PITTSBURGH, PA - 1986: Darryl Strawberry of the New York Mets bats against the Pittsburgh Pirates during a Major League Baseball game at Three Rivers Stadium circa 1986 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by George Gojkovich/Getty Images)
Surely, I can’t be serious. I am. And don’t call me Al Shirley. That’s because in the 1991 MLB Draft, the New York Mets received a compensation pick for losing Darryl Strawberry in free agency to the Los Angeles Dodgers. With the 18th overall pick, they selected an outfielder out of Virginia, Al Shirley.
Compensation picks are only as fair as your scouts’ success in picking those players.