2022 MLB draft first round selection order: which teams select first?
The MLB Draft, with its unique quirks, will see teams vie for the best talent in prep and college baseball in North America, with a few twists along the way
There are several significant differences to the MLB draft for any casual viewer, perhaps more accustomed to the NFL or NBA draft. The first and most obvious is that, uniquely in American sports, baseball can choose players directly from high school. This leads on to a series of complications which are then addressed one by one, changing the face of the draft completely.
Who is eligible
- Any player who is a resident of, or has attended an educational institution in, the United States, any US territory, or Canada.
- Have finished high school AND have not yet attended college.
- Playing at a Junior College or a Community College.
- Playing at a four-year university AND have completed three years since enrolment OR are over 21 years old, whichever comes first.
- Have never signed a major or minor league contract.
Players outside of the US and Canada, who have never attended an educational institution within either of those countries are not drafted but are eligible to sign with any team.
You don’t need to declare for the draft, simply if you fulfil the criteria, you are eligible to be drafted.
A new concept to baseball, but one that has been the backbone of the NFL draft for decades now, is the combine. Adopted by MLB in 2021, this provides an opportunity for draft-eligible players to show teams what they are capable of in a controlled environment.
What about if you go undrafted?
Unlike the NFL and NBA draft, in the MLB draft, a player who is not drafted can return to school if they have eligibility remaining. Additionally, any player who is eligible for the draft but goes unpicked is free to sign a free agent contract. However, it gets sticky if a player gets drafted but chooses not to sign with that team. Rather than become free agents, they are free to return to school or play in an independent or overseas baseball league. If they return to school, they can be drafted again in the future by a different team.
Who picks first? What order do teams choose?
Similar to other sports drafts, the MLB teams pick in reverse order of the previous year’s standings, meaning that the last team to choose this year will be the World Series Champions, the Atlanta Braves.
Another peculiarity of the MLB draft is the compensatory picks that teams are awarded for departing free agents, who have been offered and rejected a Qualifying Offer by the team. Seen as a loss of a player through no fault of the team’s, they are awarded an extra draft pick to make amends.
With the new signing rules in place, teams can no longer offer a draftee a major league contract. Only minor league contracts are available to them, so you can never have another Dave Winfield or Bob Horner, coming straight out of the draft into the Show.
Team order for the 2022 MLB Draft
First round
1. Baltimore Orioles
2. Arizona Diamondbacks
3. Texas Rangers
4. Pittsburgh Pirates
5. Washington Nationals
6. Miami Marlins
7. Chicago Cubs
8. Minnesota Twins
9. Kansas City Royals
10. Colorado Rockies
11. New York Mets
12. Detroit Tigers
13. Los Angeles Angels
14. New York Mets
15. San Diego Padres
16. Cleveland Guardians
17. Philadelphia Phillies
18. Cincinnati Reds
19. Oakland Athletics
20. Atlanta Braves
21. Seattle Mariners
22. St. Louis Cardinals
23. Toronto Blue Jays
24. Boston Red Sox
25. New York Yankees
26. Chicago White Sox
27. Milwaukee Brewers
28. Houston Astros
29. Tampa Bay Rays
30. San Francisco Giants
Compensation picks
31. Rockies (Trevor Story)
32. Reds (Nick Castellanos)
Competitive balance round A
33. Baltimore Orioles
34. Arizona Diamondbacks
35. Kansas City Royals
36. Pittsburgh Pirates
37. Cleveland Guardians
38. Colorado Rockies
39. San Diego Padres
Second round
40. Los Angeles Dodgers
41. Boston Red Sox
42. Baltimore Orioles
43. Arizona Diamondbacks
44. Pittsburgh Pirates
45. Washington Nationals
46. Miami Marlins
47. Chicago Cubs
48. Minnesota Twins
49. Kansas City Royals
50. Colorado Rockies
51. Detroit Tigers
52. New York Mets
53. San Diego Padres
54. Cleveland Guardians
55. Cincinnati Reds
56. Oakland Athletics
57. Atlanta Braves
58. Seattle Mariners
59. St. Louis Cardinals
60. Toronto Blue Jays
61. New York Yankees
62. Chicago White Sox
63. Milwaukee Brewers
64. Houston Astros
65. Tampa Bay Rays
66. San Francisco Giants
Competitive balance round B
67. Baltimore Orioles
68. Minnesota Twins
69. Oakland Athletics
70. Tampa Bay Rays
71. Tampa Bay Rays
72. Milwaukee Brewers
73. Cincinnati Reds
74. Seattle Mariners