With just a 60-game regular-season schedule being played, their had been some chatter that the 2021 MLB Draft order would be based on last seasons’ records rather than using records from a shortened season. If that were the case, the Detroit Tigers would have received the No. 1 overall pick for the second season in a row.
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Unfortunately, according to Jeff Passan, it sounds like MLB will use this seasons’ records to determine the draft order, which means no luck for the Tigers. As you will see below, if the season ended today, the Tigers would have the No. 7 overall pick.
From Jeff Passan:
While MLB has yet to announce whether teams’ 2020 records will determine draft order, a source familiar with the league’s thinking said that the clause written into MLB’s March agreement with the players’ association that gave the league the right to determine draft order was a contingency in case the season was canceled well before records were indicative of much. Even though 60 games doesn’t give the full picture of who’s really good and who isn’t, the source said it’s highly likely that the draft order will be determined by this year’s record.
If that’s the case, this is a big week for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Their magic number to clinch the No. 1 pick is three. As of Tuesday, the draft top 10 would be:
1. Pittsburgh
2. Texas
3. Boston
4. Arizona
5. Washington
6. Kansas City
7. Detroit
8. Baltimore
9. Seattle
10. Los Angeles Angels
The top of the 2021 draft is loaded, with Vanderbilt’s two stud right-handers, Kumar Rocker and Jack Leiter, along with a Vandy recruit, Dallas-area shortstop Jordan Lawlar, who some evaluators believe might be the best of the three.
