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Monday, June 4, 2012

Astros pick Carlos Correa No. 1 in the draft - USA TODAY

In a baseball draft lacking a clear No. 1 pick, the Houston Astros went with a bit of a shocker.

Carlos Correa, a shortstop from the Puerto Rico Baseball Academy, was picked first overall by the Astros, who will join the AL West next season.

Correa, a 6-foot-4, 190-pound 17-year old, has drawn comparisons to Alex Rodriguez and Troy Tulowitzki. Should he outgrow shortstop, Correa will likely move to third base.

"Carlos has a chance to be a star," said Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow. "Anybody who saw him recognizes that."

The Astros hope Correa will bolster a farm system ranked 27th entering 2012 by ESPN. In 2011, the Astros selected Connecticut outfielder George Springer with the 11th overall pick.

"If things fall our way, we could have one of the best drafts in the history of the organization," Luhnow said.

Houston, who was rumored to be on Stanford pitcher Mark Appel or Georgia high school outfielder Byron Buxton, chose Correa instead. Scouts say Correa may be the best Puerto Rican prospect since Carlos Beltran. Correa is the first player from Puerto Rico to be drafted No. 1 overall.

The Minnesota Twins chose Buxton with the second overall pick. At No. 3, the Seattle Mariners selected catcher Mike Zunino from the University of Florida. At No. 4, the Baltimore Orioles selected Kevin Gausman, a 6-foot-4 right-hander from Louisiana State University. The Royals selected San Francisco right-hander Kyle Zimmer No. 5 overall.

Now, the Astros must sign him by the new July 13 deadline. Correa does not figure to command the type of money given to recent No. 1 overall picks like Gerrit Cole ($8 million) and Stephen Strasburg ($15.1 million). Per baseball's new collective bargaining agreement, teams have a set pool of bonus money to pay their selections in the first 10 rounds.

Each pick is assigned a value, ranging from $7.2 million to $125,000 this year. If a team exceeds their total bonus pool, penalties are assessed depending on the amount exceeded. The pressure of selecting talented but signable players has only been magnified by the new agreement.

6. Chicago Cubs: Albert Almora (OF, Mater Academy Charter, Hialeah, Fla.)

7. San Diego Padres: Max Fried (LHP, Harvard-Westlake H.S., Studio City, Calif.)

8. Pittsburgh Pirates: Mark Appel (RHP, Stanford)

9. Miami Marlins: Andrew Heaney (LHP, Oklahoma State)

10. Colorado Rockies: David Dahl (OF, Oak Mountain (Ala.) High School)

11. Oakland Athletics: Addison Russell (SS, Pace (Fla.) High School)

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