Well, here we are. Now that the Cubs have made their surprise trade for the day, it’s time for the draft.
Today is the first day of the 2016 MLB Draft, and it begins at 6:00 p.m. CT. 30 MLB teams will make their first and second round selections before the night is over, and continue to infuse their organization with young talent.
Well, not all 30 teams.
Of course, thanks to the signings of John Lackey and Jason Heyward (and the re-signing of Dexter Fowler), the Cubs will be among the rare teams not participating in the first day of the draft. Instead, they will sit idly by as other teams make selections, while awaiting their first pick that comes in the third round (pick 104) tomorrow.
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No, the Cubs don’t pick tonight, and no, the draft doesn’t seem to mean quite as much as it did in recent years (thanks to the lack of top picks and overall competitiveness at the Major League level), but that doesn’t mean it isn’t important. More importantly, that doesn’t mean it’s not worth following, even tonight.
We won’t be listing each and every pick tonight, like we have in the past, but consider this thread your message board as the first two rounds go down tonight. Feel free to comment and follow along down below (Show Me the Comments!). And if you’d like some further background information on the draft, be sure to check out either of the draft primer pieces Brett and I wrote earlier this week.
The first primer covers the schedule, media coverage and order of the draft (Brett’s), while the second, way cooler primer covers the bonus pool rules, the slot values, penalties and more (Michael’s). Also, although the Cubs don’t pick tonight, you can read about their overall strategy and preparation in a series of Cubs Draft Notes, written here at Bleacher Nation.
We’ll have much more tomorrow for rounds 3-10, but for tonight, just have fun in the comments.