Major League Baseball is trying to create buzz around their draft much like the NFL does with their draft. Over the weekend they held an MLB Draft Combine, again much like the NFL holds a draft combine. Over 250 draft prospects were at the combine, did we get a glimpse of someone the Diamondbacks will want to add to their farm system? When is the draft? What selections do the Diamondbacks have? Plus, we will talk about such terms as bonus pool, draft slot, and how the competitive balance tax threshold figures into the 2022 MLB Player Draft.
1) The draft takes place July 17th-19th in Los Angeles covered by MLB Network.
2) There are 20 rounds in the draft with a total of 616 selections. The 1st round will have a total of 39 selections.
3) The Arizona Diamondbacks have 2 picks in round 1. The number 2 pick is based on their 2021 record, and the 34th pick is based on a formula that considers winning percentage and revenue.
4) The Los Angeles Dodgers do does not have a 1st round pick, they have the 1st pick in the 2nd round. This is because their 1st round pick dropped 10 spots due to exceeding the competitive tax threshold.
5) In the 2nd round the Diamondbacks have the 2nd pick, #43 overall. In the 3rd round, they have the 2nd pick as well, number 82 overall. In the 4th round, they again have the 2nd pick number 108 overall and will continue to have the second pick for each subsequent round.
6) Each team has a bonus pool of money. That bonus pool must cover all of a team's picks in the first 10 rounds. For the 2022 Draft, the Arizona Diamondbacks have a bonus pool amount of $15,112,100.
7) Because of the bonus pool concept, teams don't always take the best available player. The cost of signing players plays a major role in some of the picks, especially in the first few rounds.
8) The Baltimore Orioles have the first pick in the 2022 MLB Draft. If Baltimore follows their draft history, they will decide to spread their money out more evenly than spending a higher portion on a 1st or 2nd round pick. That should allow the best, and most expensive pick to fall to number 2.
9) The Arizona Diamondbacks, who have the second pick in the draft usually will not allow the possible cost of a pick to deter them from taking a certain player, at least according to their draft history.
10) Each draft slot in the first 10 rounds of the MLB draft is assigned a certain amount of guaranteed bonus money it can offer that player, referred to as the “slot value.” The slot value is guaranteed in the form of a signing bonus.
11) 12 teams have 8-figure bonus pools. The Dodgers, who saw their top pick drop from 30 to 40 as a penalty for exceeding the competitive balance tax threshold -- and forfeited two other selections for signing free agent Freddie Freeman -- have the smallest pool at $4,221,400
12) The pools for all 30 clubs total $279,850,600. Teams that exceed their bonus pool face a penalty. Clubs that outspend their allotment by 0-5 percent pay a 75 percent tax on the overage. At higher thresholds, clubs lose future picks: a first-rounder and a 75 percent tax for surpassing their pool by more than 5 and up to 10 percent; a first- and a second-rounder and a 100 percent tax for more than 10 and up to 15 percent; and two first-rounders and a 100 percent tax for more than 15 percent.