MLBPA Proposes Expanded Draft Eligibility, June Return

Baseball players want to expand amateur-draft eligibility while keeping 20 rounds and moving the draft to June, including college sophomores alongside upperclassmen and high school seniors, and to boost signing bonuses and flexibility in trades amid looming CBA talks. MLB counterproposals would eliminate high school and junior college eligibility, reduce the draft to 12 rounds by 2027, and pursue broader arena rules such as a potential salary cap, signaling a coming labor confrontation in the CBA negotiations.