The Cleveland Guardians received some exciting news on Tuesday night.
The Draft Lottery was held in the middle of the MLB Winter Meetings.
The Guards, with just 2% odds of securing the first pick, won the lottery.
It’s the first time Cleveland will draft first.
A total of eight teams had better odds to draft first than the Guards, but the baseball gods smiled upon the city of Cleveland, and here we are.
Everybody, from media to fans and the organization itself, is excited about the news.
Some fans have even made some puzzling suggestions, like packaging the pick with some minor league talent for an MLB-ready, impact bat.
In theory, that sounds excellent: Cleveland needs offense like a human being needs to breathe.
However, it’s not possible, and a Guardians analyst is here to reminds us all about the rules.
“Look I’m excited to talk about the draft over the next 7 months. But please for the love of God, tell EVERYONE you see on the street The Guardians CANNOT TRADE THE PICK. NOBODY CAN TRADE ANY NORMAL MLB DRAFT PICKS (Only competitive balance picks can be traded),” @JL_Baseball tweeted.
Look I'm excited to talk about the draft over the next 7 months.
But please for the love of God, tell EVERYONE you see on the street
The Guardians CANNOT TRADE THE PICK.
NOBODY CAN TRADE ANY NORMAL MLB DRAFT PICKS(Only competitive balance picks can be traded) https://t.co/HenyKQc8oh
— Justin (BSky – jlbaseball) (@JL_Baseball) December 6, 2023
The Guardians can’t trade the pick: they will get it all for themselves.
Now, they will have a huge responsibility on their hands: picking the right player, the one with the better chance of developing into a star and contributing to the franchise for years to come.
It will be their responsibility only, though: there is no chance to trade the pick because the rules don’t allow it.
NEXT: Fans React To Guardians Landing No. 1 Pick
