The 2021 Major League Baseball draft took place on July 11–13, 2021. In conjunction with the 2021 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, the draft was held in Denver.[1] The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order was set based on the reverse order of the 2020 MLB season standings.[2] In addition, compensation picks were distributed for players who did not sign from the 2020 MLB Draft and for teams who lost qualifying free agents.[3] On March 26, 2020, MLB and the MLBPA reached a deal that included the option to halve the draft to 20 rounds due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[4] MLB ultimately opted to shorten the draft to 20 rounds.[5] In total, 612 college and high school players were drafted.[6]
| 2021 Major League Baseball draft | |
|---|---|
 | |
| General information | |
| Date(s) | July 11–13, 2021 |
| Location | Bellco Theatre Denver, Colorado |
| Network(s) | MLB Network ESPN (first round) |
| Overview | |
| 612 total selections in 20 rounds | |
| First selection | Henry Davis Pittsburgh Pirates |
| First round selections | 36 |
The Pittsburgh Pirates, who had the worst record of the 2020 season, selected Henry Davis with the first overall pick in the draft.[7] As punishment for their role in the sign stealing scandal, the Houston Astros forfeited both their first- and second-round picks in the draft.[8]
On April 2, 2021, MLB announced that the 2021 MLB All-Star Game, along with the draft, was being relocated from Atlanta in protest of the Georgia State Legislature's passage of the controversial Election Integrity Act of 2021; three days later, Denver was announced as the new host city.[9][10]
Chase Silseth made his MLB debut for the Los Angeles Angels on May 13, 2022, making him the first player from the 2021 draft to make his major league debut.
Draft selections
editThe deadline for teams to sign drafted players was August 1, 2021.[11]
| All-Star | |
| * | Player did not sign |
|---|
First round
editCompensatory round
edit| Pick | Player | Team | Position | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30 | Jay Allen | Cincinnati Reds[Compensation 1] | Outfielder | John Carroll Catholic High School (FL) |
Competitive Balance Round A
edit| Pick | Player | Team | Position | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | Joe Mack | Miami Marlins | Catcher | Williamsville East High School (NY) |
| 32 | Ty Madden | Detroit Tigers | Pitcher | Texas |
| 33 | Tyler Black | Milwaukee Brewers | Second baseman | Wright State |
| 34 | Cooper Kinney | Tampa Bay Rays | Second baseman | Baylor School (TN) |
| 35 | Matheu Nelson | Cincinnati Reds | Catcher | Florida State |
| 36 | Noah Miller | Minnesota Twins | Shortstop | Ozaukee High School (WI) |
Second round
editCompetitive Balance Round B
edit| Pick | Player | Team | Position | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 64 | Lonnie White | Pittsburgh Pirates | Outfielder | Malvern Preparatory School (PA) |
| 65 | Reed Trimble | Baltimore Orioles | Outfielder | Southern Miss |
| 66 | Peyton Wilson | Kansas City Royals | Second baseman | Alabama |
| 67 | Adrian Del Castillo | Arizona Diamondbacks | Catcher | Miami (FL) |
| 68 | Joe Rock | Colorado Rockies | Pitcher | Ohio |
| 69 | Tommy Mace | Cleveland Indians | Pitcher | Florida |
| 70 | Ryan Holgate | St. Louis Cardinals | Outfielder | Arizona |
| 71 | Robert Gasser | San Diego Padres | Pitcher | Houston |
Other notable selections
editNotes
edit- Compensation picks
- ^ Compensation pick for the Los Angeles Dodgers signing Trevor Bauer[12]
- ^ Compensation pick for the Toronto Blue Jays signing George Springer[12]
References
edit- ^ Anderson, R.J. (June 17, 2021). "MLB Prospect Watch: One 2021 MLB Draft prospect worth watching on each NCAA Men's College World Series team". CBSSports.com. Retrieved June 19, 2021.
- ^ Callis, Jim (October 12, 2020). "Here's the 2021 MLB Draft order". MLB.com. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
- ^ "MLB's New Free Agent Compensation Rules Are Incredibly Complicated, So Let's Break Them Down". Sports Illustrated. November 7, 2017.
- ^ Baer, Bill (March 26, 2020). "MLB, MLBPA reach agreement on service time, pay, draft". NBC Sports. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
- ^ Sharkley-Gotlieb, Simon (April 2, 2021). "Report: 2021 MLB Draft will be 20 rounds long". theScore. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
- ^ "2021 Draft Tracker". MLB Draft Tracker. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
- ^ Schoenfield, David (July 11, 2021). "Pittsburgh Pirates draft Louisville catcher Henry Davis with No. 1 pick; Jack Leiter goes to Texas Rangers at No. 2". ESPN. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
- ^ Davis, Bradford William (January 13, 2020). "Manager A.J. Hinch, GM Jeff Luhnow get one-year suspensions for Astros' sign-stealing; Carlos Beltran not punished". New York Daily News. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
- ^ Castrovince, Anthony (April 2, 2021). "'21 All-Star Game, Draft moved from Atlanta". MLB.com. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
- ^ Harding, Thomas (April 6, 2021). "Rockies to host 2021 All-Star Game". MLB.com. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
- ^ Anderson, R. J. (July 11, 2021). "MLB Draft 2021: Why most first-round picks will sign, and other signability questions answered". CBS Sports. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
- ^ a b "2021 MLB Draft Order". MLB.com. Archived from the original on July 17, 2022. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
- ^ Fletcher, Jeff (May 14, 2022). "Angels' Chase Silseth throws six one-hit innings against A's in major league debut". Orange County Register. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
- ^ McCalvy, Adam (July 13, 2021). "Crew's final pick is oldest player ever drafted". MLB.com. Major League Baseball. Retrieved September 17, 2021.