MLB Draft Could Move to July
As the coronavirus pandemic continues, there is constant dialogue going on between the MLB and MLB Players Association. Both parties are trying to wade their way through a multitude of issues ranging from player service time for the coming season, what the schedule might look like, and how the draft should be structured.
Many of these issues are vital and absolutely paramount to the overall state of the game. Baseball needs to cooperate in every way possible. Meanwhile, the MLB Players Association has to cooperate on their end as well. Regardless, there will like be a fair amount of compromise that takes place between both sides.
Kiley McDaniel provided more details on the framework currently in place surrounding this summer’s draft.
Sources: MLB & the MLB Players Association have the framework of an agreement that could be finalized as soon as today. Discussed terms on the draft:
– A draft sometime in July
– Likely 10 rounds, possibly 5
– Bonus deferment: 10% upfront, 45% in July '21, 45% in July '22— Kiley McDaniel (@kileymcd) March 26, 2020
Changes in the Framework of the Agreement
The biggest change in this proposed framework would be the timing of the draft. Teams will need time to scout out players and given the shutdown status of many teams, that is impossible at the moment. Therefore, instead of conducting the draft in June as usual, baseball is taking the stance of it happening in July.
Another change would be the length of the draft itself. In a usual year, the draft consists of forty different rounds and there are various Competitive Balance rounds incorporated as well. However, under the current framework agreement the draft would be significantly shorter.
As such, that means fewer players would be drafted. Teams would likely focus a lot of their attention on the five or ten rounds and go for more impact, level players. Most likely, that would mean college players over high schoolers, especially when considering that college players have more of a track record. Teams will likely feel more comfortable with that track record than drafting a high school position player or pitcher who doesn’t have the same history.
Outlook
The MLB Draft is a staple of the sport every summer. However, this year it will still exist but won’t be conducted in the traditional format. Furthermore, any and all ideas need to be on the table right now. As a sport, baseball has talked about many of these ideas in the past. Now is the perfect time to experiment with them and see which ones stick and which ones won’t for the long run.
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