St. Louis Cardinals history: The 10 worst first-round picks in the 21st century

The Cardinals have found some pristine talent in the first round of some drafts. but they've also had some duds.
St. Louis Cardinals Photo Day
St. Louis Cardinals Photo Day / Benjamin Rusnak/GettyImages
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7. Catcher Steve Bean: 59th pick in the 2012 Draft

Bean was the fifth of five first-round picks the Cardinals had in 2012, and they decided to take a defensive-minded catcher straight out of high school.

The only problem with Bean's game would carry over to his time in the St. Louis organization, he was never able to hit. His offensive numbers would be equivalent to a backup catcher in the big leagues, he never hit higher than .235, never slugged higher than .315, and the most home runs he hit in a season was just 2.

In 5 seasons in the Cardinal farm system, High-A was the highest he got in the system, and after playing 3 games with the Padres Low A team in 2017, he quit baseball and became an agent. Rob Rains goes in depth with Bean's story and also the story of James Ramsey, another Cardinal 1st round pick in 2012 of how they're doing in their new careers post-baseball.