Re-Entry Draft Tomorrow

Tomorrow MLS hosts another one of their drafts, the first stage of the Re-Entry Draft. The draft, a mechanism added in the last CBA to allow players some movement within the league. Tomorrow's first leg is usually the slower of the two stages of the draft. Since the draft started in 2010, only 11 players have been taken in the first stage of the four prior drafts. Last year saw the most activity ever in the first stage as five players were selected.

This year, there are 62 players available to select in the draft. The rules of this stage of the draft are simple. The players are every MLS player that meet certain requirements (at least 23 years old with 3 years experience, at least 25 with at least 4 years of experience, or at least 30 years old with at least 8 years of experience) and have had their contract options either declined or are out of contract. If a player is selected at this stage, the team that selects him is agreeing to either pick up that player's option or to make them a bona fide offer. If the player doesn't accept the contract, the team owns that player's MLS rights.

Usually the second leg, which offers more flexibility is where there is more activity.

For Sporting KC, Peter Vermes has never made a selection in first stage of the re-entry draft, passing every year so far. For me, even though KC is in a bit of a rebuilding mode right now, I see no reason that this strategy of Vermes' is going to change. In fact Vermes hasn't really even used stage two of the draft either, only selecting one player, Frankie Hejduk (who was almost immediately traded to LA for Luke Sassano) ever.

Looking at this year's list I again don't see any players that Vermes is going to want to live without. Come next week Sporting could look at grabbing someone like Hendry Thomas.

Meanwhile, three Sporting players are available for selection, Josh Gardner, who's retired and taken up individual volleyball, and two of Sporting's goalkeepers, Andy Gruenebaum and Eric Kronberg.