Brewers 2020 MLB Draft: Schedule, How To Watch, Bonus Pool, and Mock Drafts

The 2020 MLB Draft is finally here! Here’s all the information Milwaukee Brewers fans need to know about the Draft.

After weeks of preparation and nonstop articles preparing Milwaukee Brewers fans for the 2020 MLB Draft, we can finally get to the selections.

There have been many changes made to the draft if you’re just beginning to pay attention to it. So let’s catch you up on everything.

How Many Rounds Will The Draft Be?

Instead of the customary 40 round draft, MLB has decided to hold a five round draft in 2020 due to the coronavirus shutdown ending all of the high school and collegiate baseball seasons. That means over 1,000 players who would’ve been drafted in a normal year now will not be selected

When Does The Draft Start?

On Wednesday night, June 10th, the 2020 MLB Draft will begin at 6 P.M. CST and will go through the first round and Competitive Balance A Round, covering the first 37 selections. On Thursday night, the Draft will pick up again at 4 P.M. CST starting with Round 2 and going through the end of the 5th round.

The Detroit Tigers will have the first selection.

How To Watch The MLB Draft On TV

Every year since 2009, the MLB Draft has been held on MLB Network and MLB.com. Unfortunately, not everyone has MLB Network. Luckily, this year ESPN will also be televising the MLB Draft.

Dates: Wednesday, June 10th (Round 1) – Thursday, June 11th (Rounds 2-5)
Times: 6 P.M. CST (Wednesday) & 4 P.M. CST (Thursday)
Channels: ESPN, MLB Network, ESPN2 (Thursday)
Live Stream: ESPN App, MLB.com

ESPN’s coverage of the draft will switch to ESPN2 on Thursday night. Each team will have four minutes to make their pick in the first round and two minutes to make their picks in the following rounds.

Where Is The Draft Being Held?

In this magical place called “a conference call”. Originally the plan was to hold the draft in Omaha, Nebraska at the site of the College World Series as a way to kick off that tournament, but coronavirus has changed those plans. Previously, the Draft has always been held at MLB Network’s studios in Secaucus, New Jersey,

When Do The Milwaukee Brewers pick?

The Brewers hold five selections in this year’s draft. They were originally given a Competitive Balance B Round pick, but traded that pick to the Mariners in the Omar Narvaez deal this past offseason.

Their first round pick is the 20th overall selection. They also hold the 53rd, 92nd, 121st, and 151st overall picks in the draft.

What Is The Brewers Draft Bonus Pool?

The bonus pool is the amount of money the Brewers have available to them to sign their draft picks. If they exceed that allotted money by more than 5%, they would lose a draft pick next year. No team has ever exceeded that amount.

Bonus pools have not increased from last year, so through five rounds the Brewers have a total bonus pool of $6,078,300. Their first round selection carries a slot value of $3,242,900 while their second round pick has an assigned value of $1,370,400. The Brewers next pick at 93 has a value of $637,600. In the fourth round, the Brewers pick has a value of $473,700 while their final pick has a slot value of $353,700.

A maximum of $100k of any bonus that a draftee agrees to will be paid upfront with the remaining signing bonus being paid out over the next two years.

The Brewers, like every other team this year, can sign an unlimited number of undrafted players for a maximum signing bonus of $20k. With the Brewers generally weak farm system and their full baseball ops staff intact, they can be an attractive destination for undrafted players.

What Are The Brewers Team Draft Needs?

Team needs in the MLB Draft are far different than what they are in the NFL Draft or the NBA Draft. Just because the Brewers need a corner infielder or a shortstop at the big league level now, doesn’t mean that’s the position the Brewers need to address early in the draft.

We have a handy look at the Crew’s draft needs for you here.

What Are The Mock Drafts Saying?

We have had several mock drafts on Reviewing the Brew that cover a bunch of different ways the Brewers could go with each pick.

Most outside mock drafts have the Brewers looking at a variety of college pitchers, but could be opportunistic if some of the higher rated high school prospects fall down the board.

What Draft Prospects Could They Target?

There are a number of prospects the Brewers could target. There’s a large group of college pitchers that could be available for the Crew in the back half of the first round. That list includes Garrett Crochet, Cade Cavalli, Cole Wilcox, Carmen Mlodzinski, Bryce Jarvis, Bobby Miller, Tanner Burns, and Clayton Beeter. Most, if not all of these players are expected to be available for the Brewers at No. 20 overall.

There are also some high school players who could fall down the board, including Pete Crow-Armstrong, Austin Hendrick, Tyler Soderstrom, Ed Howard, Nick Bitsko, and Jared Kelley.

If the Brewers were to go with a college bat, catchers Patrick Bailey or Dillon Dingler could make sense, as could shortstop Casey Martin.

Get excited, everyone! The 2020 MLB Draft has arrived and it’s time to add some more talent to the Brewers organization.