MLB's Competitive Balance Lottery drawing will be held on Wednesday. The Indians are among the teams that will have a chance to win an additional pick for early in next year's draft. The CBL was created as part of the current collective bargaining agreement as a way to give low revenue and small market teams an advantage in a system that tends to otherwise works against them.
Twelve teams are eligible to win one of six picks that come just after the end of the 1st round.
Those teams, and their chances of winning the top pick:
Diamondbacks | 18.2% |
Rockies | 16.5% |
Reds | 9.5% |
Marlins | 8.9% |
Padres | 8.9% |
Rays | 8.9% |
Brewers | 6.6% |
Indians | 5.4% |
A's | 4.5% |
Pirates | 4.5% |
Royals | 4.2% |
Cardinals | 3.9% |
It is notable that the teams currently sitting on the three best records in baseball (the Cardinals, Royals, and Pirates) are all eligible for the draft, due to their market size.
The six teams that do not win one of those picks are then entered into a second lottery (along with the Twins, Orioles, and Mariners) for six more picks that will come immediately after the 2nd round.
The math says the most likely outcome for the Indians is one of the picks in the second set of picks, but in each of the last two lotteries, the Tribe won a spot in the first set of choices. In 2014 the extra pick was used on 1B/OF Mike Papi. This year the extra pick was used on RHP Triston McKenzie.