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Burroughs was a top young power hitter, but by his late twenties had declined to the journeyman stage. The nation's first draft pick in 1969, he joined the Senators at 19. There, he often clashed with manager Ted Williams, though Burroughs later credited Williams for teaching him to concentrate. Burroughs hit 30 homers in 1973, his first season as the Rangers' regular right fielder. That set the stage for his MVP year in 1974, when he batted .301 with 25 homers and a league-leading 118 RBI. But the south wind at Arlington Stadium gave him fits (he fanned a league-high 155 times in 1976), and he profited from a trade to Atlanta, where he hit 41 homers with 114 RBI in 1977. Defensively, Burroughs was capable but slow. When he announced his goal was to win a Gold Glove, teammate Joe Lovitto said, "You won't make any errors. You don't get to a ball until it stops rolling." (KT)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » June 7, 1969: The Washington Senators name Jeff Burroughs the number one pick in the June free-agent draft. The Astros choose J.R. Richard as the 2nd pick, and the White Sox follow with 3B Ted Nicholson. Cincinnati picks Ken Griffey on the 29th round, while Kansas City, with a record 90 picks, takes Al Cowens with their 84th choice. The Dodgers select Bill Seinsoth on the first round after selecting him on the 6th round in 1968: the promising lefty slugger is killed in a car accident in September. With the 13th pick, the Red Sox take University of Minnesota's Noel Jenke, who is also drafted by the Chicago Black Hawks and the Minnesota Vikings (12th round). He'll never make the majors (Pawtucket in 1971 is the highest) but he will play four years in the NFL. Montreal picks Tony Scott on the 71st round and Al Cowens, who will play for 13 years in the majors, lasts until the 75th round (Royals). » September 30, 1971: The Senators draw 14,000 for their final game in Washington, with another 4,000 crashing. Dick Bosman gives up homers to Bobby Murcer, Roy White, and Rusty Torres and the Nats are down 5–1 in the 6th. Mike Kekich then grooves a fastball for Frank Howard, who parks his 26th homer, and thanks ThurmanMunson as he crosses the plate. The Senators take a 7–5 lead, and after Murcer makes the 2nd out in the 9th, fans swarm onto the field, causing the game to be forfeited to the Yanks, 9–0. All records stand but reliever Paul Lindblad losses the W by not recording the 3rd out, batter Horace Clarke. Of the Senators, Jeff Burroughs will be the last to retire, finishing up in 1985. » July 30, 1973: The Rangers Jim Bibby no-hits first-place Oakland 6–0, while teammate Jeff Burroughs hits the 2nd of three grand slams in a 10-day period (July 26th-August 4th). Bibby, who came to Texas in a June 6th trade with the Cardinals, strikes out 13 batters. » June 4, 1974: On Ten-Cent Beer Night at Cleveland, unruly fans stumble onto the field and cause the Indians to forfeit the game to the Rangers with the score tied 5–5 in the 9th inning. A rally by the Tribe ties the score in the 9th, before fans pour on the field and surround OF Jeff Burroughs and try and take his hat and glove. Players from both sides then ran to his aid and the forfeit is called. » November 20, 1974: Jeff Burroughs, the Texas OF who batted .301 with 25 home runs and a league-leading 118 RBI, wins the American League MVP Award. » December 9, 1976: The Rangers trade Jeff Burroughs to the Braves for five players and an estimated $250,000. » March 7, 1981: The Braves trade OF Jeff Burroughs to the Mariners for P Carlos Diaz. » August 14, 1981: Mariners OF Jeff Burroughs hits three home runs in a 13–3 win over the Twins, giving Seattle a split of a doubleheader. » June 2, 1998: The Phillies select University of Miami 1B Pat Burrell with the 1st pick in the First–Year Player Draft. Burrell's .888 slugging percentage is 2nd in NCAA history. The Athletics follow by taking Michigan State P Mark Mulder at No. 2; the Cubs take high school OF Corey Patterson with No. 3; Stanford P Jeff Austin is grabbed by the Royals at No. 4; and last year's top pick, J.D. Drew is selected by the Cardinals as No. 5. Drew will debut in September. The 19-year-old Patterson will get a record $3.7 million from the Cubs, but will sign too late to play in 1998, while Mulder will pocket $3.2 million from the A's. Picking 9th, the Padres select Sean Burroughs, son of former MLer Jeff Burroughs. Drew Henson, Michigan QB, drops to the 3rd round where the Yanks take him.