Will MLB clubs rush first round picks to the big leagues?

With no minor league season, 2020 prospects may be fast-tracked to the Majors

The road to the Major Leagues is usually a long and arduous one even for the best prospects. In this unusual season, though, that can all change.

Clubs added 37 prospects to their player development systems during the first round of the 2020 MLB Draft on Wednesday. Now comes the part of figuring out what to do with them. The minor league season is almost certainly going to be canceled for the remainder of the year. Both college and high school players already had their seasons cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic, costing them valuable experience and a chance for big league scouts to properly evaluate them.

The uncertainty will only continue if and when the Major League season begins this year. Clubs may be in their own ballparks when the season starts but will be in a restricted bubble. The number of personnel allowed inside that bubble will necessarily be limited to essential coaches and players on the big-league roster. That doesn’t leave a lot of room for these draft picks to play the rest of 2020.

The owners have agreed that rosters will be expanded this season, from 26 to upwards of 30. Clubs will likely also be allowed a reserve squad to fill in holes should anyone get injured or, worst-case scenario, test positive for COVID-19. For players not on the 40-man roster—and that includes draft picks—they won’t have the ability to directly interact with coaches during the season.

Big league clubs might try a different approach to avoid costing their valuable prospects a year of development: call them up to the Majors right away. It’s an unorthodox approach, one rarely used. The last first-round pick who made his Major League debut the same season he was drafted was Brandon Finnegan in 2014, who went from playing in the College World Series to the bullpen for the Royals in the World Series in the span of a few months. Just five first-round picks from the last three drafts combined have played a game in the Majors so far.

MLB teams might rush their college prospects to the majors in 2020

The player most likely to make the jump straight from the draft to the Majors is an already-polished college player. There were two picked in the top-10 on Wednesday.

Right-handed pitcher Max Meyer was drafted third overall by the Miami Marlins out of Minnesota. He made four starts in his abbreviated junior season, striking out 46 in 27.2 innings with a 1.95 ERA. Featuring a mid-90s fastball and a wipeout slider that’s the best in this draft class, he’s drawn comparisons to Dodgers starter Walker Buehler.

The Marlins didn’t waste time revealing their intentions for their new prospect, immediately signing him to a deal pending a physical. Meyer is considered the most Major League-ready prospect, available to be a late-innings relief pitcher this season before eventually transitioning into a starter.

“That’s the most athletic college pitcher in this Draft, with the most electric stuff, and he’s just about Major League-ready,” D.J. Svihik, the Marlins director of amateur scouting, told MLB.com following the draft. “The pick was made almost right out of the chute this year. He was that good.”

Seven spots later, the Los Angeles Angels picked another college pitcher with the potential to pitch in the Major Leagues this season. Reid Detmers, a left-hander from Louisville, led the nation this season with 19.6 strikeouts per nine innings. He won’t overpower hitters with his low-90s fastball, but he mixes in a big-breaking curveball. He’s polished, dependable, and a player who should fast-track through the Angels system.

“I think I’m ready, but it’s not up to me, it’s up to the organization,” he said after donning an Angels cap for the first time. “I’m going to follow their guidelines and do what I need to do and hopefully get that call soon.”

Other prospects who might appear ready to play right away still have skills to develop before making the leap to the next level. Spencer Torkelson, the first-overall pick by the Detroit Tigers, played first base at Arizona State but was announced as a third baseman during the draft, a position where he has relatively little experience. Austin Martin, the No. 2 ranked prospect entering the draft, fell to the Blue Jays at No. 5. He played several different positions at Vanderbilt, from center field to shortstop and second base. He and the Blue Jays need to figure out where he’s going to play before he’s promoted to the big league club.

If a Major League season is played this year, the schedule will likely be condensed. The league wants to fit in the regular season by Sept. 27 in order to play the postseason before a potential second wave of COVID-19 hits. Whether 48 games, 76, 82, or somewhere in between, that potentially means lots of double-headers and few off-days. The pitching staff will feel the biggest effect. Clubs will avoid taxing their pitcher’s arms by employing short hooks and a deep bullpen.

That leaves plenty of room for a player like Meyer or Detmers to make an impact in 2020. It may be unusual, but nothing about this season has fit the traditional mold.