| 1971 Major League Baseball draft | |
| First: | Danny Goodwin Chicago White Sox |
| First Round: | 24 |
| Prev: | 1970 |
| Next: | 1972 |
The 1971 Major League Baseball draft took place prior to the 1971 MLB season. The draft saw the Chicago White Sox select Danny Goodwin first overall.
| = All-Star | = Baseball Hall of Famer |
The following are the first round picks in the 1971 Major League Baseball draft.[1]
| 1 | Chicago White Sox | C | ||
| 2 | Jay Franklin | San Diego Padres | RHP | Vienna, Virginia |
| 3 | Tommy Bianco | Milwaukee Brewers | SS | |
| 4 | Montreal Expos | SS | ||
| 5 | Roy Branch | Kansas City Royals | RHP | |
| 6 | Roy Thomas | Philadelphia Phillies | RHP | Lompoc, California |
| 7 | Roger Quiroga | Washington Senators | RHP | |
| 8 | Ed Kurpiel | St. Louis Cardinals | 1B | |
| 9 | David Sloan | Cleveland Indians | RHP | Santa Clara, California |
| 10 | Taylor Duncan | Atlanta Braves | SS | Sacramento, California |
| 11 | Tom Veryzer | SS | ||
| 12 | Frank Tanana | California Angels | LHP | |
| 13 | Neil Rasmussen | Houston Astros | SS | |
| 14 | Rich Puig | New York Mets | 2B | |
| 15 | Jim Rice | Boston Red Sox | OF | |
| 16 | Jeff Wehmeier | Chicago Cubs | RHP | Indianapolis, Indiana |
| 17 | William "Sugar Bear" Daniels | Oakland Athletics | RHP | |
| 18 | Frank Riccelli | San Francisco Giants | LHP | |
| 19 | Terry Whitfield | New York Yankees | OF | |
| 20 | Rick Rhoden | Los Angeles Dodgers | RHP | Boynton Beach, Florida |
| 21 | Dale Soderholm | Minnesota Twins | SS | Miami, Florida |
| 22 | Craig Reynolds | Pittsburgh Pirates | SS | Houston, Texas |
| 23 | Baltimore Orioles | RHP | Pomona, California | |
| 24 | Cincinnati Reds | SS | Metairie, Louisiana (East Jefferson High School) | |
| = All-Star | = Baseball Hall of Famer |
| Round | Pick | Player | Team | Position | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 29 | George Brett | Kansas City Royals | Shortstop | |
| 2 | 30 | Mike Schmidt | Philadelphia Phillies | Shortstop | |
| 3 | 65 | Ron Guidry | New York Yankees | Pitcher | |
| 4 | 78 | Jerry Mumphrey | St. Louis Cardinals | Shortstop-Outfielder | |
| 7 | 143 | Warren Cromartie | Chicago White Sox | Outfielder | |
| 7 | 151 | Larry Andersen | Cleveland Indians | Pitcher | |
| 12 | 264 | Mike Caldwell | San Diego Padres | Pitcher | |
| 15 | 346 | Mike Flanagan | Houston Astros | Pitcher | |
| 25 | 582 | Roger Williams | Atlanta Braves | Outfielder | |
| 33 | 699 | Steve Bartkowski | Kansas City Royals | First Baseman | |
| 39 | 764 | Joe Theismann | Minnesota Twins | Shortstop | |
| 42 | 776 | Keith Hernandez | St. Louis Cardinals | First Baseman |
The June 1971 draft was a productive one, even though none of its top ten choices yielded players who would have memorable major league careers. Selected in the regular phase were future Hall of Famers Jim Rice (Boston, 1st round), George Brett (Kansas City, 2nd round) and Mike Schmidt (Philadelphia, 2nd round).
Pitcher Mike Flanagan was selected in the 15th round of the June regular phase by Houston, but enrolled at the University of Massachusetts. One of the more interesting highlights of the June draft was that five quarterbacks were selected including future NFL stars Jim Plunkett, Archie Manning, Dan Pastorini, Steve Bartkowski, Joe Theismann as well as Condredge Holloway, who went on to have a career in the Canadian Football League, where he was awarded Most Outstanding Player while playing for the Toronto Argonauts.
Danny Goodwin, the nation's top pick, could not agree to terms with the White Sox and became the first top choice who did not sign a contract, instead choosing to attend Southern University in Baton Rouge. Four years later, Goodwin was again selected first overall, this time by the Angels.