Can you trade draft picks in baseball

Just think about it: a Stephen Strasburg or a Bryce Harper comes along and a team like the Yankees want him badly. But what can they do? Winning teams draft too low to get a guy like that.

Ah, but not so fast, kimosabe. What if the team with the worst or second-worst record is allowed to trade that pick? Now what would some team pay? Look, the idea behind the original rule is to allow a bad team to improve by getting a higher draft choice than a good team. But, like in the NBA, if that team would rather have two picks for one, or a player and a pick, why not let them?

But even in its present form, the system is far from perfect. It couldn't be that the only reason baseball teams aren't allowed to trade their amateur draft picks is that they don't trust themselves not to act like idiots. Yeah, we have to protect ourselves," one club executive said with an embarrassed laugh. Maybe you can trade future draft choices only the current year.

You can trade down and get a few extra selections. There's a lot of good ideas we need to kick around. There's not just one magic bullet. Our draft rules are several years old, and a lot of it is antiquated. Then again, changes to the baseball draft are coming, probably soon. The new Basic Agreement negotiations will almost certainly end with a new, updated worldwide draft that puts players from the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and other nations under the same umbrella.

Also possible is, finally, a loosening of the rules so that teams can finally barter draft picks. Given baseball's history in such matters, perhaps it really is better to keep teams from mortgaging their future by frittering away all their opportunities at young talent. But at least that scenario would help distinguish stupid teams from smart ones, rather than those that are just rich and poor. Most agree that finally allowing the trading of draft choices will give lower-revenue clubs, as long as they're not foolish, another avenue to competitiveness.

The issue of trading draft picks has come to the fore in the last five years in large part because low-revenue teams, often picking at the top of the draft, don't select the best players anymore for fear of their high price tags. So the teams that need talent most wind up with second-tier players while the top prospects go to the richer clubs. One of the two purposes of the draft, to fairly distribute talent the other being to save money by forcing kids to negotiate with only one club , is completely undermined.

If clubs could trade picks either before the draft or after, the value of a top pick is better preserved. This all ignores the scenario of how the trading draft picks is both an extra source of intrigue and debate for fans, as well as a chance for wits to trump werewithal.

Other sports have loads of examples of teams using draft-pick deals to outsmart the competition. For example:. Bartering of draft picks in later years got the Celtics the selection they used to take Kevin McHale. When the Quebec Nordiques realized they would never sign their No. Baseball decided from the start of its draft in to forbid the trading of draft picks for fear teams would squander them.

The rule was strengthened in , in response to the Expos' dumping first-rounder Pete Incaviglia in a one-sided trade with the Rangers because he wouldn't sign with Montreal. Stewart has opened a potential pipeline for young players to get paid, develop their games, and then return to the United States as free agents.

Low-ball offers in the draft could push others to consider it. Another reason the MLB Draft has lagged behind the other sports is because the players routinely disappear into the minor leagues for years on end. Teams drafting near the top of the MLB Draft usually have little incentive to push their prospects to the major leagues.

What if some of the better teams in the league tried to trade up to fill a gap on their roster. In , Chris Sale was drafted 13th overall, then made his major-league debut after just 11 games in the minors.

Used in a bullpen role, he was outstanding for the White Sox who were trying to keep pace with the Twins. Justin Verlander , David Price , and Tim Lincecum are three other pitchers who made their major-league debuts with 20 or fewer minor-league games.

A normal concern is the workload young pitchers are dealing with coming off a full college season, but that is not a factor in Expanded rosters would also open more slots for young arms like University of Minnesota right-hander Max Meyer, who some feel could contribute in a major-league bullpen immediately with his fastball-slider mix.

Baseball should immediately allow all draft picks to be traded. In a shortened season, where expanded rosters and universal designated hitters could become the norm, why not make one more significant change. It could dramatically help make the MLB Draft an event to follow, analyze, and maybe even matter to viewers. Cookie banner We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from.