MLB Rumors: Players, Owners Reach Agreement on International Draft in CBA Talks

Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association have reportedly reached an agreement on one of the sticking points in their negotiations over a new collective bargaining agreement. 

Per ESPN's Jeff Passan, the two sides agreed they have until July 25 to reach a deal on an international draft that would start in 2024.

If a deal is reached for the draft, the qualifying-offer system will vanish. If there is no deal on an international draft, the qualifying-offer system will stay in place. 

The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported the owners will make a full proposal "covering all issues" to the union now that they have figured out the international draft. 

Prior to MLB's announcement Wednesday that the regular season wouldn't begin until at least April 14, the international draft had become a major talking point between the league and union.

Per ESPN's Jesse Rogers, the issue stemmed from talks the two sides had in February about what was an actual proposal and what was just a topic of discussion that comes up during negotiations:

"The league broached it (an international draft) in Jupiter, Fla., during nine days of discussions last month, but there were no handshakes or even acknowledgements of what was a true proposal and what was just talk. This lack of clarity has been an almost insurmountable issue for the sides from the jump: Negotiations have been followed by backpedaling then spinning, and it's occurred on both sides. The next backroom deal that gets done between the league and the union will seemingly be the first one. That's the ultimate problem."

New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor, who serves on the MLBPA executive subcommittee, posted a statement on Twitter about the international draft and narratives being pushed by the league:

Travis Sawchik of The Score did note the MLBPA's understanding is that a full 162-game season is still possible after the agreement on the draft. 

There is no indication that an agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement is close. The Athletic's Evan Drellich noted "gaps remain on other issues" outside of the international draft and qualifying-offer system.

MLB has been talking about an international draft for years. Eric Fisher of SportBusiness Group reported in 2013 that the league and MLBPA were pushing to strike a deal for a worldwide draft, but no agreement ever materialized. 

Under the previous CBA, all 30 teams start with between $4.75 million and $5.75 million to spend on international free agents. The total varies based on clubs that exceed the luxury-tax threshold and sign a free agent who rejected a qualifying offer from his previous team. 

Teams were also allowed to trade money from their international free-agent bonus pool in increments of $250,000, as long as they have at least that much remaining in their pool. 

The international free-agent signing period begins annually July 2, with players eligible to sign as long as they are at least 16 years old or turn 16 before Sept. 1 of the current signing period, reside outside the United States, Canada or Puerto Rico, and weren't enrolled in high school in any of those locations in the previous calendar year.