Is 2004 #1 Pick Matt Bush the New Brien Taylor?

Before we even get to the post, I can already tell you what my answer will be….No, simply because nobody, not even the Padres, thought Matt Bush was the top talent in the 2004 draft. He was a local kid and would cost less, that’s why he was drafted. Period. But, let’s see what IB has to say anyways….

On Sunday morning it was reported that former San Diego Padres minor leaguer Matt Bush was injured in physical altercation outside a bar near a Padres training facility in Arizona. For the former 1st overall pick in 2004, (selected in front of Phil Hughes, Stephen Drew, Justin Verlander, and Jered Weaver), this is yet another setback for the man who has been drawing comparisons to former New York Yankees farm hand Brien Taylor, who famously blew his arm out in a bar fight about 15 years ago. Are comparisons between the two players apt? Is Matt Bush the new Brien Taylor?

First of all, the only reason I included this paragraph is to illustrate how dumb it is to include who was drafted in front of whom. In 2002 Bryan Bullington was drafted ahead of BJ Upton, Scott Kazmir, Khalil Greene, etc. Hell, Jeremy Guthrie fell to 23rd overall because he required an enormous package to sign, and he hasn’t been worth it at all.

Because it was so long ago, it’s hard to remember just how good Brien Taylor really was. As a 20-year-old in high A ball in 1993, Taylor struck out 187 batters in 161 innings, with a very good 3:1 K/BB ratio. The next year he stuck out 150 in 163 IP, and while the high walk rate was troublesome; it was probably something Taylor would get over with experience. If the thought of the 1996-2000 Yankees dynasty makes you ill, imagine those same teams with David Cone, Andy Pettitte, David Wells, and Roger Clemens along with a young lefty throwing 96 MPH. They might still be winning titles. Or Wells and Cone would have introduced him to the NY nightlife and his career would be over. Regardless, Taylor has serious talent, talent that Matt Bush just doesn’t have.

True, Brien Taylor had more talent than Matt Bush ever will, which obviously proves my point that you can’t compare the two, cause Brien Taylor was deserving of the #1 pick. Also, I never knew Brien Taylor was black, so that’s something.

In over 700 at bats in the low minors, Matt Bush has yet to get on base more than 33% of the time. He has hit for no power, no average, and when the Daddies tried to make a Rick Ankiel switch and turn Matt Bush into a pitcher, he threw seven innings, notched 16 strikeouts, and then had Tommy John surgery. It is impossible to express how bad of a player Matt Bush is, and we’re not going out on a limb here by saying that Bush will never see the inside of a major league clubhouse. But in order for Bush to be the next Brien Taylor, this latest injury would have to rob him of his “stuff,” effectively ending his career.

Bush can sit at 94 MPH and has a pretty good sinker, and the very face he struck out over 2 hitters per inning, even though it was in just 7 innings, proves he is not as bad as IB points him out to be. There are many many players in minor league baseball who are worse than Matt Bush, they just don’t get scrutinized because they aren’t former #1 picks. I will say that if Matt Bush can come back from Tommy John surgery well, he will be at least a reliever for the Padres, even if it’s just for the fact that they don’t want him to be just the 3rd #1 overall pick to not play in the bigs.

So really these guys can’t be compared at all. Taylor deserved to be the #1 pick, Bush didn’t. Although to be fair, Bush was thought to be a top 15-20 type talent. This wasn’t the worst thing Intern Bill wrote, but it’s clear he has something against Matt Bush, which is a little puzzling, maybe he’s a Padre fan.