MLBPA calls to preserve draft system after owners' proposal - ESPN

The players' union made its proposal for the domestic draft on Tuesday, one that runs in stark contrast to what Major League Baseball's owners proposed in bargaining last month.

Thirty-three days after the league proposed cutting the draft from 20 to 12 rounds, slashing amateur signing bonuses by more than $150 million and preventing high school players from entering, the MLBPA called to preserve the current system while also opening more doors to younger players.

The MLBPA proposed not only to maintain draft eligibility for high school and junior college players but also for those from four-year universities to be eligible after their sophomore years, regardless of age. College sophomores are currently only eligible if they are at least 21 years old by Aug. 1 of their draft year.

The MLBPA wants to maintain a system where signing bonus pools grow with industry revenues — it was $358.7 million in 2026, up from $350.4 million in 2025 — and provide small-market teams with the ability to increase them. Under their proposal, teams designated as «small market» under the collective bargaining agreement could add $2 million to their bonus pools in one draft over the next five years. A small-market team would also get an additional $1 million in bonus pool money for making the playoffs the prior year.

The MLBPA wants to preserve competitive balance picks, whereby low-revenue and small-market teams are eligible to receive a pick in Round A (between the first and second rounds) or Round B (between the second and third rounds).

The union also proposed reducing the tax penalties levied at teams that go over their allotted pools. The current CBA includes a 75% overage tax and the loss of a first-round pick for teams that outspend