The amateur draft is right around the corner. Where will the Mets be selecting, and just how does the process work?
On Sunday, July 13, Major League Baseball will host its 60th annual Rule 4 draft, better known as the first-year player draft. Thanks to their 89-73 recording during the 2024 season and a playoff run that saw them lose to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series, the Mets were lined up to make the 28th overall pick. Since the Mets exceeded the Competitive Balance Tax threshold by more than $40 million, their first-round selection will drop 10 places, so their first selection will come during the Competitive Balance Round A—the 38th overall pick—instead.
Because the Mets signed Juan Soto, the team forfeited its second-highest pick in the draft, meaning they will not be making a pick in the second round. Their next pick instead will be in the third round, the 102nd selection overall. Following that, they will be making the 133rd overall pick in the fourth round. After the fourth round, the Mets would have been making a selection in the Qualifying Free Agent Compensation Round for Luis Severino signing with the Athletics, but they lost this pick as a penalty for signing Soto, as well.
Following the Qualifying Free Agent Compensation Round, things settle down. Their fifth-round pick will be the 163rd overall selection. Their sixth-round pick will be the 193rd overall selection. Their seventh-round pick will be the 223rd overall selection. Their eighth-round pick will be the 253rd overall selection. Their ninth-round pick will be the 283rd overall selection. Their tenth-round pick will be the 313rd overall selection, and after that, they will be making a selection every thirty picks in rounds 11-20.
The Mets have a $5,465,900 bonus pool to work with for the 2025 MLB Draft, the second-lowest behind only the Yankees and their $5,383,600 bonus pool. Despite Major League Baseball raising slots and bonus pools by 4.8% in 2025 as compared to 2024 thanks to league growth and revenue, the Mets’ bonus pool is down almost 50% from $9,572,200 in 2024.
Their first-round selection, the 38th overall pick, has an MLB-assigned slot value of $2,569,400. Their third-round selection has an MLB-assigned slot value of $752,000. Their fourth-round pick has an MLB-assigned slot value of $555,800. Their fifth-round selection has an MLB-assigned slot value of $415,100. Their sixth-round selection has an MLB-assigned slot value of $322,300. Their seventh-round pick has an MLB-assigned slot value of $254,000. Their eighth-round pick has an MLB-assigned slot value of $213,200. Their ninth-round selection has an MLB-assigned slot value of $196,800. Their tenth-round selection has an MLB-assigned slot value of $187,300. Picks in rounds 11 to 20 do not have MLB-assigned slot values, but any money spent over $150,000 for those players gets deducted from the team’s bonus pool.
In order to be eligible to be selected in the 2025 MLB Draft, a player must meet the criteria applicable to them:
- Be a resident of, or have attended an educational institution in, the United States, Canada, or a U.S. territory such as Puerto Rico. Players from other countries are not subject to the draft and can be signed by any team unless they have attended an educational institution in the aforementioned areas.
- Have never signed a major or minor league contract.
- High school players are eligible only after graduation, and if they have not attended college.
- Players at four-year colleges and universities are eligible three years after first enrolling in such an institution, or after their 21st birthdays (whichever occurs first).
- Junior and community college players are eligible to be drafted at any time.