The order of selection for the 2003 first-year player draft (Rule 4), scheduled for June 3-4, includes at least seven compensation picks between the first and second rounds. More information about the compensation picks follows the draft order.
Compensation Picks Explanation
Six compensation picks are Type A free agents lost after the 2002 season and a seventh is for Seattle's inability to sign John Mayberry, its first-round pick in 2002.
Teams receive compensation in the form of draft picks based on the type of free agent they lose, according to the free-agent rating system established by Elias Sports Bureau. The three types of free agents: a Type A free agent ranked among the top 30 percent of major leaguers at his position, a Type B free agent ranked among the top half (but not the top 30 percent) of major leaguers at his position, and a Type C free agent ranked among the next 10 percent of major leaguers at his position.
A team that loses a Type A free agent gets the first-round pick of the team that signs the free agent and a supplemental pick after the first round. A team that loses a Type B free agent receives only the signing team's top pick. In both cases, a team selecting in the first half of the draft rotation cannot lose its first-round pick. Such a team would instead lose its second-round pick.
Teams that sign multiple Type A or B free agents continue to lose picks based on the number of players they sign. The pecking order for compensation is based on where the free agents ranked in the Elias ratings.
The Phillies provide a good example of the process this year, having signed one Type A and one Type B free agent in the offseason. Because they are at No. 18 in the draft rotation, the Phillies will lose their first-round pick to the Indians for Type A free agent Jim Thome. Cleveland will also get a supplemental pick between the first and second rounds.
Philadelphia also will forfeit its second-round pick (tentatively 56th overall) because it signed Type B free agent David Bell. The Giants will pick in that spot, but they receive no further compensation.
The Braves will be the biggest beneficiaries of draft-pick compensation with four extra picks: two each for the loss of Type A free agents Tom Glavine (Mets) and Mike Remlinger (Cubs). The Braves lost their own first-round pick when they signed Type B free agent Paul Byrd from the Royals.
One free agent who would require compensation is lefthander Chuck Finley, a Type B free agent who had not signed. The Cardinals would receive the signing team's first- or second-round selection, depending where in the rotation the team fell.
Following is the order of selection for the first round and supplemental rounds, along with adjustments in the second and third rounds.
