Top 10 high school MLB Draft picks of the MaxPreps era

MaxPreps is celebrating its 10th anniversary this summer. In recognition of a decade as America's source for high school sports, we will look back at the top teams, athletes, games and moments of the MaxPreps era over the next month.

Today's list includes the Top 10 high school players who have been selected in the first round of the Major League Baseball Draft. The players are not listed by their high school accomplishments, but rather by their performance since reaching the Major Leagues. Players are listed by their name, school, year drafted and their WAR rating. All pro stats are current as of Monday morning.

Top 10 High School Players Selected in the First Round of the MLB Draft

1. Clayton Kershaw, Highland Park (Dallas), 2006, 20.5
Kershaw earned National Player of the Year honors in 2006 from both USA Today and Gatorade after posting a 13-0 record with a 0.77 ERA and 139 strikeouts in just 64 innings pitched. He went to the Los Angeles Dodgers with the No. 7 overall pick in the draft and debuted in the major leagues two years later. He is a two-time All-Star and he had a spectacular 2011 season, winning the National League pitching Triple Crown while earning the Cy Young Award. He has a career record of 55-34 with a 2.89 ERA.

2. John Danks, Round Rock (Texas), 2003, 18.2
The No. 9 overall pick in the 2003 draft by the Texas Rangers, Danks was named the State Player of the Year in Texas while at Round Rock. Selected in the draft the same season as No. 1 overall pick Delmon Young, Danks has the best WAR of any high school player chosen in 2003. He went 10-3 in high school with a 1.61 ERA and 173 strikeouts in 100 innings pitched. He was the Gatorade State Player of the Year, an honor his brother Jordan won two years later in 2005. Both John and Jordan currently play for the Chicago White Sox. John Danks has a career record of 57-60 with a 4.12 ERA.



3. Andrew McCutchen, Fort Meade (Fla.), 2005, 16.3
Regarded as one of the top young position players in the major leagues, McCutchen is a two-time All-Star who was drafted 11th overall by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2005. As a senior at Fort Meade, he batted .474 with eight home runs, 40 RBIs and 45 stolen bases. He currently leads the National League in batting average at .368 and is tied for third in home runs with 22.

4. Chad Billingsley, Defiance (Ohio), 2003, 14.2
A 2009 All-Star selection, Billingsley has been a consistent performer for the Los Angeles Dodgers since his debut in 2006. He has a 76-61 record with a 3.70 ERA and 1,009 strikeouts. Drafted No. 24 overall by the Dodgers in the 2003 draft, Billingsley was 6-1 as a senior at Defiance with 113 strikeouts and a 1.49 ERA in 56 innings pitched. He was a member of Team USA that won a bronze medal at the 2002 IBAF World Junior Championships.

5. Justin Upton, Great Bridge (Chesapeake, Va.), 2005, 12.2
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2005 MLB Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks, Upton began his major league career when he was just 19 years old. He has batted .276 with 99 home runs in his big-league career. At Great Bridge, Upton was the USA Today Player of the Year after batting .508 with 12 home runs and 33 RBIs. His brother B.J. was the 2002 USA Today Player of the Year.

6. Adam Jones, Morse (San Diego), 2003, 12.1
The Seattle Mariners chose Jones with the No. 37 overall pick in the supplementary part of the first round of the 2003 draft. At Morse, Jones batted .406 with four home runs and 27 RBIs and was 3-3 on the mound with a 2.71 ERA. Originally drafted as a pitcher/shortstop candidate, Jones moved to the outfield, where he has twice been an all-star while also winning a Gold Glove in 2009. The current Baltimore Oriole has a career batting average of .278 with 99 home runs.

7. Jason Heyward, Henry County (McDonough, Ga.), 2007, 11.6
Selected No. 14 overall in the 2007 draft by the Atlanta Braves, Heyward was considered the No. 1 Major League prospect to start the 2010 season. He debuted that year with a home run in his first at-bat and earned a trip to the All-Star Game. In his career, he has batted .259 with 48 home runs. At Henry County, Heyward earned All-USA Today honors while batting .520 with eight home runs and 32 RBIs.
Jason Heyward Way Back When

8. Jay Bruce, West Brook (Beaumont, Texas), 2005, 9.1
The No. 12 overall pick in the 2005 draft, Bruce was an All-USA Today selection while at West Brook. A two-time All-Star for the Cincinnati Reds, Bruce has been one of the team's top home run hitters since his debut in 2008, knocking out 120 while batting .254. For West Brook, Bruce batted .500 with 31 RBIs and 36 runs scored.



9. Billy Butler, Wolfson (Jacksonville, Fla.), 2004, 8.0
The No. 14 overall pick in the 2004 draft, Butler has belted 90 home runs since debuting for the Kansas City Royals in 2007 and he earned a spot in the 2012 All-Star Game. At Wolfson (Jacksonville, Fla.), Butler batted .421 with four home runs while drawing 50 walks. He was second team All-USA Today.

10. Gio Gonzalez, Monsignor Pace (Miami), 2004, 7.9
A two-time All-Star, Gonzalez began his career as the 38th overall pick in the first round of the 2004 draft by the Chicago White Sox. Gonzalez made his MLB debut with the Oakland A's, where he played four seasons before being traded to the Washington Nationals. Gonzalez is currently tied for second in the National League with 13 wins and has a career record of 51-37 with a 3.81 ERA. Gonzalez began his high school career at Hialeah, where he played on a pair of state championship teams. However Gonzalez transferred to Monsignor Pace for his senior year and won six games during the regular season.

All other high school players drafted in the first round during the MaxPreps Era (2003-2012) who have played in the Major Leagues. Players are ranked by their WAR rating. No high school players from the 2010, 2011 and 2012 drafts have reached the Major Leagues.

Daric Barton, Marina (Huntington Beach, Calif.), 2003, 7.6
Colby Rasmus, Russell County (Seale, Ala.), 2005, 7.4
Madison Bumgarner, South Caldwell (Hudson, N.C.), 2007, 6.9
Mike Trout, Millville (N.J.), 2009, 6.8
Cameron Maybin, TC Roberson (Arden, N.C.), 2005, 6.7
Phil Hughes, Foothill (Santa Ana, Calif.), 2004, 6.1
Neil Walker, Pine-Richland (Gibsonia, Pa.), 2004, 6.0
Mike Moustakas, Chatsworth (Calif.), 2007, 3.6
Ian Stewart, La Quinta (Westminster, Calif.), 2003, 3.3
Rick Porcello, Seton Hall Prep (West Orange, N.J.), 2007, 3.2
Jarrod Parker, Norwell (Ossian, Ind.), 2007, 2.8
Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Royal Palm Beach (Fla.), 2003, 2.2
Chris Volstad, Palm Beach Gardens (Fla.), 2005, 2.0
Ben Revere, Lexington Catholic (Ky.), 2007, 1.8
Travis Snider, Jackson (Wash.), 2006, 1.5
Homer Bailey, LaGrange (Texas), 2004, 1.5
Blake DeWitt, Sikeston (Mo.), 2004, 1.5
Scott Elbert, Seneca (Mo.), 2004, 1.2
Eric Hosmer, American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.), 2008, 1.1
Delmon Young, Camarillo (Calif.), 2003, 0.8
Jeremy Jeffress, Halifax County (South Boston, Va.), 2006, 0.2
Brandon Snyder, Westfield (Va.), 2005, 0.2
Eric Hurley, Wolfson (Jacksonville, Fla.), 2004, 0.1
Blake Beavan, Irving (Texas), 2007, 0.1
Hank Conger, Huntington Beach (Calif.), 2006, 0.5
Chris Parmelee, Chino Hills (Calif.), 2006, 0.3
Kyle Waldrop, Farragut (Knoxville, Tenn.), 2004, 0.0
Pete Kozma, Owasso (Okla.), 2007, 0.0
Adrian Cardenas, Monsignor Pace (Opa Locka, Fla.), 2006, 0.0
Lastings Milledge, Lakewood Ranch (Bradenton, Fla.), 2003, -0.1
Sean West, Captain Shreve (Shreveport, La.), 2005, -0.1
Charlie Culberson, Calhoun (Ga.), 2007, -0.2
Devin Mesoraco, Punxsutawney (Pa.), 2007, -0.2
Michael Bowden, Waubonsie Valley (Naperville, Ill.), 2005, -0.3
Trevor Plouffe, Crespi (Encino, Calif.), 2004, -0.5
Matt Dominguez, Chatsworth (Calif.), 2007, -0.5
Kyle Drabek, The Woodlands (Texas), 2006, -0.6
Greg Golson, Connally (Texas), 2004, -0.6
Chris Marrero, Monsignor Pace (Opa Locka, Fla.), 2006, -0.7
Jacob Turner, Westminster Christian (St. Louis), 2009, -0.8
Trevor Bell, Crescenta Valley (La Crescenta, Calif.), 2005, -1.0
Ryan Tucker, Temple City (Calif.), 2005, -1.4
Chris Nelson, Redan (Stone Mountain, Ga.), 2004, -1.6
Jordan Lyles, Hartsville (S.C.), 2008, -2.3
Brandon Woods, Horizon (Scottsdale, Ariz.), 2003, -4.0