Ranking Five Best First-Round Draft Picks in Philadelphia Phillies History

The Philadelphia Phillies have landed some great players in the first round of the MLB draft. Here are the five best.

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The MLB common draft era started in 1965, when the traditional summer draft brought some order to the chaos of landing players.

The Philadelphia Phillies have been in the Majors since 1965 and have had at least one first round pick nearly every year. Some of those picks worked out for them. Some of those picks worked out for other teams.

Here, we rank the five best first-round draft picks in Phillies history based on bWAR, or wins above replacement, at baseball-reference.com. For the purposes of this exercise, only first-round picks taken in the traditional summer amateur draft were considered. They must have also played in the Majors.

Aaron Nola (2014, 34.9 bWAR)

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The only current Phillies player on the list as of this writing, he’s already the second-highest Phillies pitcher and first-round pick on this list. Philadelphia selected him No. 7 overall out of LSU. The right-hander made his MLB debut a year later.

He’s been a solid part of the Phillies’ rotation since 2016, when he made 20 starts for the first time. His best season was in 2018, when he was named an NL All-Star, had an MLB-best 9.7 bWAR and went 17-6 with a 2.37 ERA. He finished third in Cy Young voting that season.

Entering the 2026 season, Nola is 109-89 with a 3.83 ERA, which includes 1,876 strikeouts and 449 walks. Nola signed a long-term deal before the 2024 season and is expected to remain with the Phillies through 2030.

Lonnie Smith (1974, 38.5 BWAR)

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Smith is a player that found plenty of success with other teams and carved out a long career. The Phillies selected him No. 3 overall in 1974 out of Centennial High School in Compton, Calif.

The speedy outfielder debuted with the Phillies in 1978 and played parts of four seasons with the franchise, where he slashed .321/.389/.437. He was part of the 1980 World Series champions and was third in NL rookie of the year voting that season. Philadelphia traded him to St. Louis as part of a massive three-team trade in 1981.

A speedy left fielder who stole a career 380 bases, he played 17 years in the Majors, including stints with the Cardinals, the Kansas City Royals, the Atlanta Braves, the Baltimore Orioles and the Pittsburgh Pirates. He won two more World Series rings, slashed .288/.371/.420 for his career and made the NL All-Star team in 1982.

J.D. Drew (1997, 44.9 bWAR)

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Drew is a polarizing pick in Phillies history because he never signed with the franchise. He went No. 2 overall in 1997 out of Florida State. But Drew and his agent, Scott Boras, wanted a $10 million signing bonus. When Philly didn’t pay up, he went back to school for one more year and was drafted by St. Louis in the first round in 1998.

Drew probably wasn’t worth a $10 million bonus, but he carved out a solid 14-year career with a slash of .278/.384/.489 with 242 home runs and 795 RBI. He played for the Cardinals, the Boston Red Sox, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Atlanta Braves. He was an All-Star, was named the game’s MVP in 2008 and claimed a World Series ring with Boston in 2007.

Cole Hamels (2002, 59.0 bWAR)

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Hamels is much more well-liked by Phillies fans. The left-hander out of Rancho Bernardo High School in San Diego, Calif., who was the No. 17 overall pick that year.

He made his Phillies debut in 2006 and played 10 seasons for the franchise. Along the way he was named an All-Star three times, helped the Phillies win the 2008 World Series, finished in the Top 8 in NL Cy Young voting four times and went 114-90 with the Phillies. He was the World Series MVP in 2008.

The Phillies traded him at the 2015 deadline to the Texas Rangers. In his final game with the Phillies, he threw a no-hitter. He wrapped up his 15-year career with the Rangers, the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta Braves, as he went 163-122 with a 3.43 ERA, with 2,560 strikeouts and 767 walks.

Chase Utley (2000, 64.6 bWAR)

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Utley had a terrific career, one that puts him squarely in the Baseball Hall of Fame debate. The Phillies selected him with the No. 15 overall pick out of UCLA.

The left-handed hitting second baseman debuted in 2003 and played 13 of his 16 seasons with the Phillies. He slashed .275/.358/.465 for his MLB career, with 259 home runs and 1,025 RBI. He was a six-time NL All-Star, a four-time NL Silver Slugger and a member of the Phillies’ 2008 World Series championship team.

In a six-year span from 2005-10 there were few better second basemen in baseball than Utley. He was in the Top 14 in MVP voting five of those six seasons and he was either an All-Star or a Silver Slugger in five of those seasons. He finished his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2015-18.