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2006 was a mixed bag for the AL Central clubs. There are no Evan Longoria’s in this group, and very few of the first round selections have provided any type of tangible value for their respective clubs. With that being said, a couple of clubs drafted well in the later rounds, and one of them used a failed first-rounder to acquire arguably the best hitter in baseball.

Chicago White Sox

Total WAR from Draft: 0.1

Best Value: Hector Santiago threw 5.1 scoreless innings in 2011 for the White Sox. Yes, this is a reach.

Least Value: McCulloch was seen as a mid-rotation innings eater when he was drafted. And he has been, for minor-league baseball teams.

Grade: A White Sox draft without a passing grade? Weird, I know. None of their first five picks have provided any type of value to the organization, and the back half is just as bad. Sorry, Chicago fans. Fail.

Cleveland Indians

Total WAR from Draft: 1.2

Best Value: This one is close, but I’ll go with Vinnie Pestano, who struck out 84 batters in 62 innings and gives the Indians one of the more underrated bullpens in baseball.

Least Value: While Huff hasn’t been terrible, Cleveland probably didn’t have long-reliever/spot starter in mind when they drafted him with pick 29.

Grade: This was one of the more difficult drafts to give a pass/fail grade to. They didn’t get much out of the their four top-seventy picks, but they did well in the back half (Pestano, Josh Tomlin) and while the WAR is obviously not great on Huff, he serves a purpose. Keep in mind, also, that the Indians traded Archer for Mark DeRosa, and then traded DeRosa for Chris Perez. Pass.

Detroit Tigers

Total WAR from Draft: -1.3

Best Value: Boesch has become Detroit’s best hitting outfielder and it appears he’ll have the chance to hit second in the lineup next year, behind  in front of some guys named Cabrera and Fielder.

Least Value: Borquin never advanced past Double-A and is currently playing in the independent league.

Grade: Very similar to the Indians. Miller has been an absolute bust, but he was one of the key figures in the Miguel Cabrera trade, so his value increases. Add in Boesch and Sizemore and Duane Below, and I think this goes down as a Pass. Once again, it’s in the eye of the beholder.

Kansas City Royals

Total WAR from Draft: 3.4

Best Value: I can’t go with Hochevar here, so Wood is the choice. He’s an average reliever who missed bats in 2011. You could do worse.

Least Value:Taylor never advance to AA, despite being taken with the 45th pick and is currently in the Independent League.

Grade: The Royals have one of — if not the — best farm systems in the game, but it isn’t because of this draft. Hochevar hasn’t been a complete bust, but when you consider that they took him over players like Longoria, Lincecum and Kershaw, you cant’ call that a successful selection. When you add that in along with almost no major-league production from the rest of the class, you get a Fail.

Minnesota Twins

Total WAR from Draft: 1.7

Best Value: Danny Valencia wasn’t very good in 2011, but acquiring your starting third-basemen for two years in the 19th round isn’t such a bad thing.

Least Value: It would have been Parmelee if not for a ridiculous twenty-one games in September. Now it belongs to Whit Robbins, who only lasted two years in professional baseball before leaving the game

Grade: Outside of the Valencia pick, there’s not much to this draft. Parmelee might get a chance to play if Justin Morneau can’t recover, but I wouldn’t expect him to do anything like he did in September of last year. Minnesota is a well run organization, but they have seen better drafts than this, to be sure. Fail.

Stay tuned tomorrow for the AL West.