As MLB prepares its proposal to the MLBPA on economics issues next Tuesday, let’s take a look at some other notes related to the league’s shutdown.
- In the wake of massive revenue losses, MLB has instituted a five round draft in 2020, down from its usual forty, with undrafted players’ signing bonuses capped at $20K. Limiting the selection pool will no doubt push many talented prep prospects to college, but it could also spur some to take a less traditional route. Alex Speier of the Boston Globe argues the shortened draft and spending limits could push some undrafted players to pursue immediate pro opportunities in Japan or South Korea, where their earning potential would be significantly higher. Indeed, at least one team in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball is already preparing for an unusually high volume of undrafted talent, Speier reports. Such a move wouldn’t be entirely without precedent. Right-hander Carter Stewart signed a six-year deal with NPB’s Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in lieu of reentering the MLB draft after medical issues derailed his talks with the Braves, who had selected him in the first round out of high school in 2018.
- More from Speier, who also examines the potential repercussions of the shutdown on pitcher usage this season. He spoke with Dr. Christopher Ahmad, who warned earlier this month that play stoppages at all levels could lead to a spike in Tommy John surgeries if pitchers attempt to ramp back up too quickly. Ahmad reiterated to Speier that the risks may not be as prevalent for MLB players, whose personal training has been better regimented and supervised remotely by club staff, than they are for amateur players who have had less oversight in recent months. Nevertheless, MLB players won’t be immune from consequences if the league is able to return. An abbreviated Spring Training 2.0 and likely expansion of rosters will cause teams to curtail their pitchers’ workloads whenever possible, Speier feels.
- Yesterday, the Blue Jays guaranteed their employees there would be no furloughs or layoffs through at least October 1. Team president Mark Shapiro tells John Lott of the Athletic the organization’s ability to keep people on-board enables them to deploy staff in unconventional ways. Most notably, minor-league coaches and analysts, who in a normal setting would have daily gameday responsibilities, have been brought into the Blue Jays’ draft process this year. Those coaches and player development staff have taken on a larger than normal role in evaluating potential selections’ mechanics and projections, Shapiro tells Lott.
Good on the Jays, more organizations need to be doing this.
my beloved angels need to learn something from them.
BlueJays, are a very well run organization, which will only keep getting better.
Why are the Blue Jays a very well run organization in your opinion? Besides paying employees.
I agree completely. First the Jays improved the quality of food for the minor leaguers (better eating habits should lead to better athletes, just ask any Olympian). Then they added more mental health supports throughout the organization (forget where I read it, but I recall it coming up somewhere). Now involving everyone they can in the draft process – I know if I was there I’d have even the ticket takers involved by having them hunt down/sort/organize the video that exists for amateurs and minor leaguers. The more data available the better the team can figure out who to draft, who to trade for, etc. Take full advantage if you are paying them anyways. Rogers owns the stadium and I know the offices are a good size (been in there for a SABR meeting about 15 years ago). Heck, use the private boxes too for them to do the work. Why not? Easier for social distancing if they want to come in rather than work from home.
Great! Can’t play baseball at a high level but the darn diet is top notch! As for mental health, teams have had mental health professionals privately for years so this is nothing new. Then the Jays have too many cooks in the kitchen with the draft process. More involvement does not translate to better.
This is a results-driven league and the people running the organization along with the owner have yet to show consistently strong results over 20 years. All that you pointed out was nice. Nothing to brag or get too excited over.
Wild Bill, you’re just a bottle of sunshine today. Stay positive, my man.
the NPB and KBO should make one tean each entirely of college age or slightly older import players. that idea might be very lucrative for them going forward, even id this is a one-off.
Their development is the question.
Financially some players could be interested but the fact is players are going to do what is best for their future
As of right now that is college baseball.
You are seeing a lot of players pretty much saying they are going to stick with their commitments.
Japanese or Korean baseball isn’t great for a young American pitcher
Language is an issue but also because neither league is developing players who are playing our game.
Hard 4 Seam fastballs. Their development is more with breaking balls and looking to confuse and fool a hitter instead of overpowering
So they’re developing pitchers while US is developing throwers.
i dont see the argument here. the reason these leagues arent developing players like colleges are is because no one besides Carter Stewart has really tried it yet. if you want the games on ESPN the quality of play is just about the same. it the same game and these guys would absolutely benefit from this. you see what is going on with players in other sports going directly to the G-League, or how the XFL wanted to draft high school players. these leagues could be that for baseball, but they only lack the foreign roster spots to do it.
Not the same game
Watch the pitching.
When you see an American pitcher watch the difference between him and a Korean pitcher who was developed by them.
G League was brought in because College Basketball is different than the NBA and at times College Basketball wasn’t serving its purpose.
I don’t see merit to your argument. How would it be counter productive for pitcher coming out of college to go over either league to face tougher competition and develop their off speed pitches? We all know that major leaguers can hit a fastball, outs come with location and mixing pitches/speeds. If some college senior can go over there make some money, experience life outside the US and possibly develop skills that will help them transition to a career in MLB, that is a win, win, win situation.
All the seniors in college have an extra year of eligibility anyway.
Every player has the choice of going back to school because of the NCAA.
So their options aren’t limited.
Not about throwing exclusively fastballs it is using your fastball. Being able to locate you fastball.
HS pitchers who aren’t drafted are the ones I am speaking about.
They need College Baseball. Much better for their career than playing in Japan or Korea.
If a player is playing his senior year of college
Majority of time he isn’t someone that majors really want anyway.
All the high end college players leave after the junior year.
The issue here isn’t those players it is the HS seniors
The 40-80 players who have a huge choice because they most likely won’t be drafted.
Young hitters could be different
I don’t think either league is great for a young pitcher nor catcher
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NPB and KBO should expand, especially with all these undrafted players that are most likely going over there to play
kbo teams are heavily financed by huge corporations in a form of advertisement. i don’t know if korean people are going to support a team full of americans. our military stationed there would certainly appreciate them, though.
Both leagues have a limit on foreigners on their active rosters, 4 in Japan, 3 in Korea. I don’t know if it’s an idea of protecting jobs for their own players or the fans wouldn’t go for too many foreigners. They aren’t going to change it because they can get more players.
Most of these players wouldn’t be developed enough to player in the NPB and could go to their minor league. There’s no foreign player limit there.
The Jays may lead the league on free agent spending but they have shown that they spend on those who need the money – minor leaguers and the lower earning staff. These are the people that work behind the scenes to bring a successful team to the field. A class act.
Correction. “May,not”. My first post ever and I mess it up 🙁
I thought for a moment I was back in 1993.
I’m a big Jays fan and it’s been great to see them doing the right thing for their staff and minor leaguers.
Hoping that these moves along with the big investment they’ve made in their training and development complex this year will help attract a few more young players into the system. Especially this year with the signing bonus cap.
I remain unconvinced the Shapkins duo will have what it takes to put a true Championship contender on the field but I totally (after some time) support their franchise building efforts otherwise. They have proven to be, if not League leaders, at least willing to adapt strategies in the effort to get better.
They have earned my respect for their efforts, if not their results.
This is a wins and losses league. Until the Blue Jays start winning we can tone down the class act rhetoric. Results would be nice. That would help your weak argument, Mikey.
Well said
I have a feeling that this shortened draft will play right into MLB’s hands when it comes to eliminating minor league teams. As far as going overseas to make money, I know Korea has a limit on the # of foreigners and those spots seem to be filled by former big league players. I don’t think they will waste spots on high school kids unless they are like 1st round talents and/or they commit to an extended # of years.
at the same time, lose the talents to other sports. and in turn, lose more younger fans.
I agree completely. In fact I think they have already done that.
Could be losing talent, but I think the bigger loss they want to recover is how much the product has been watered down and spread out too thinly. Always the double edge sword of great expansion: you create more opportunities and can draw people from a greater area, but the product suffers from division of attention and resources needed to keep the quality up. Eliminating the outfits that aren’t performing well is the quick fix to rein things back in. Given new economic squeezing, it becomes more than necessary.
They will reach less audience but hope to be more efficient in creating a product that sells well. At the end, sports are a business, man. In an ideal world they just ride losses and try to appeal and put their product in front of as many people as they can. But this world is not ideal.
Very true.
It’s amazing how people can make so much money but be so short sighted about their future opportunities to make more but driving away an entire next generation of future customers
It’s great to see the organizational enhancements taking place under Mark Shapiro’s leadership, particularly when contasted to to Clowncar front offices that preceded his, under JP Ricciardi and his intern Alex Anthopolous.