In the NFL and NBA, teams hype up their top rookies to boost ticket sales as fans eagerly await to see the future of their franchise in the first game of the season. That is not the case in baseball anymore, as top rookies are held back from the Opening Day roster, even if they’re ready for the big leagues, as teams manipulate service time to push back the free agency and arbitration clock. The practice has become so blatant that it has caused tensions between owners and the union.
The status quo isn’t good for teams and it isn’t good for players, so it may be going away under the next collective bargaining agreement.