RE: WMB
From Baseball Prospectus Top 50 Busts
42. Will Middlebrooks, 3B, Boston Red Sox (2007, 5th Round)
Why We Cared: The left side of the Red Sox's infield was lacking anything concrete in the early 2010s, and Will Middlebrooks looked like he'd be a building block. WMB launched WMDs in the minors, showing good plate discipline with prodigious power. A broken wrist halted his impressive 2012 campaign, where he posted a .279 TAv with decent defense at the hot corner.
What Went Wrong: His discipline and health vanished. 2012's good stats covered up a terrible K/BB, and it - along with his defense - worsened in 2013. Middlebrooks peaked with a 3 HR game in early April, and then succumbed to a series of injuries throughout 2013 and 2014: strained back, strained calf, broken finger. The outside part of the plate continued to confound him, his contact rates dropped, and in December of 2014, the Red Sox traded him for Ryan Hanigan. He didn't make them regret it. (Brett Cowett)