I think that if compensation is dropped, a resonable replacement should be the ability to trade draft picks. With picks being signed "at slot," it makes sense that a small market team should be able to trade their top draft pick to a big market team in return for some players.
If team A signs a bunch of free agents and keeps their draft picks, the draft picks may eventually be stuck in AAA with still ore draft picks coming. A lot of talent could be wasted this way.
This problem may be self-correcting with time, but it will probably just widen the gap between, say, the Red Sox and the Royals.
Ah but what if the Royals traded their #1 pick in 2005 to the Bosox for 2 or 3 other upper-round picks? KC gets depth, Boston gets a young starter they would normally have no chance of signing, isn't this the way other sports have been doing it for years?
If team A signs a bunch of free agents and keeps their draft picks, the draft picks may eventually be stuck in AAA with still ore draft picks coming. A lot of talent could be wasted this way.
This problem may be self-correcting with time, but it will probably just widen the gap between, say, the Red Sox and the Royals.
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