Looking back at the Twins' 2005 draft: Garza made it, Sanchez didn't

The Twins had two first-round picks in the 2005 Major League Baseball draft.

One turned out to be a solid starting pitcher. The other was one of the organization's biggest busts.

Righthander Matt Garza was chosen with the team's 25th overall choice, before the Twins used a supplemental pick on first baseman Hank Sanchez with the 39th overall selection.

Garza, now a member of the Brewers, made his 229th major league career start Saturday against the Twins at Target Field. Sanchez, with drug abuse issues, never made out of Class A Beloit.

"I was fortunate enough to get here," said Garza, who got a $1.35 million signing bonus out of Fresno State. "I played with a lot of guys who didn't get here, but [the draft] was a life-changing experience and one of the best moments of my life."

Garza, 31, rose quickly through the Twins' farm system and made his debut a year later, but he didn't last long in the organization. After 26 appearances in two seasons, the Twins traded Garza to Tampa Bay in a five-player deal to acquire outfielder Delmon Young after the 2007 season.

"It was shocking, but at the same time it was an opportunity to play," Garza said. "All I ever wanted was to play in the big leagues, and I took it and ran with it."

He certainly did that with the Rays in 2008, going 2-0 with a Game 7 victory over Boston in the American League Championship Series on his way to earning MVP honors. In 2010, he pitched a no-hitter for Tampa Bay against Detroit.

Garza has bounced around with the Cubs, Rangers and Brewers over the past five seasons. But he has been the most successful player from the Twins' draft class with a 79-82 record and a career 3.87 ERA in 10 seasons.

"This is all I've ever wanted," said Garza, who has four children with his wife, Serina. "There's five mouths at home I've got to feed. It's either this or get a regular 9-to-5 job, and I like doing this a lot more."

Sanchez, who got a $900,000 bonus, was expected to develop into a power bat for the Twins. Listed at 6-3 and 235 pounds, the first baseman hit only eight home runs in five seasons in the minors.

The Mission Bay High School product out of San Diego was suspended 50 games in 2009 for drug abuse and eventually released by the Twins that year. Sanchez's career ended at only 22 years old. He is living in San Diego now, but efforts to reach him were unsuccessful.

"It's beyond tools, beyond physical ability that makes a career end, and that was the case with him," said Mike Radcliff, Twins vice president of player personnel who was the scouting director for the 2005 draft class. "He didn't take care of himself. He didn't take the game with a serious approach, and he got in trouble with stuff off the field."