MLB Proposal Looking To Drastically Change the Draft

by Marc Narducci | Jun 26, 2026

After reading a recent article in The Athletic by Evan Drellich about the upcoming Major League Baseball negotiations with the Player’s Union, there is only one conclusion to make – there is going to be a lockout after this season and it could be a lengthy one.

Let’s hope this assessment is wrong, but it’s difficult at this point to be optimistic.

The contract with the Player’s Association expires on Dec. 1 and based on some of the proposals mentioned in Drellich’s article, the owners don’t appear serious about having a baseball season in 2027.

One of the things that is mentioned in the article is that the owners are proposing an international draft. That is one thing that both sides might be able to agree on.

Other than that, they appear to be polar opposites.

The most controversial proposal in the article was that starting with the 2028 domestic draft, the owners want the draftees to be at least 20 years-old by Sept. 1 of that year. It would require players to be at least two years removed from high school graduation before being eligible to be drafted. This would not only impact high school players but some junior college players as well. Currently, a junior college player can be drafted after one season, but this new rule would make it two seasons.

This is something the Players Association would likely never agree to.

What this does is extend the free agent clock for players making them free agents much later.

Currently a player can become a free agent after reaching six years of Major League Baseball service time. The regular season consists of 187 days, and a player is credited with one year of service time upon reaching 172 days in a given season.

That means if a player is drafted at 20 and spends three years in the minors (including a partial season the year the player is drafted), which is reasonable even for a high draft choice, he would start his baseball clock at 23. After the six seasons, he would become a free agent when turning 29.

Players drafted and signed after high school or after one year of junior college, can potentially reach free agency sooner.

The owners want a player to begin free agency later because the free agent stars are the ones who get big contracts. Two extra years to get started makes a huge difference.

This new rule would allow college players to be drafted a year earlier, than now. Currently a player who attends a four-year college can’t be drafted until after his third season or in some cases after the second year depending on age.

MLB came out with a comment in the article about why they want to push up the age of players getting drafted.

“By creating a draft system centered around college-aged players and making most college players eligible one year earlier, more players will benefit from both a college education and an elite development environment while reaching professional baseball — and ultimately the major leagues — more quickly.”

That is not necessarily true. Players wouldn’t automatically reach the big leagues quicker after two years of college. And don’t think for a moment that MLB cares about the education of the players. They just want to push back the time a player can become a free agent.

The union countered the argument by stating in the article that the age 20 requirement would “destroy fundamental player rights.”

It’s hard believing that the union would go for this proposal.

Another proposal would be to reduce the draft from 20 rounds to 12. As recently as 2019, the draft was 40 rounds. In 2021, MLB eliminated 40 minor league teams to 120 and reducing the draft could again have MLB owners reduce more minor league teams. The article states that minor league teams are on 10-year contracts that expire in 2030.

MLB owners have previously proposed a salary cap, which is another non-starter for the union.

There is a long way to go before the Dec. 1 contract expires, but if the owners are intent on sticking to the proposed measures, including a salary cap, then baseball fans shouldn’t be very optimistic about having a full season, if one at all in 2027.

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Author: Marc Narducci

MLB Proposal Looking To Drastically Change the Draft

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