MiLB LIFE: Being a Senior Sign

Getting drafted is a day you never forget. It's the moment when your childhood dream seems most tangible - it marks the beginning of your professional career and welcomes you into the company of baseball's elite. I remember thinking back on all the memorable games I had played over almost twenty years on the diamond - all the uniforms I'd worn, the friends I'd made. Baseball had been the mainstay of my Springs and Summers for as long as I could remember, and luckily the upcoming Summer would be no different.

That day changed my life in a lot of ways - but not financially. Afterall, I was a senior.

The experience of getting selected in the MLB Draft is drastically different for seniors than it is for juniors - or even High School seniors, for that matter. The reason? Leverage.

If you're listening to a discussion on a certain prospect's draft stock or potential signing bonus, you will hear the word Leverage at least 47 times per square hour (*calculations estimated).

Leverage is a junior draftee's best friend - it's the money maker. When negotiating a signing bonus, the organization must throw enough money at a junior to make it worth his while to leave school - forgoing his senior season, not to mention a college degree - and sign a professional contract.

The negotiation process can take weeks, even months if either side is stubborn, but rarely do you see a top junior prospect go unsigned. Leverage can only go so far - as insulted as he may be by the team's offer, he knows it's likely far more than he'll get the following year as a senior.

MiLB LIFE: Draft Day

It's the day that you dream about as a Little Leaguer. A day when years of hard work come to fruition - when Big League fantasies suddenly seem tangible. A day when you look back on a lifetime of baseball as merely the beginning.

Day one of the MLB first-year player draft had finally come. After weeks of answering questions from family, friends, and local newspapers about my expectations for the future, it was finally out of my hands. I was a spectator like everyone else. The process was starting - there was nothing more I could do.

Knowing that the first day of the draft only covered the first round picks - and that I would most definitely not be one of those called - I enjoyed the day one coverage free of stress. I watched as lives changed, boys turned into millionaires, and bright-eyed kids became the face of an organization's future. Pretty powerful stuff.

Day two of the Draft came the next day, and although I reminded myself it was out of my hands and vowed to clear my mind and get out of the house, I found myself glued to the computer. Ten rounds went by, and I was no closer to getting paid to play baseball. Friends of mine had gotten picked, and I immediately sent out their congratulatory text messages. I was happy for them, there was no jealousy - they were the bigger prospects, I was new to the scene. I was still just happy to be there, and it helped when they responded with words of encouragement.

SMALLS TALK: Pre-Draft Medical Questionnaires

94 on the gun, but does he have any allergies?

How can something so boring be so exciting? When I received my first pre-draft medical questionnaire, in my mind I had arrived. I was a HUGE prospect. This was an exclusive piece of paper, only to be filled out by the most elite talent in the college ranks. I never really considered myself the focus of any major league scout, but this little envelope with the Royals emblem hovering over the return address told me otherwise- I had Big League written all over me, why else would they send me this questionnaire? You think they just hand these things out to anyone? Ok yeah, they pretty much do.

I remember looking at the envelope thinking to myself all excited: "This is the Kansas City Royals!" Twenty-four hours earlier, if you had asked me to go see a Royals game I probably would have responded with an unenthusiastic "I'm not sure what I'm doing, I'll get back to you." Hell, if you had offered me Royals season tickets I probably would have come up with a reason why I couldn't take them off your hands. Not interested. But now all of a sudden, with that KC logo in my hands, this wasn't the franchise that had become synonymous with mediocrity and anonymity, this was the Kansas City Royals! A Major League team, a big deal! And boy was I excited to mindlessly check off countless boxes revealing my medical background.