With Major League Baseball being shut down, the status of the MLB Draft is in limbo.
The temporary shutdown of the MLB community has left many in the industry wondering about the status of one of its integral cogs; the draft. The MLB Draft is currently scheduled for Wednesday, June 10th – but all of the uncertainty around the coronavirus has many people questioning whether it will be postponed, or even canceled. The reasons are plentiful, the biggest of which includes the money that baseball would save by not holding the event. The Associated Press estimates that teams spend around 400 million dollars on signing bonuses alone. While the teams will be able to save money on signing bonuses, the other impacts of the draft getting pushed back to a later date or scrapped entirely are monumental.
Firstly, what would that mean for draft eligible high school players? Typically, they would get drafted, sign their first pro contracts, and then be assigned to minor league teams. If there is no draft, then where would they be able to continue to play? College scholarships are likely all used up by now, and are likely at risk of becoming fewer and far between thanks to the financial hit that the NCAA took from losing their flagship event, March Madness. That puts these players in a bit of a holding pattern. Where will they train? Will they be able to find another platform to get scouted for 2021?
Secondly, there are tons of college players who were banking on being scouted these next few weeks, and then hearing their names called on June 10th. What happens to them? Yes, they can still go back to college for another year (which causes a similar scholarship issue with the NCAA), but the canceled draft will likely cost them tens of millions of dollars in contract money by having to start their professional careers in 2021 versus 2020 (unless of course, the service time model is adjusted…).
Another question is regarding the punishment for the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal? MLB handed the Astros a punishment that included the loss of their first round picks for both the 2020 and 2021 drafts. If the 2020 draft is indeed canceled, and the classes are merged – what does that mean regarding the Astros loss of picks? How will that punishment be adjusted?
Assuming the show does go on, on June 10th, how will the MLB imposed scouting freeze impact the draft process? Scouts have been told to halt all activities, which means no games to scout, no showcases to attend, and no phone calls to coaches. We’re talking about two and a half months of little-to-no-scouting. How will that impact which players get chosen where? As if the draft isn’t enough of a crap shoot already, teams will have to shoot from the hip more often than ever. Without the ability to do their final (and most recent) analysis of the draft class, teams are going to miss on talent more than ever because they’re likely going to have to play every pick as safely possible.
With the world in economic uncertainty, it’s hard to feel bad for professional baseball players not getting paid, but it’s important to remember that these athletes aren’t professionals yet. They’re high school and college students, many of whom are not from upper-class families who will be able to sustain their baseball career without the baseball community to help them. They are just kids looking to live out there dream of getting paid what they’re trained to.