It will never rise to the event status of the NFL Draft, but Major League Baseball's first-year player draft is showing television potential. | MLB page

In its second year on the ESPN networks, the draft provided an entertaining afternoon for baseball junkies on Thursday.

The draft was foolishly cloaked in secrecy for many years before MLB finally realized exposure for the next generation of players is good.

Capping the broadcast at one round also is wise. There isn't enough interest to stretch the program any further.

It's hard to argue with the first round picks of the White Sox, Cardinals and Cubs.

The Sox have to be thrilled that Georgia shortstop Gordon Beckham fell to them at No. 9. Beckham is a middle infielder with power who could be playing in the majors as early as late next season.

The Cardinals also landed a highly quality college bat at No. 13 in Arizona State corner infielder Brett Wallace. The 6-foot-2, 235-pound Wallace sports huge thighs that scouts worry will keep him from playing third base effectively in the pros.

But nobody doubts Wallace's bat. He has twice won the Triple Crown in the Pac 10, one of the top conferences in college baseball.

The Cubs added a power arm in 6-5 right-hander Andrew Cashner of Texas Christian. Cashner has hit 98 mph with his fastball. He projects as a late-inning reliever but could possibly get a chance as a starter.

A couple of suggestions for making the draft better:

Get more likely first round picks on site. Those phone interviews with friends and relatives shrieking in the background accomplished nothing.

And why not let teams trade draft picks? Trades to move up or down are big parts of the intrigue in NFL and NBA drafts. Baseball could benefit from similar suspense.

Foul tips

- The St. Louis lineup for the second game of Thursday's doubleheader might be the weakest a Cardinals' team has sported in a long time. Adam Kennedy actually hit third. Yeah, that Adam Kennedy. The one with zero home runs and 15 RBIs.

But don't judge a batting order by its cover. The Cards put up nine runs in a 10-inning loss to the Nationals. If they had shipped overmatched starter Mike Parisi to Triple A one day earlier, it likely would have been a win.

- Cubs' outfielder Kosuke Fukudome is a fun player to watch with his well-rounded skills. He is a better baseball player than a fantasy baseball player. So are David Eckstein, Aaron Miles, Brian Giles, Brad Ausmus and Edgar Renteria.

More productive in the fantasy game than useful on the field? Alfonso Soriano, Adam Dunn, Pat Burrell, Jorge Cantu and Ryan Howard.

- It should be an automatic fine when an umpire pursues a player or manager to continue an argument. After a questionable call, most players or managers simply want to express their displeasure before heading back to the dugout.

Too many umpires insist on having the last word when their job is supposed to be to keep the peace. That leads to unnecessary ejections.