First year player draft
The first year player draft (also called the entry draft) is a Bull Baseball League annual event that allows the entry of amateur players from college and high school leagues into the professional baseball system and assigning those players to the teams within the Bull League. The draft order is determined by the previous season's standings, with the team having the worst record receiving the first pick.
The Bull League has had a draft since 1995, although the size of the pool and number of rounds has varied. It is always held in mid-season.
Contents
Process and rules
Eligibility
Only players who are in (or have previously been in) one of the affiliated "feeder" leagues are eligible to be drafted. They must also meet the age criteria depending on which feeder they are eligible from.
Affiliated feeder leagues and qualifying ages
In 2017, the league introduced a feeder league system to provide talented, eligible players for drafting into the Bull League. Prior to this, players in the draft came from various unaffiliated leagues and schools.
| League | Level | Region | Age ranges | Elibility age(s) | Approximate # of eligble players |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NCAA Division I | College | USA  |
18-22 | 21-22 | 384 |
| Canadian Intercollegiate | College | Canada  |
18-22 | 21-22 | 240 |
| Pacific Rim College League | College | Asia-Pacific     |
18-22 | 21-22 | 240 |
| Can-Am College League | College (Junior) |
US-Canada (and others)   |
18-22 | 18-22 | 720 |
| Nor-Am High School League | High school | North America  |
15-18 | 18 | 240 |
Draft order
Generally, the draft proceeds in reverse order of the previous season's standings. The team with the worst record selects first, and so on. Therefore, Bull Cup Champion will not necessarily select last if they were not the team with the best record.
Because trading of draft picks is permitted, the order can vary from the original order in any particular round, depending on whether or not draft picks have been traded to another team. This can often result in one team having multiple selections in a round, or a team having no selections in a round.
Negotiating rights
Players who are drafted in the first five rounds, and those who have a financial demand (i.e., not just a "slot" on a roster), will be subject to negotiations before signing with a team.
Teams have a right to negotiate with players for just two months, after which, if they remain unsigned, they can return to their original team (or, if a high school player, join a new college team), or become a free agent, if their age exceeds the feeder system ages.
Due to recent changes in the CBA, drafted players may not sign a major-league contract. They must, at least initially, be signed to a minor league contract.
Compensatory picks
Teams may receive additional draft selections, called compensatory picks. There are two types of compensatory picks. With the first type, a compensatory pick is awarded due to players drafted in the top three rounds of the prior draft failing to sign.
The other involves involves players going into free agency at the end of a season, and can be a bit more complicated. First, a player may or may not be "compensation eligible" depending on whether their contract demand would place them among the top paid players in the league, and whether they have spent the entire year on the roster of their current team. If they are compensation eligible, in other words, a potentially highly sought-after player in free agency, then their current team must make a qualifying offer (the value of which changes from season to season depending on league average salaries).
If the player accepts the offer, they remain with the team at the agreed salary and no compensatory picks are awarded or lost. If the player does not accept the offer, their current team will receive a compensatory pick should the player sign with another team.
The pick received by the team losing the player will be in the supplemental round, which is between the first round and the second round. The team signing the free agent will forfeit a pick. If the team is drafting in the first ten picks of the first round, they will lose their second-highest pick. Otherwise, the team will lose their highest-pick. For each compensation eligible free agent signed, the team will forfeit their next-highest pick.
Competitive balance picks
The Commissioner of the league has the right to award "competitive balance" picks at his sole discretion, normally for the purpose of ensuring a team that has had a change of managerial staff is not unduly affected by perceived imbalanced draft pick trades or roster management decisions made by a previous manager. These picks are usually awarded for the supplementary or "sandwich" round immediately following the 1st round picks.
First overall pick history
The table below lists the first overall picks from each draft from 1995 to the present. The draft pick with the highest bonus is listed in bold.
| Year | Name | Pos. | Team | Level | School | Country | Bonus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Dan Robinson | RHP | California Tidals | College | UBC | Canada |
$3,520,000 |
| 1996 | Matthew Cross | RF | California Tidals | HS | (CA) | USA |
$3,960,000 |
| 1997 | Phil "Bucket" Jenkins | RHP | California Tidals | HS | (CA) | USA |
$4,895,000 |
| 1998 | Jesse Nelson | 2B | Toronto Ducks | College | UBC | Canada |
$3,927,000 |
| 1999 | Kenny Reagan | CF | Denver Highlanders | College | UBC | Canada |
$4,435,200 |
| 2000 | Pirate Pete | RHP | Denver Highlanders | College | UofT | Canada |
$4,065,000 |
| 2001 | Chris Johnson | RHP | Toronto Ducks | College | UBC | Canada |
$1,950,000 |
| 2002 | Ash Wednesday | RHP | Toronto Ducks | College | UBC | Canada |
$3,200,000 |
| 2003 | Player did not sign | N/A | Kingston Battlements | Not applicable | |||
| 2004 | Justin "Flamethrower" Good | 2B | Kingston Battlements | College | UWO | Canada |
$2,385,000 |
| 2005 | Ron Alder | RHP | Kingston Battlements | HS | (NS) | Canada |
$2,970,000 |
| 2006 | Dave Mudhoney | SS | Boston Brawlers | HS | (IL) | USA |
$3,075,000 |
| 2007 | Judson "Fivespot" Martel[1] | RHP | Boston Brawlers | College | UBC | Canada |
$4,045,000 |
| 2008 | Logans Run[2] | 1B | Boston Brawlers | College | Wilfred Laurier | Canada |
$4,045,000 |
| 2009 | Ian "Alley Cat" Thomas | RHP | Boston Brawlers | HS | Ruskin (MO) | USA |
$3,455,000 |
| 2010 | Marcus Cook | RHP | Denver Highlanders | College | UBC | Canada |
$4,800,000 |
| 2011 | Lowell Woodford | CF | Boston Brawlers | HS | (ON) | Canada |
$4,840,000 |
| 2012 | Chris "Bow Wow" Dow | RHP | Battle Creek Attack | HS | (BC) | Canada |
$3,780,000 |
| 2013 | Earl "Blur" MacPherson[3] | C | Norfolk Sharks | College | Dalhousie | Canada |
$4,230,000 |
| 2014 | Ricardo "Vago" Perez | RHP | Battle Creek Attack | College | Temple | USA |
$5,280,000 |
| 2015 | Tyler "Lumpy" Mixon | RHP | Dallas Lawmen | HS | (CT) | USA |
$5,740,000 |
| 2016 | Dennis Guppy[4] | CF | Chicoutimi Cinquantes | College | Atlantic Baptist | Canada |
$6,050,000 |
| 2017 | Ben Price[5] | RF | Battle Creek Attack | HS | DSA (TX) | USA |
$6,600,000 |
| 2018 | Scott Cichon[6] | LHP | Arizona Cowboys | College | Duke | USA |
$3,960,000 |
| 2019 | John Rambo[7] | RF | Chicago Pit Bulls | College | Arizona State | USA |
$3,080,000 |
| 2020 | Jonathan Davis | P/2B | Dallas Deputies | College | Indiana Hoosiers | USA |
$6,850,000 |
| 2021 | Josh Moore | P | Seattle Salts | College | Florida State Seminoles | USA |
$6,140,000 |
| 2022 | Kin Ryu | P | Ohio Oxen | College | Hanoi College Beacons | Japan |
Failed to sign |
| 2023[1] | Kin Ryu | P | Washington Freedom | College | Hanoi College Beacons | Japan |
$5,040,000 |
| 2024 | Jon Serrano | P | Miami Storm | College | Penn State Nittany Lions | USA |
$6,300,000 |
| 2025 | Jose Garcia | 3B | Houston Oilers | High School | West Coast HS Mounties | Panama | $4,860,000 |
