Cardinals News: 7 notable players who were drafted 7th overall

Troy Tulowitzki

One of the most decorated players on this list, Troy Tulowitzki was drafted seventh overall in the 2005 MLB Draft by the Colorado Rockies. He would make his debut just over a year later on August 30, 2006, against the New York Mets. Prior to being drafted, Tulo played college baseball at California State University in Long Beach, CA.

In three seasons at Long Beach State, Tulowitzki would hit 20 home runs, have 117 RBIs, and slash .310/.382/.491. Defense was his calling card, and Baseball America ranked him as the best defensive shortstop in the Big West Conference in 2005. He was voted to the All-Big West first team in 2004, and he even plated for the United States collegiate national team in 2004.

Troy Tulowitzki would finish his career with 44.5 bWAR, 225 career home runs, 780 runs batted in, and 57 stolen bases. His .290/.361/.495 slash line was good for a 118 OPS+ across 13 total seasons. The bulk of Tulowitzki's career was spent in Colorado with the team that drafted him, but he did spend some time in Toronto and New York toward the end of his career.

Tulowitzki received MVP votes in 6 seasons, he was voted to 5 All-Star Games, he has two Gold Glove awards, and he was a Silver Slugger twice. He retired in 2019; per the Hall of Fame rules, he will become eligible in 2025 to join baseball's most elite players in the history of the sport. He has a decent case to join the Hall, but it will be a close call in voting next year and in subsequent years. According to JAWS rankings, Tulowitski is right on the fringe of the leaderboard with Willie Wells, a Hall of Famer himself, just edging out Tulo.