pick, that's especially true.

In that sense, it's premature to definitively declare anyone a winner or loser after Day 1.

Still, we can survey the landscape after the initial two rounds and 77 picks and identify some teams and players who made out better or worse than expected.

There's homework here, but also plenty of guesswork and gut feeling.

By the time 10 p.m. ET rolled around, three of the top five steals on Day 1 of the 2016 MLB draft—players taken lower than expected—were position players. A half-hour later, only one remained.

So while the Seattle Mariners and New York Yankees deserve credit for stealing outfielders Kyle Lewis (No. 11) and Blake Rutherford (No. 18), respectively, other picks were bigger steals—defined by key factors such as talent upside vs. draft position, and signability.

The Toronto Blue Jays selected second baseman Bo Bichette, the son of four-time All-Star outfielder Dante Bichette, in the second round of Thursday night's MLB draft at No. 66 overall. 

Player: Bo Bichette

Position: 2B/SS

DOB: March 5, 1998 (18 years old)

Height/Weight: 6'1", 200 lbs

Bats/Throws: R/R

School: Lakewood High School (FL)

College Commitment: Arizona State

Background

Player: Delvin Perez

Position: SS

DOB: November 24, 1998 (17 years old)

Height/Weight: 6'3", 165 lbs

Bats/Throws: R/R

School: International Baseball Academy (Puerto Rico)

College Commitment: None

Background

There was no consensus No. 1 pick entering the 2016 MLB draft, but the Philadelphia Phillies' extensive evaluation process led the team to select La Costa Canyon High School outfielder Mickey Moniak with the first selection Thursday evening.  

Player: Blake Rutherford

Position: OF

DOB: May 2, 1997 (19 years old)

Height/Weight: 6'2", 190 lbs

Bats/Throws: L/R

School: Chaminade College Prep (Calif.)

College Commitment: UCLA

Background

Player: Jason Groome

Position: LHP

DOB: Aug. 23, 1998 (Age: 17)

Height/Weight: 6'6", 220 lbs

Bats/Throws: L/L

School: Barnegat High School (New Jersey)

College Commitment: Vanderbilt

Background