Written by sidhanta

[{"selector":"#anim-fdcabff7-1a46-48b4-bb0b-ab55137daead [data-leaf-element=\"true\"]","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(34.249999904429615%, 0, 0) translate(25%, 0%) scale(1.5)","translate3d(0%, 0, 0) translate(0%, 0%) scale(1)"]},"delay":0,"duration":2000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(.14,.34,.47,.9)","fill":"forwards"}] MLB Prospect Watch: What's causing teams to trade first-round picks?

A strange trend has popped up across Major League Baseball since the owner-imposed lockout was lifted last week.

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For a reference point on how odd that is, consider how only one first-round pick from the 2020 draft has been traded since they were selected

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What, then, is causing teams to bid adieu to their latest top draft picks just eight months after choosing them?

"Because it's allowed now," one National League talent evaluator joked to CBS Sports.

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Teams still traded their picked players, they just had to get creative about it by using the "player to be named later designation,"

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The lockout concentrating so much trade activity into a short amount of time also increased the likelihood of a pattern emerging, be it an imagined one or otherwise.

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The evaluator did offer a more serious explanation later on, saying that trading a recent draft pick allows the buying team to keep its prospects

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[{"selector":"#anim-8955aa1b-5eaf-4374-ba24-79584299c856 [data-leaf-element=\"true\"]","keyframes":{"transform":["translate3d(12.514648210040342%, 0, 0) translate(25%, 0%) scale(1.5)","translate3d(0%, 0, 0) translate(0%, 0%) scale(1)"]},"delay":0,"duration":2000,"easing":"cubic-bezier(.14,.34,.47,.9)","fill":"forwards"}] Learn more