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Players that pass through an entire draft (usually several rounds) without being selected by any of the league's teams become unrestricted free agents, and these players are sometimes identified simply as an undrafted free agent (UDFA) or undrafted sportsperson and are free to sign with any team they choose.
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Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year (2017) Hit for the cycle on 28 August 2023. José Carlos Altuve ( Spanish pronunciation: [alˈtuβe]; born 6 May 1990) is a Venezuelan professional baseball second baseman for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB).
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- Active MLB Players Who Went Undrafted
- Best Undrafted Free Agents in MLB History
Mike Brosseau – INF
The Rays signed Brosseau as an undrafted free agent out of Oakland University in 2016. Unlike most players in his position, the infielder climbed his way up the ranks of the minors quickly. He signed his rookie contract on June 23rd, 2016, and made his MLB debut on June 23rd, 2019 – exactly three years later. “I think my whole career has been kind of that underdog story, coming from being that undrafted guy and having that label,” he told the Tampa Bay Timeswhen after his call-up in 2019. The...
Kirby Yates – RHP
Originally drafted in the 26th round by Boston in 2005, Kirby Yates opted not to sign in favor of playing JUCO ballat Yavapai College. But just one game into his college baseball career, Yates hurt his elbow. It required Tommy John surgery – sidelining him for two seasons. “The physical part was really tough. The mental part was so much tougher,” Yates told Bowling Green Daily Newsin 2010. “Having to sit for two years and not be able to play the game you love. It’s mentally grueling, but I th...
Kaleb Ort – RHP
After pitching at Aquinas College, an NAIA programin Michigan, Kaleb Ort was not chosen in the MLB Draft. Instead, he took a year off after graduating and later signed with an independent Frontier League team. He had a brief stint with Arizona, but the D-Backs cut him out of training camp and sent him back to the Frontier League. After a handful of games there, the Yankees acquired him and later lost him to the Red Sox in the Rule 5 Draft. Ort made his MLB debut out of the Boston bullpen in 2...
Eric Gagne – RHP
Growing up in the French-speaking Canadian providence of Montreal, Eric Gagne knew very little English when he arrived at Seminole Junior College in Oklahoma. He learned the language by watching American TV, all while becoming a star pitcher for the Trojans. Gagne didn’t sign after the White Sox selected him 845th overall in 1994, instead inking a deal with the Dodgers as an undrafted free agent in 1995. The flame-throwing closer was a 3-time All-Star and 2003 NL Cy Young Award winner.
Bobby Bonilla – 3B/OF
Younger fans know his name from “Bobby Bonilla Day” – the Mets’ annual payment on his deferred contract. But his career was so much more than that. After going undrafted out of high school, Bobby Bonilla spent a semester at the New York Institute of Technology to pursue his interest in computers. He was later selected for an all-star camp, assembled to play in Scandinavia over the summer. He couldn’t afford the trip, so his coach raised a “Bobby Fund” to help him go. The coordinator of that t...
Bruce Sutter – RHP
Unselected out of Old Dominion University, Bruce Sutter signed with the Chicago Cubs in 1971. Surgery to repair a pinched nerve forced him to change his approach on the mound. His minor league pitching coach taught him to throw a split-finger fastball, which put him on the fast track to the big leagues. As Tim Kurkjian wrote for ESPN: “It was…that pitch, that helped Sutter amass 300 saves, win a Cy Young Award, a World Series championship and gain eventual enshrinement in the Hall of Fame.”
- Tyler O'shea
Jun 4, 2018 · Still, Bowa went undrafted in 1965, and exactly one scout showed any interest in him: Philly's Eddie Bockman, who offered him a $2,000 bonus and a winter league spot. Bowa never grew into much with the bat -- he hit just 15 homers with a .620 OPS in his career -- but over 16 years in the big leagues, he made five All-Star teams, won two Gold ...
May 14, 2020 · The list of such players includes Tom Candiotti , Kevin Millar and Daniel Nava. Here are the top 25 nondrafted free agents of all time, plus dozens of others worthy of mention. Players are...
