The 1979 SBML Draft Saga
The 1979 SBML draft was the most unique draft in league history because it was the only one that involved expansion. The draft occurred in two phases. First, each existing team protected 10 of their 24 players from their rosters. Then each expansion team picked 16 players each from the available pool of 126 players, but none of the original 9 from 1978 could lose more than 6 players. Once the expansion draft finished, each of the original 9 could protect up to six more players giving each team 16 players going into the "regular" annual draft.
The 1979 expansion draft also resulted in the oddest trade in SBML history. Prior to the expansion draft, Rick "Bird" Auer traded his entire team to Harold Ridpath for his rights to draft an expansion team! That makes the Carolina Bluebirds both an original team and an expansion team and the Western Hemisphere an expansion team that really isn't quite expansion team!
The 1979 Expansion Draft | ||||||
| Round | Mayo | Picked From | Carolina | Picked From | Barry | Picked From |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | B.Ogilvie MIL | Eugene | B.Wynegar MIN | Huxley | Jo.Cruz HOU | Augusta |
| 2 | S.Bando MIL | Augusta | J.Stearns NYM | Pisgah | R.Smalley MIN | Huxley |
| 3 | S.Lezcano MIL | Lake Charles | D.Revering OAK | Lake Charles | E.Ott PIT | Bangor |
| 4 | B.Buckner CHC | Kodiak | G.Nettles NYY | Bangor | D.Kuiper CLE | Kodiak |
| 5 | P.Garner PIT | Lake Charles | Re.Jackson NYY | Augusta | G.Scott NYY | Augusta |
| 6 | C.Speier MON | Bangor | S.Kemp DET | Augusta | D.Ford CAL | Huxley |
| 7 | B.Pocoroba ATL | Lake Charles | T.Whitfield SF | Bangor | M.Sanguillen PIT | Augusta |
| 8 | L.Pinella NYY | Hawaii | Dw.Evans BOS | Lake Charles | B.Bailor TOR | Pisgah |
| 9 | O.Gamble NYY | Eugene | B.Dent NYY | Kodiak | R.Garr CAL | Hawaii |
| 10 | Da.Evans SF | Pisgah | M.Trillo PHI | Huxley | R.Dauer BAL | Eugene |
| 11 | B.Stinson SEA | Pisgah | F.White KC | Lake Charles | O.Moreno PIT | Western |
| 12 | A.Howe HOU | Pisgah | Ru.Jones SEA | Western | C.Yastrzemski BOS | Bangor |
| 13 | D.Chalk OAK | Kodiak | G.Tenace SD | Western | J.Grubb TEX | Bangor |
| 14 | J.Youngblood NYM | Eugene | J.Mayberry TOR | Huxley | L.Mazzilli NYM | Huxley |
| 15 | R.Staub MON | Pisgah | E.Solderholm TEX | Hawaii | B.Stein SEA | Western |
| 16 | P.Dade SD | Hawaii | H.Cruz CIN | Kodiak | S.Yeager LA | Eugene |
1979 Post-Expansion Draft | |||
| Round 1 | |||
| SBML Team | Player | Pos | MLB Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mayo | B.Horner | 3B | ATL |
| Barry | C.Reynolds | SS | HOU |
| Carolina | D.Murphy | 1B | ATL |
| Western | C.Lansford | 3B | CAL |
| Barry | L.Whitaker | 2B | DET |
| Mayo | P.Molitor | 2B | MIL |
| Hawaii | R.Dempsey | C | BAL |
| Augusta | Lar.Parrish | 3B | MON |
| Kodiak | O.Smith | SS | SD |
| Ju.Cruz | 2B | SEA | |
| Western | A.Trammell | SS | DET |
| Carolina | R.Mulliniks | SS | CAL |
| Eugene | T.Puhl | OF | HOU |
| M.Hill | C | SF | |
| Pisgah | L.Roberts | OF | SEA |
| M.Edwards | SS | OAK | |
| Bangor | W.Wilson | OF | KC |
| B.Sample | OF | TEX | |
| Lake Charles | N.Norman | SS | TEX |
| B.Foote | C | CHC | |
| Augusta | Lan.Parrish | C | DET |
| Kodiak | G.Hubbard | 2B | ATL |
| Western | R.Landestoy | 2B | HOU |
| K.Landreaux | OF | MIN | |
| Round 2 | |||
| SBML Team | Player | Pos | MLB Team |
| Bangor | J.Turner | OF | SD |
| H.Spillman | 3B | CIN | |
| S.Thompson | OF | CHC | |
| J.Martin | OF | CHC | |
| D.Goodwin | DH | MIN | |
| W.Nordhagen | OF | CHW | |
| Barry | Ro.Jackson | 1B | MIN |
| R.Manning | OF | CLE | |
| C.Moore | C | MIL | |
| J.Milner | 1B | PIT | |
| R.Miller | OF | CAL | |
| R.Sweet | C | SD | |
| Augusta | G.Thomas | OF | MIL |
| Western | T.Kennedy | C | STL |
| T.Duncan | 3B | OAK | |
| G.Allenson | C | BOS | |
| Hawaii | S.Swisher | C | STL |
| B.Boisclair | OF | NYM | |
| J.Brohamer | IF | BOS | |
| B.Plummer | C | SEA | |
| D.Ault | 1B | TOR | |
| B.Campaneris | SS | TEX | |
| Augusta | Jo.Morales | C | MIN |
| T.Cox | OF | CLE | |
| S.Nicosia | C | PIT | |
| A.Ashby | C | HOU | |
| T.Perez | 1B | MON | |
| R.Knight | 3B | CIN | |
| Western | J.Essian | C | OAK |
| Carolina | L.Herndon | OF | SF |
| B.Naharodny | C | CHW | |
| K.Gibson | OF | DET | |
| Western | L.May | 1B | BAL |
| M.Guerrero | SS | OAK | |
| J.Narron | C | NYY | |
| Carolina | B.Benton | C | NYM |
| Eugene | R.Cerone | C | TOR |
| A.Griffin | SS | TOR | |
| R.Bosetti | OF | TOR | |
| T.Armas | OF | OAK | |
| B.Evans | 3B | SD | |
| E.Maddox | 3B | NYM | |
| Pisgah | P.LaCock | 1B | KC |
| J.Newman | C | OAK | |
| D.Berra | 3B | PIT | |
| G.Burke | 1B | OAK | |
| D.Iorg | OF | STL | |
| J.Lemaster | IF | SF | |
| Bangor | M.Sciosia | C | LA |
| J.Leonard | OF | HOU | |
| M.Corey | OF | BAL | |
| W.Aikens | 1B | CAL | |
| H.Powell | OF | MIN | |
| P.Mankowski | 3B | DET | |
| Lake Charles | H.Chappas | SS | CHW |
| G.Pryor | IF | CHW | |
| B.Diaz | C | CLE | |
| T.Veryzer | SS | CLE | |
| L.Blanks | SS | TEX | |
| M.Macha | 3B | ATL | |
| A.Rodriguez | 3B | DET | |
| Kodiak | D.Norman | OF | NYM |
| A.Bannister | IF | CHW | |
| D.McKay | IF | TOR | |
| M.Colbern | C | CHW | |
| J.Oates | C | LA | |
| Huxley | W.Norwood | OF | MIN |
| B.Rivera | OF | MIN | |
| B.Randall | 2B | MIN | |
| T.Cruz | SS | PHI | |
| R.Fosse | C | MIL | |
| B.Martinez | C | MIL | |
| Western | K.Chapman | 2B | NYM |