First-Year Player Draft (1959-1964)

From SABR Encyclopedia

Begun in 1959, this draft was an attempt by Major League Baseball's owners to reduce the amount of bonuses given to amateur players. Held in conjunction with the Major League and Minor League (Rule 5) Drafts, it allowed teams to select players who had completed their first season in Organized Baseball at a minimal cost. The idea was that no team would pay an amateur a big bonus if they could then lose him after his first season. What actually happened was that teams continued to pay big bonuses and added those players to their 25-man rosters to protect them from the draft. Unlike the earlier bonus rules, this draft applied to all first-year players regardless of whether they received a signing bonus. The First-Year Player Draft was abandoned in favor of the amateur draft in 1965. Among the big name players selected were Jim Wynn and Reggie Smith.

[edit] SOURCES

Major League Rules in Baseball Blue Book, 1959-1964