Major League Baseball didn’t see a new Collective Bargaining Agreement announced today, although there have been a few reports of progress that was made today:
–Ken Rosenthal said that significant progress was made in the CBA talks today.
–Buster Olney reported that the owners and the union were looking at solutions for Type A free agency. Olney mentioned two solutions:
1. Instead of the new team giving the old team a draft pick, the old team would get a compensation pick between the first and second round. Currently Type A and Type B free agents get a first round compensation pick. The difference with Type A players is that they also get a second pick, coming from the team. Olney wasn’t clear on whether teams would still get two picks for their departing Type A free agents.
2. Teams would have to offer 120% of the player’s previous salary, or an average of the top five highest-paid players at his position, whichever is higher. This is similar to the NFL’s Franchise tag. This would still net picks for the top free agents, but would pretty much make it impossible for lesser players to land draft picks.
-Kevin Goldstein had two updates. In his first update he mentioned that the rumor on the draft is that there will be a luxury tax if a team goes over a certain threshold on all amateur signings. In a follow up he added that there was a discussion on the compensation rules that would greatly reduce the number of compensation picks.
Tim started Pirates Prospects in 2009 from his home in Virginia, which was 40 minutes from where Pedro Alvarez made his pro debut in Lynchburg. That year, the Lynchburg Hillcats won the Carolina League championship, and Pirates Prospects was born from Tim's reporting along the way. The site has grown over the years to include many more writers, and Tim has gone on to become a credentialed MLB reporter, producing Pirates Prospects each year, and will publish his 11th Prospect Guide this offseason. He has also served as the Pittsburgh Pirates correspondent for Baseball America since 2019. Behind the scenes, Tim is an avid music lover, and most of the money he gets paid to run this site goes to vinyl records.
If the Type A draft picks go out the window. Could this lead to a lot more trading going on? Instead of keeping a “Free Agent- to- be” now because he could net you a first or supplemental or 2nd round pick, teams will probably start trading more to gain value. Is this right or wrong?
I’m not sure how much it will affect trade values. Players still get traded, despite the Type A/Type B status. The Orioles, for example, might have been better off keeping Derrek Lee and offering him arbitration, hoping that he nets them a first round compensation pick. Instead they took Aaron Baker, who isn’t anywhere near the value of a first round pick.
The big thing this would change is the market for relievers. Teams have been hesitant to give up draft picks to sign relievers over the last few years, and rightfully so when you consider how little value relievers have, and how easy they are to find.