2018 MLB Draft Primer: What Mariners Fans Need to Know About the MLB Draft

Quirky MLB Draft Rules

Perhaps the biggest difference in the MLB draft and its other contemporaries, is what happens on draft day itself. Or rather, what doesn’t happen: trades. Yes, Major League Baseball is the only draft where trading picks isn’t allowed.

There is much debate about whether or not MLB should change this rule. Those in favor, suggest it would make the draft more of an event for fans to watch. It would also add another layer to baseball’s extensive trading practice.

However, others worry that allowing such trades would turn the draft back into an auction. For example, a player wants to play for the Yankees, and won’t sign with the team that has the first round pick. The debate is a fascinating one, but not one we are going to get into here.

Compensatory and Competitive Balance Picks

The next little quirk about the MLB draft are the compensatory and competitive balance picks. Compensatory picks are given to teams who lose a player who was offered a qualifying offer in free agency. For more details, give this Sports Illustrated article a read .

Competitive balance picks are a bit complicated. MLB designates them as such:

"The 10 lowest-revenue clubs and the clubs from the 10 smallest markets are eligible to receive a Competitive Balance pick (fewer than 20 clubs are in the mix each year, as some clubs qualify under both criteria). All eligible teams are assigned a pick, either in Competitive Balance Round A or Round B. Round A falls between the first and second rounds of the Rule 4 draft, while Round B comes between the second and third."

Unlike the other draft picks, these picks are eligible for trade, but only during the regular season, and not for cash. The pick can only change hands 1 time. These trades are quite rare though.