Are prospects always contacted before the draft?

SouthPawsMom,

If your son is good enough to play D1 baseball then there is a good chance that he is a pro prospect. The scouts are pretty busy at this time of year but if they are interested in your son you will have a pretty good idea before the draft begins in June.

SouthPaw,
He might be drafted and not even have ever spoken with a scout. It happens. However, after the round drafted he is better off taking up the offer from the D1.
Every HS, college, JUCO player has a chance in the draft. No one knows a thing until draft day.

All players in the MLB draft have a draft #. This number is assigned by the MLB office and the numbers are made available only to the various teams. No public information.

Several key pieces of information are required when a player is "turned in" for a draft number. SS#, full name, address, etc.

Note: Players are turned in by scouts from the MLB teams or a representative of the Major League Scouting Bureau. Not by high school or summer coaches, not by friends or parents. A player cannot "make himself" eligible for the MLB draft, like in basketball.

I would think that if a player has not filled out a questionnaire or an information card it would be unusual that he would have a draft #.

thanks bob!
he's been invited to a few MLB try-outs, filled out some player cards and there are scouts at some games. i never considered the logistics of the SS#, etc.

Southpaw'sMom,
Sounds to me like he's on the radar then!
Good Luck!

Are there rules regarding the timing of MLB scouts approaching high school players? For instance, observe a game, speak directly with player after the game, senior year v. junior year, etc.

Thanks in advance.