4 Cubs first-round draft picks you might have forgotten about

First-round draft picks are never guaranteed to be great in any sport, so there are always going to be hits and misses. The Chicago Cubs have had a long history of first-rounders, for various reasons, who haven’t worked out so well. Some of those players are still topics of conversation today, while others have faded into obscurity. Looking at the first-round draft history of the Cubs going back to the 1960s reveals a lot of names that have seemingly not been talked about much, or not talked about in a long time.

Here are some of those names that might have been forgotten about over the years.

Forgotten Cubs first-rounders: Terry Hughes – 2nd overall pick in 1967

Terry Hughes was a third baseman taken by the Cubs second overall in 1967 out of Paul M. Dorman HS in South Carolina. He was a notable athlete as a teen, being sought after by both baseball and basketball scouts. Hughes was taken over future Hall of Famer Ted Simmons (10th) and notable future All-Stars Jon Matlack and John Mayberry.

After getting drafted, Hughes put up some very solid numbers in the minors. From 1967-1970 he hit .272 with 21 home runs in 333 games before getting the call to the Cubs. He made his debut at the age of 21 on September 2, 1970 in a 17-2 win against the Phillies. He went 0-for-2. It was not until September 17 that he got another at-bat. He recorded his first MLB hit and his only one with the Cubs that day.

Hughes played only in the minors in 1971 and 1972 until he was purchased by the St. Louis Cardinals in 1973 He appeared in 11 MLB games with the Cardinals that year, and then in 41 games with the Red Sox in 1974. In total, he recorded 18 hits with one home run and a .209/.281/.279 career slash in 54 MLB games between the Cubs, Cardinals and Red Sox.

After two more years in the minors with the Red Sox and once again Cardinals organization, he was done with professional baseball at the age of 27. Only four players have been taken by the Cubs as high or higher (first overall) than Hughes since.