MLB Draft Eligibility: How can players be drafted in a professional baseball team?

For those who only follow sport within Europe, the idea of a drafting system seems very unusual, but it is the norm in American sports.

In Major League Baseball, the Rule 4 Draft is the official term for the First-Year Player Draft, which is an amateur draft that is held every year.

Players must be a resident of the United States (U.S. territories, such as Puerto Rico, apply) or Canada to be eligible for the draft.

Players who have graduated high school but not attended college are eligible for the draft, as are those who have completed at least one year of junior college.

Players attending four-year colleges are eligible to be drafted upon completing their junior year or turning 21 years old.

A collective bargaining agreement came into play between 2022 and 2026 which means the Rule 4 Draft will conclude after 20 rounds and it can be held any time each year between June 1 and July 20.

In the first 10 rounds of the Draft, each pick has got an assigned value. The total for each of a club’s selections equals what it can spend on signing bonuses for players selected in those rounds without incurring a penalty.

In the event that a player who was selected in those first 10 rounds does not sign, his value is subtracted from his club’s pool.

Penalties for overspending

There are financial and sporting penalties in place for teams that end up overspending in the Draft.

A team that outspends its pool by 0-5 percent pays a 75 percent tax on the overage. At higher thresholds, clubs lose future picks: a first-rounder and a 75 percent tax for surpassing their pool by more than 5 and up to 10 percent; a first- and a second-rounder and a 100 percent tax for more than 10 and up to 15 percent; and two first-rounders and a 100 percent tax for more than 15 percent.