The 1972 Major League Baseball draft took place prior to the 1972 MLB season. The draft saw the

San Diego Padres The San Diego Padres are an American professional baseball team based in San Diego. The Padres compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Division. ...

select Dave Roberts first overall.

First round selections

The following are the first round picks in the 1972 Major League Baseball draft. ''*'' Did not sign

Other notable selections

''*'' Did not sign

Background

The Montreal Expos had perhaps their best draft in franchise history. The Expos grabbed outfielder

Ellis Valentine Ellis Clarence Valentine (born July 30, 1954) is an American former Major League Baseball right fielder. He is remembered for having one of the all-time great throwing arms. "There's a plateau where you can't throw the ball any harder and you can' ...

in round two of the June regular phase and then selected catcher

Gary Carter Gary Edmund Carter (April 8, 1954 – February 16, 2012) was an American professional baseball catcher whose 19-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career was spent primarily with the Montreal Expos and New York Mets. Nicknamed "Kid" for his youth ...

one round later. The Pirates also did well, selecting pitcher

John Candelaria John Robert Candelaria (born November 6, 1953) is a Puerto Rican-American former Major League Baseball pitcher. Nicknamed "the Candy Man", he played in MLB during the years 1975–1993 for eight teams, the Pittsburgh Pirates, California Angels, ...

in round two and second baseman

Willie Randolph William Larry Randolph (born July 6, 1954) is an American former professional baseball second baseman, coach, and manager. During an 18-year career in Major League Baseball (MLB), he played from 1975 to 1992 for six different teams, most notabl ...

in round seven. Some of the significant picks from the regular phase in June included

Dennis Eckersley Dennis Lee Eckersley (born October 3, 1954), nicknamed "Eck", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and color commentator. Between 1975 and 1998, he pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, ...

and

Rick Manning Richard Eugene Manning (born September 2, 1954) is an American former center fielder and current broadcaster in Major League Baseball (MLB), who played for the Cleveland Indians (1975–1983) and Milwaukee Brewers (1983–1987), and has been a c ...

(Cleveland). Scott McGregor (New York Yankees) in round one. Also selected in the first round were

Chet Lemon Chester Earl Lemon (February 12, 1955 – May 8, 2025) was an American professional baseball outfielder. He played sixteen seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB), beginning with the Chicago White Sox in 1975, where he played for six years. He w ...

(Oakland),

Larry Christenson Larry Richard Christenson (born November 10, 1953), nicknamed "L.C.", is an American former professional baseball pitcher, who played his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career for the Philadelphia Phillies (1973–1983). Early life Christen ...

(Philadelphia) and the number one pick, Dave Roberts (San Diego). Roberts went directly to the Padres starting third base position from the University of Oregon campus. The biggest steal was pulled off by the Texas Rangers when they selected infielder

Mike Hargrove Dudley Michael Hargrove (born October 26, 1949) is an American former professional baseball first baseman and Manager (baseball), manager. He is currently employed as an advisor with the Cleveland Guardians in Major League Baseball (MLB). Hargrov ...

from Northwestern State University in the 25th round.

Jerry Manuel Jerry Lorenzo Manuel Sr. (born December 23, 1953), nicknamed "the Sage", is an American former professional baseball second baseman and manager. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Detroit Tigers, Montreal Expos, and San Diego Padres ...

and Mike Ondina became the first pair of high school teammates to be drafted in the first round of a Major League draft. Both attended Cordova High School in

Rancho Cordova, California Rancho Cordova is a city in Sacramento County, California, United States. Incorporated in 2003, it is part of the Sacramento Metropolitan Area. The population was 79,332 at the 2020 census. In 2010 and 2019, Rancho Cordova received the All-Ame ...

References

External links

Complete draft list from ''The Baseball Cube'' database
{{1972 MLB season by team

Draft Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to: Watercraft dimensions * Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel * Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail * Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...

Major League Baseball draft