The MLB Amateur Draft usually consists of 40 rounds. This year, the MLB and MLBPA have agreed to only have five rounds.
There have been some talks during the coronavirus shutdown to make a decision on this matter. After a rejected proposal of a 10-round draft, they settled on the five-round layout. Players that go undrafted will be eligible to sign with teams for a maximum of $20,000.
Jeff Passan, ESPN MLB Insider, reported that there was some divide on the decision to have a short draft. Some front offices saw the benefit of late-round picks, but there was some resistance from some owners.
The Denied Deal
The league did not want to spend extra money on lower level players, resulting from the lack of revenue during this health pandemic. The two sides proposed a 10-round draft that the players rejected.
According to the report:
“The league offered to split the draft into two portions. Picks in rounds 1-5 would have slot values equivalent to the same picks in 2019. Picks in rounds 6-10 would have 50 percent of those values, and for those picks, there would be a hard cap on the signing bonus at slot value.
“The league also proposed a limit of five undrafted players at $20,000 — the maximum bonus such a player can receive — and an unlimited number on players at $5,000 or below.”
The players wanted there to be as many rounds as possible, but without the restrictions and high cost that it would cause.
This is a significant change in the number of players that will be drafted. In 2019, there were 1,217 selections in the draft. This year will affect how many new players will be entering the minors.
Return To Play Proposal
The MLB and MLBPA will continue to be busy even after agreeing on this deal. They will now look at proposals to return to the field.
Passan has reported that dozens of coaches and general managers have asked players to get in baseball shape soon. Some teams are saying that spring training could happen as soon as June 10 with the season following with a July start.
But plenty of others realize that these hard deadlines will be difficult to meet. There will be plenty of complications and safety measures that the league will have to put in place before play can resume.
MLB players will want to return to a league that is taking precautions of the health risks that are evident, but many are ready to make their return.
In the past week, there has been a noticeable change in the guidelines across the country, Businesses are beginning to re-open, and the downhill of this pandemic has begun. The MLB has to be thrilled that there is still some time left to salvage a season.
Some players are starting to work out at team facilities, and there is finally a positive outlook on the future of playing baseball.