The 2021 MLB amateur draft is only days away. In an effort to better market the event, MLB has pushed the draft back to the All-Star break this season, rather than its usual first week of June. The three-day event begins Sunday, July 11.
MLB and the MLBPA resolved several pandemic-related issues last March, including those involving the annual amateur draft. Last year's draft was shortened to five rounds (from 40) to cut costs. This year's draft will be 20 rounds, the minimum allowed under last March's agreement, and bonus pools will remain at 2020 levels, which were the same as 2019.
Thanks to their 19-41 record during the shortened 60-game 2020 season, the Pirates hold the No. 1 pick in the 2021 draft. MLB does not have a draft lottery. The draft order is set in the reverse order of the previous year's standings. This is the fifth time the Pirates have held the No. 1 pick, joining 1986 (Jeff King), 1996 (Kris Benson), 2002 (Bryan Bullington), and 2011 (Gerrit Cole).
"I think I can say that we've gotten it down to single digits," Pirates GM Ben Cherington recently said during an interview with 93.7 The Fan when asked about targets for the No. 1 pick (via MLB.com's Jake Crouse). "...There are a lot of good players at the top of this draft, and they're pretty tightly packed together. We're going to spend the next few weeks seeing if we can separate them."
These days all first-round picks are protected from free-agent compensation. Teams instead give up later draft picks (and international bonus money) to sign qualified free agents. Despite that, the Astros do not have a first- or second-round pick this year. They were stripped of their top two picks this year and last as part of their punishment for the sign-stealing scandal.
Each team is given a set bonus pool for draft spending each summer. The penalties for excessive spending are harsh enough (tax on overage, forfeiting a future first rounder, etc.) that the bonus pool effectively acts as a hard cap. The bonus pools are tied to picks in the top 10 rounds, and if you give one player a below-slot bonus, you can give the savings to another player(s).
Here are the five largest bonus pools for this year's draft:
- Pirates: $14,394,000
- Tigers: $14,253,800
- Rangers: $12,641,000
- Reds: $11,905,700
- Orioles: $11,829,300
The Rangers hold the No. 2 pick but have a smaller bonus pool than the Tigers, who hold the No. 3 pick, because Detroit received the No. 32 pick in the competitive balance lottery. Texas does not receive a competitive balance pick, which are extra picks given to lower-revenue teams. The Astros have the smallest bonus pool at $2,940,600 as a result of their forfeited picks.
Here are R.J. Anderson's most recent top 50 draft prospect rankings as well as our first (June 11) and second (June 25) mock drafts. Now here is our final mock draft based on the latest rumors, chatter, and outright guesswork.
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