The first round of the MLB Rule 4 draft begins today. Though no one calls it the Rule 4 draft, but I thought why not. This is the draft where Major League draft amateur player into their organization with the hopes they will someday help the big squad. The rules of eligibility are pretty simple for American born citizens and Canadians. In case you didn't know it, players from places like Puerto Rico are U.S. citizens.
The rules for eiligibility are the following:
Eligibility
To be drafted a player must fit the following criteria:
- Be a resident of 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 are current members of college teams in the aforementioned countries).
- 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 are eligible after completing their junior years, or after their twenty-first birthdays. The exception to this is Division III schools, where players can be drafted before their junior year.
Junior and community college players are eligible to be drafted at any time.
I think that the first round and the compensation round A is tonight, but I could be wrong on the compensation round. That really doesn't matter seeing how the Marlins have the 23rd pick in the first round and don't have a compensation pick. The first round draft starts at 7:00 p.m.
Last year I did a bunch of research and even went to see some of the potentials play, but I didn't do that this year. So I have no idea who the Marlins have on their minds. However, that doesn't mean other people aren't putting their guesses in.
Here is what John Sickles of Minor League Ball thinks the teams from the National East will do.
BP concurs, which I'm starting to think isn't a good thing.
However, Andy Seller of MLB Bonus Baby has the Marlins going in a different direction.
If you want to follow the draft and your method of following is a computer, go here:
If you are doing it via mobile, this is the place to follow along:
Should you be at home when the Draft takes place you can watch on the MLB Network, should you get it, I don't but maybe you do. If history is any indicator, ESPN should have some coverage of it. But no matter, whomever the Marlins select, it will be at least a few years before we see them in a Marlins uniform. Still, that doesn't take the fun out of following along.
Day two and three get really interesting when the major league teams start playing speed chess against each other. More about that tomorrow.