Draft proposal rejected by union

NEW YORK — Major League Baseball’s goal of an international amateur draft was thwarted again when the players’ association rejected management’s final offer Monday and retained direct draftpick compensation for free agents.

The quirky tie between the two provisions was established in the March 10 agreement that ended the 99-day lockout and preserved a 162-game season. The sides gave themselves until July 25 to reach an agreement on an international draft, which MLB has sought since 2002, and specified the draft-pick provision would be dropped in the event of a deal.

There was little movement over the four months. The union made an offer during a Zoom meeting Saturday, and MLB presented what it termed its final proposal in an email Sunday. Union officials forwarded that plan to the players’ executive board and said they planned to reject it.

Hearing no opposition, union deputy executive director Bruce Meyer telephoned deputy commissioner Dan Halem with the rejection at about 2:45 p.m. Monday, about eight hours before the deadline.

The international signing bonus pool total for 2022-23 will remain at $167 million, its level in 2021-22. .

The decision keeps in place a system of qualifying offers for free agents that began in 2012. A club can make a qualifying offer following the World Series to a free agent who has been with the team since opening day, a oneyear contract for the average of the top 125 deals by average annual value. Last year’s figure was $18.4 million. If a player rejects a qualifying offer and signs elsewhere, the signing team is subject to a loss of one or two amateur draft picks and a reduction in international signing bonus pool allotment.