Major league Baseball draft - wikipedia Major league Baseball draft Rick Monday was the first player selected in a Major League Baseball draft, on June 8, 1965. The first - year player draft is Major League Baseball 's primary mechanism for assigning amateur baseball players from high schools, colleges, and other amateur baseball clubs to its teams. The draft order is determined based on the previous season 's standings, with the team possessing the worst record receiving the first pick. The most recent draft was held on June 4 -- 6, 2018. The first amateur draft was held in 1965. Unlike most sports drafts, the first - year player draft is held mid-season, in June. Another distinguishing feature of this draft in comparison with those of other North American major professional sports leagues is its sheer size : under the current collective bargaining agreement the draft lasts 40 rounds, plus compensatory picks. In contrast, the NFL draft lasts for seven rounds ( a maximum of 256 selections ), the NHL entry draft lasts seven rounds and roughly 215 picks, and the NBA draft lasts for only two rounds ( 60 selections ). Contents 1 Before the draft 2 The Draft 2.1 Influence of the draftee 's age 2.2 Economic impact 2.3 Media exposure 3 Procedures and rules 3.1 Eligibility 3.2 Draft order 3.3 Negotiating rights 3.4 Compensatory picks 3.4. 1 Pre-2013 rules 3.4. 2 Current rules 3.5 Other changes from 2012 3.5. 1 Bonus pool 3.5. 2 New signing rules 4 See also 5 References 6 External links Before the draft Major League Baseball has used a draft to assign minor league players to teams since 1921. In 1936, the National Football League held the first amateur draft in professional sports. A decade later, the National Basketball Association instituted a similar method of player distribution. However, the player draft was controversial. Congressman Emanuel Celler questioned the legality of drafts during a series of hearings on the business practice of professional sports leagues in the 1950s. Successful clubs saw the draft as anti-competitive. Yankees executive Johnny Johnson equated it with communism. At the same time, Pulitzer Prize - winning sports columnist Arthur Daley compared the system to a `` slave market. '' Prior to the implementation of the first - year player draft, amateurs were free to sign with any Major League team that offered them a contract. As a result, wealthier teams such as the New York Yankees and St. Louis Cardinals were able to stockpile young talent, while poorer clubs were left to sign less desirable prospects. In 1947, Major League Baseball implemented the bonus rule, a restriction aimed at reducing player salaries, as well as keeping wealthier teams from monopolizing the player market. In its most restrictive form, it forbade any team which gave an amateur a signing bonus of more than $4,000 from assigning that player to a minor league affiliate for two seasons. If the player was removed from the major league roster, he became a free agent. The controversial legislation was repealed twice, only to be re-instituted. The bonus rule was largely ineffective. There were accusations that teams were signing players to smaller bonuses, only to supplement them with under - the - table payments. In one famous incident, the Kansas City Athletics signed Clete Boyer, kept him on their roster for two years, then traded him to the Yankees just as he became eligible to be sent to the minor leagues. Other clubs accused the Yankees of using the Athletics as a de facto farm team, and the A 's later admitted to signing Boyer on their behalf. Finally, it was the bidding war for Rick Reichardt, who signed with the Los Angeles Angels for the then outrageous bonus of $200,000, that led to the implementation of the draft. Major League clubs voted on the draft during the 1964 Winter Meetings. Four teams -- the New York Yankees, St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Mets -- attempted to defeat the proposal, but they failed to convince a majority of teams, and in the end only the Cardinals voted against it. The draft Major League Baseball 's first amateur draft was held on June 8 -- 9, 1965, in New York City. Teams chose players in reverse order of the previous season 's standings, with picks alternating between the National and American Leagues. With the first pick, the Kansas City Athletics took Rick Monday, an outfielder from Arizona State University. Originally, three separate drafts were held each year. The June draft, which was by far the largest, involved new high school graduates, as well as college seniors who had just finished their seasons. Another draft was held in January, which typically involved high school players who graduated in the winter, junior college players, and players who have dropped out of four - year colleges. Junior college players were required to wait until their current season was completed before they could sign. Finally, there was a draft in August for players who participated in amateur summer leagues. The August draft was eliminated after only two years, while the January draft lasted until 1986. Influence of the draftee 's age Early on, the majority of players drafted came directly from high school. Between 1967 and 1971, only seven college players were chosen in the first round of the June draft. However, the college players who were drafted outperformed their high school counterparts by what statistician Bill James called `` a laughably huge margin. '' By 1978, a majority of draftees had played college baseball, and by 2002, the number rose above sixty percent. While the number of high school players drafted has dropped, those picked have been more successful than their predecessors. In a study of drafts from 1984 to 1999, Baseball Prospectus writer Rany Jazayerli concluded that, by the 1990s, the gap in production between the two groups had nearly disappeared. In October 2011, Dr. Jazayerli presented another research study which included an analysis of those players drafted since 1965, but instead of breaking them into college or high school draftees, he segregated them by their age on draft day. In the study published in Baseball Prospectus, which included a follow up article of the financial benefits, Jazayerli concluded that the very young players return more value than expected by their draft slots. In Jazayerli 's study he looked at the statistics and broke draftees into 5 distinctive groups based on their age and being drafted in the early rounds. Dr. Jazayerli 's defined a `` very young '' player as those who are younger than 17 years and 296 days on draft day. Since the inception of the draft, the youngest player ever drafted in an early round is Alfredo Escalera. Escalera was drafted by the Kansas City Royals in the 8th round of the 2012 First Year Players Draft at 17 years and 114 days. Dr. Jazayerli 's study does not clearly demonstrate the influence of the player 's age when drafted in a late round. Economic impact Initially, the draft succeeded in reducing the value of signing bonuses. In 1964, a year before the first draft, University of Wisconsin outfielder Rick Reichardt was given a record bonus of $205,000 ( $1,617,564 today ) by the Los Angeles Angels. Without competition from other clubs, the Athletics were able to sign Rick Monday for a bonus of only $104,000. It would take until 1979 for a drafted player to receive a bonus higher than Reichardt 's. Player salaries continued to escalate through the 1980s. In 1986, Bo Jackson became the first draftee to sign a total contract ( signing bonus and salary ) worth over $1 million ( $2,232,544 today ). Jackson, a Heisman Trophy - winning football player for Auburn University, was also the first overall choice in the National Football League draft, and was offered a $7 million ( $15,627,808 today ) contract to play football for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. High school players possessed additional leverage, as they had the option of attending college and re-entering the draft the next year. Agent Scott Boras routinely exploited this advantage to increase the contracts of his clients. In 1990, Boras client Todd Van Poppel signed a $1.2 million ( $2,247,784 today ) contract with Oakland Athletics, after committing to play for the University of Texas. The following year, Boras negotiated a $1.55 million ( $2,784,925 today ) contract for Yankees first round pick Brien Taylor, who had said he would attend junior college if he did not receive a contract equal to Van Poppel 's. By June 2009, a figure as high as $15 million was floated for collegian pitcher Stephen Strasburg. Increasingly, teams drafted based on whether or not a player was likely to sign for a particular amount of money, rather than on his talent. This became known as a `` signability pick. '' Before the 1992 draft, team owners unilaterally decided to extend the period of time a team retained negotiating rights to a player from one year to five. In effect, the rule prohibited a high school draftee from attending college and re-entering the draft after his junior or senior seasons. The Major League Baseball Players Association filed a legal challenge, but Major League Baseball argued that, since the Players Association did not represent amateur players, it was not necessary for the union to agree to the change. An arbitrator ultimately decided that any change to draft articles must be negotiated with the Players Association. Media exposure This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( July 2013 ) The first - year player draft has historically had far less media exposure than its counterparts in the other leagues for three primary reasons : High school and college baseball, the primary sources of MLB draftees, are not nearly as popular as college football, college basketball, and, in Canada and certain parts of the U.S., college and junior hockey. Consequently, most prospective top draft picks were unknown to the casual sports observer at the time of their draft. However, this is slowly changing : NCAA baseball has enjoyed a spike in popularity in the 2000s and top collegiate baseball players have enjoyed greater media exposure, though still far below that of their basketball and football counterparts. Unlike top draft picks in the NHL, NBA, and NFL, all of whom are expected to make immediate impacts, top MLB draftees are nearly always assigned to the minor leagues for several years to hone their skills, usually at low levels ( Rookie or Class A ) initially. Due to this, fans can not see the newly drafted players perform immediately, causing them to forget or lose interest in them. The entire 2007 first round ( 64 players ) totaled one inning of major league playing time as of the end of the 2008 season ; as of the 2009 season, the vast majority of 2008 first - rounders were still assigned to minor league organizations. In contrast, every first - round pick in the 2008 NFL draft had played in the league by the end of the 2008 season. While many NHL, NBA, and NFL draftees will eventually reach their respective leagues, the vast majority of players selected in the first - year player draft will never play in a single MLB game, including many first - rounders. For example, only 31 of 52 first - round draft picks in the 1997 draft eventually made a big - league appearance, and only 13 of those 31 appeared in more than 100 games as of 2009. In 1997 's sixth round, only five of the 30 players selected eventually made a big league appearance, and only two of those five ( Tim Hudson and Matt Wise ) played more than 40 innings in the majors. Further illustrating the unpredictability of the draft 's middle and later rounds, none of the 30 players selected in the 18th round ever reached the major leagues, but the 19th round eventually produced an all - star and World Series MVP, David Eckstein. The 2007 draft was the first to be televised live, on June 7, 2007. The draft coverage took place at Disney 's Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World near Orlando, Florida. Since the 2009 draft, the first round of the draft has been broadcast annually on MLB Network live and in prime time from its studios in Secaucus, New Jersey. Procedures and rules Eligibility To be drafted, a player must fit the following criteria : Be a resident of, or have attended an educational institution in, the United States, Canada, or a U.S. territory such as Puerto Rico. Players from other countries are not subject to the draft, and can be signed by any team unless they have attended an educational institution in the aforementioned areas. Have never signed a major or minor league contract. High school players are eligible only after graduation, and if they have not attended college. Players at four - year colleges and universities are eligible three years after first enrolling in such an institution, or after their 21st birthdays ( whichever occurs first ). Junior and community college players are eligible to be drafted at any time. Draft order The general draft order is the reverse order of the previous year 's standings. If two teams finish with identical records, the previous year 's standings of the two teams is the tiebreaker, with the team having a worse record receiving the higher pick. Negotiating rights Prior to 2007, a team retained the rights to sign a selected player until one week prior to the next draft, or until the player enters, or returns to, a four - year college on a full - time basis. This was known as the `` draft - and - follow '' procedure. Starting in 2012, the deadline for signing a drafted player is July 15. A selected player who enters a junior college can not be signed until the conclusion of the school 's baseball season. A player who is drafted and does not sign with the club that selected him may be drafted again at a future year 's draft, so long as the player is eligible for that year 's draft. A club may not select a player again in a subsequent year, unless the player has consented to the re-selection. A player who is eligible to be selected and is passed over by every club becomes a free agent and may sign with any club, up until one week before the next draft, or until the player enters, or returns to, a four - year college full - time or enters, or returns to, a junior college. In the one - week period before any draft, which is called the `` closed period '', the general rule is that no club may sign a new player. Compensatory picks Currently, teams can earn compensatory picks in the draft based on departing free agents who reject a Qualifying Offer from their respective team. A qualifying offer is defined as a one - year contract worth the average value of the top 120 player contracts for that year ( in 2015, the value of the qualifying offer was $15.8 million ). The 2013 draft saw major changes to the compensation rules. This was implemented as part of the most recent collective bargaining agreement ( CBA ) between MLB and its players ' union, which took effect with the 2012 season. Pre-2013 rules Before the 2013 draft, free agents were ranked by the Elias Sports Bureau based on their previous two years of playing, and against players of similar positions. Players were categorized as either Type A or Type B, or fell into the category of all other players. Below is a description of each free agent class and the compensation the free agent 's former team received when the player signed with a different team. A Type A free agent was ranked in the top 20 percent of players at his position. A team that signed a Type A player gave its top draft pick to the club that the player left ; that club also received a supplemental pick in the `` sandwich '' round between the first and second rounds. A Type B free agent was ranked below the top 20 percent but in the top 40 percent of players at his position. A team that lost a Type B player received a supplemental pick, but the signing team did not lose a pick. All other players carried no compensation at all. There had previously been a third class of `` Type C '' players, but that was eliminated in the 2007 CBA. To earn a compensatory pick, a free agent must have been either signed before the arbitration deadline in early December, or offered arbitration by their former team but still signed with another team. Compensatory picks that one team gave another via this method were the highest available pick that team had, with the exception of picks in the top half of the first round. These picks were protected from being used as compensation. If a team that picked in the top half of the first draft signed a Type A free agent, they would give up their second - round pick. If a team owed two other teams draft picks via Type A free agents, the team whose departing player had a higher score got the higher - ranked pick. A team could not lose picks it earned via compensation. The post-2012 rules for this aspect of the draft are similar, except that the `` Type A '' and `` Type B '' designations no longer exist ( see below ). The order of the supplemental round between the first and second rounds, a feature that will remain in place in 2013 and beyond, is determined by inverse order of the previous year 's standings. Under pre-2013 rules, Type A picks were made first, and then the order reset for all the Type B compensation picks. In a feature that did not change with the most recent CBA in 2012, teams can also earn compensation for unsigned picks from the previous year 's draft. If a team does n't sign a first or second round pick, they will get to pick at the same slot plus one the following year. For example, if the team with the # 5 pick does not sign that player, they would have the # 6 pick the following year. The regular draft order would continue around those picks. For compensation for not signing a third round pick, teams would get a pick in a supplemental round between the third and fourth rounds. If a team fails to sign a player with one of these compensated picks, there is no compensation the following year. Current rules For the 2012 draft, the previous `` Type A '' and `` Type B '' designations remained in place, but the CBA included special provisions that modified the statuses of 11 players who were Type A free agents under the 2007 CBA. Six of these were `` Modified Type A '' -- meaning that the signing team did not forfeit a draft pick, but the player 's former team received a compensatory pick in the same position it would have earned under regular Type A rules. The remaining five were `` Modified Type B '', with compensation identical to that for other Type B free agents. Starting with the 2013 draft, free agents are no longer classified by `` type ''. Instead, a team is only able to receive compensation if it makes its former player an offer at least equal to the average of the 125 richest contracts. However, if a player is traded during the final season of his contract, his new team will be ineligible to receive any compensation. Other changes from 2012 The new CBA introduced other significant changes to the draft. Bonus pool From the 2012 draft on, each team is allocated a `` bonus pool '' from which it can offer initial contracts to its drafted players. Each team 's pool is based on its draft position and number of picks, plus the amount spent in the previous year 's draft. For the 2012 draft, these pools ranged from $4.5 million to $11.5 million. If a team goes over its threshold by 5 percent or less, it must pay a `` luxury tax '' of 75 % on the amount over the threshold. Teams that go 5 to 10 percent over must pay a 100 % tax on the excess, and will lose their next first - round pick. A team that goes 15 percent over can lose its next two first - round picks, in addition to the `` luxury tax ''. These excess picks will go to smaller - revenue teams via a yet - to - be-reported formula. Uniquely, these compensatory picks can be traded -- marking the first time MLB has allowed trading of draft picks. However, all previous rules against trading of regular picks, or picks awarded as free agent compensation, remain in force. New signing rules Teams can no longer offer major league contracts to their draft choices -- only minor league contracts are available. The only exception is for drafted players who have scholarships in other sports. Also, the date for signing new picks has moved from mid-August to mid-July. See also List of first overall Major League Baseball draft picks Rule 5 draft References ^ Jump up to : `` 826 Players Picked in Baseball Draft ''. The Burlington Free Press. Burlington, Vermont. AP. June 10, 1965. p. 26. Retrieved August 7, 2018 -- via newspapers.com. Jump up ^ `` Major League Baseball Draft ''. nytimes.com. Archived from the original on May 30, 2012. Jump up ^ Before the advent of the farm system, minor league players were under contract to their respective teams, rather than to a parent club. The minor league draft ( known today as the Rule 5 draft ) was later used to redistribute minor league players already under contract to major league teams. Jump up ^ `` Committee Passes on Baseball Rules : Heydler, kemp and Farrell Complete Work Codifying Interleague Laws '' ( PDF ). New York Times. February 24, 1921. p. 21. Jump up ^ Staudohar, Lowenthal, and Lima, pp. 27 - 28. Jump up ^ Hearings before the Antitrust Subcommittee, Committee on the Judiciary,, 85th Cong., 1st Sess. ( 1957 ) ( testimonies of Chuck Bednarik, Red Grange, Kyle Rote, and Jackie Robinson ). Jump up ^ Koppett, Leonard ( June 6, 1965 ). `` Baseball 's New Draft : Two Views ''. New York Times. pp. S3. ^ Jump up to : Daley, Arthur ( June 11, 1965 ). `` Sports of the Times : The World is Arrogate ''. New York Times. p. 22. Jump up ^ Staudohar, Paul ; Franklin Lowenthal ; Anthony K. Lima ( Fall 2006 ). `` The Evolution of Baseball 's Amateur Draft ''. NINE : A Journal of Baseball History and Culture. University of Nebraska Press. 15 ( 1 ) : 29. doi : 10.1353 / nin. 2006.0056. Retrieved 2007 - 02 - 16. Jump up ^ Treder, Steve ( November 1, 2004 ). `` Cash in the Cradle : The Bonus Babies ''. The Hardball Times. Retrieved 2007 - 02 - 28. Jump up ^ Simpson, Allan ( June 4, 2005 ). `` Bonus Concerns Created Draft ; Yet Still Exist ''. Baseball America. Retrieved 2007 - 02 - 16. Jump up ^ `` Clete Boyer ''. BaseballLibrary.com. Retrieved 2007 - 02 - 16. Jump up ^ Durso, Joseph ( December 3, 1964 ). `` Baseball 's Minors Follow Pro Football Pattern in Backing Free - Agent Draft ''. New York Times. p. 64. Jump up ^ `` 826 Players Picked in Baseball Draft ''. The Burlington Free Press. Burlington, Vermont. AP. June 10, 1965. p. 26. Retrieved August 7, 2018 -- via newspapers.com. ^ Jump up to : Koppett, Leonard ( February 28, 1965 ). `` Baseball 's New Draft '' ( PDF ). New York Times. p. 2 - S. Retrieved August 28, 2015. ( Subscription required ( help ) ). Jump up ^ Desmond, Dave ( January 15, 1986 ). `` Baseball 's Draft Has Everyone Guessing ''. Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on August 29, 2015. Jump up ^ `` Year Draft Results : Supplemental Phase ''. The Baseball Cube. Retrieved 2007 - 02 - 18. ^ Jump up to : `` Baseball Draft Index : 1965 - 2006 ''. The Baseball Cube. Retrieved 2007 - 02 - 28. Jump up ^ Staudohar, Lima, and Lowenthal, p. 39. Jump up ^ Jazayerli, Rany ( May 25, 2005 ). `` Doctoring the Numbers : The Draft, Part Three ''. Baseball Prospectus. Prospectus Entertainment Ventures, LLC. Retrieved 2007 - 02 - 28. Jump up ^ Jazayerli, Rani. `` Doctoring The Numbers Starting Them Young, Part One ''. Baseball Prospectus. Retrieved 6 August 2012. Jump up ^ Jazayerli, Rani. `` Doctoring The Numbers Starting Them Young, Part Two ''. Baseball Prospectus. Retrieved 6 August 2012. Jump up ^ There is some disagreement over who was the first player to surpass Reichardt 's bonus. Staudohar claims that Darryl Strawberry 's 1980 bonus equaled Reichardt 's, but it was actually worth only $200,000 ( $594,023 today ). Jazayerli credits Andy Benes, who signed with the San Diego Padres for $235,000 ( $486,266 today ) in 1988. Baseball America lists Todd Demeter, a career minor - leaguer drafted by the New York Yankees, as surpassing the milestone when he signed for a $208,000 ( $701,344 today ) bonus in 1979. `` Evolution of the Bonus Record ''. Baseball America. June 4, 2005. Retrieved 2007 - 02 - 28. Jump up ^ `` Evolution of the Bonus Record ''. Baseball America. June 4, 2005. Retrieved 2007 - 02 - 28. Jump up ^ `` Bo Jackson Takes Royals Over NFL ''. New York Times. June 22, 1986. Retrieved 2007 - 02 - 28. Jump up ^ Moran, Malcolm ( August 28, 1991 ). `` BASEBALL ; New to Yanks, New to City, Old Hand in Cutting a Deal ''. New York Times. Retrieved 2008 - 03 - 25. Jump up ^ Shaikin, Bill ( June 11, 2009 ). `` Stephen Strasburg 's deal looms as extraordinary, all right ''. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 12, 2010. Jump up ^ Chass, Murray ( June 2, 1992 ). `` ON BASEBALL ; Owners Take Leash And Make It Longer ''. New York Times. Retrieved 2008 - 03 - 25. Jump up ^ Staudohar, Lowenthal, and Lima, pp. 32 - 33. Jump up ^ ESPN.com news -- Coming this June : The MLB draft on TV Jump up ^ http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/features/9911dfe.html ^ Jump up to : http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/ask-ba/2008/267067.html Jump up ^ http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/ask-ba/2010/269378.html Jump up ^ Nicholson - Smith, Ben. `` Modified Procedure For Type A Free Agents ''. MLBTradeRumors.com. Retrieved November 30, 2011. ^ Jump up to : `` MLB players, owners sign agreement ''. ESPN.com. November 23, 2011. Retrieved November 23, 2011. ^ Jump up to : Stark, Jayson ( November 22, 2011 ). `` How the new CBA changes baseball ''. ESPN.com. Retrieved November 23, 2011. External links MLB.com official website MLB.com -- Draft history MLB.com -- Draft rules Major League Baseball number one overall draft picks 1965 : Rick Monday 1966 : Steve Chilcott 1967 : Ron Blomberg 1968 : Tim Foli 1969 : Jeff Burroughs 1970 : Mike Ivie 1971 : Danny Goodwin 1972 : Dave Roberts 1973 : David Clyde 1974 : Bill Almon 1975 : Danny Goodwin 1976 : Floyd Bannister 1977 : Harold Baines 1978 : Bob Horner 1979 : Al Chambers 1980 : Darryl Strawberry 1981 : Mike Moore 1982 : Shawon Dunston 1983 : Tim Belcher 1984 : Shawn Abner 1985 : B.J. Surhoff 1986 : Jeff King 1987 : Ken Griffey Jr. 1988 : Andy Benes 1989 : Ben McDonald 1990 : Chipper Jones 1991 : Brien Taylor 1992 : Phil Nevin 1993 : Alex Rodriguez 1994 : Paul Wilson 1995 : Darin Erstad 1996 : Kris Benson 1997 : Matt Anderson 1998 : Pat Burrell 1999 : Josh Hamilton 2000 : Adrian Gonzalez 2001 : Joe Mauer 2002 : Bryan Bullington 2003 : Delmon Young 2004 : Matt Bush 2005 : Justin Upton 2006 : Luke Hochevar 2007 : David Price 2008 : Tim Beckham 2009 : Stephen Strasburg 2010 : Bryce Harper 2011 : Gerrit Cole 2012 : Carlos Correa 2013 : Mark Appel 2014 : Brady Aiken 2015 : Dansby Swanson 2016 : Mickey Moniak 2017 : Royce Lewis 2018 : Casey Mize Major League Baseball first - round draft picks by team American League East Division Baltimore Orioles Boston Red Sox New York Yankees Tampa Bay Rays Toronto Blue Jays Central Division Chicago White Sox Cleveland Indians Detroit Tigers Kansas City Royals Minnesota Twins West Division Houston Astros Los Angeles Angels Oakland Athletics Seattle Mariners Texas Rangers National League East Division Atlanta Braves Miami Marlins New York Mets Philadelphia Phillies Washington Nationals Central Division Chicago Cubs Cincinnati Reds Milwaukee Brewers Pittsburgh Pirates St. Louis Cardinals West Division Arizona Diamondbacks Colorado Rockies Los Angeles Dodgers San Diego Padres San Francisco Giants Major League Baseball drafts First - year player drafts 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1984 1985 1986 1992 1993 1997 1998 2017 2018 2019 Rule 5 drafts Historical results Expansion drafts 1960 1961 1968 1976 1992 1997 Major League Baseball ( 2018 ) American League East Baltimore Orioles Boston Red Sox New York Yankees Tampa Bay Rays Toronto Blue Jays Central Chicago White Sox Cleveland Indians Detroit Tigers Kansas City Royals Minnesota Twins West Houston Astros Los Angeles Angels Oakland Athletics Seattle Mariners Texas Rangers National League East Atlanta Braves Miami Marlins New York Mets Philadelphia Phillies Washington Nationals Central Chicago Cubs Cincinnati Reds Milwaukee Brewers Pittsburgh Pirates St. Louis Cardinals West Arizona Diamondbacks Colorado Rockies Los Angeles Dodgers San Diego Padres San Francisco Giants Schedule Spring training Opening Day Jackie Robinson Day Civil Rights Game All - Star Game Interleague play International games Players Weekend World Baseball Classic Postseason World Series Champions AL AL Champions ALCS ALDS NL NL Champions NLCS NLDS Wild Card Game Appearances Streaks Droughts Series Business Draft Rule 5 Players Association Highest paid players Luxury tax Lockouts / strikes Winter Meetings Hot stove league Transactions Media Logo Radio Television MLB.com MLB Advanced Media Minor League Baseball Authentication Program Miscellaneous Instant replay Team uniforms Stadiums Mascots Rivalries History History AL Seasons Tie - breakers Tie - breaking procedures Records Awards Retired numbers Hall of Fame Steroid usage Drug policy suspensions Mitchell Report Juiced Vindicated Biogenesis baseball scandal BALCO scandal Game of Shadows Barry Bonds perjury case Timeline Timeline of Major League Baseball History of team nicknames Dead - ball era Live - ball era Golden age of baseball Defunct and relocated teams Relocation of the 1950s -- 60s Expansion 1961 1962 1969 1977 1993 1998 Commissioner : Rob Manfred League Presidents AL NL Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Major_League_Baseball_draft&oldid=853946313 '' Categories : Major League Baseball draft Hidden categories : CS1 : Julian -- Gregorian uncertainty Pages containing links to subscription - only content Articles needing additional references from July 2013 All articles needing additional references Talk Contents About Wikipedia Deutsch Français 한국어 Italiano 日本 語 Suomi Svenska Edit links This page was last edited on 7 August 2018, at 23 : 41 ( UTC ). 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Question: why does mlb have so many draft rounds
Answer: under the current collective bargaining agreement the draft lasts 40 rounds, plus compensatory picks