The kid was something special, all right. But the story of how Clayton Kershaw, a skinny stick-figured high schooler, landed with the Los Angeles Dodgers 10 years ago as the seventh overall pick in the draft?

The astounding true fact that five pitchers—count 'em—were drafted ahead of him?

Oh, that story is every bit as dramatic as Kershaw's current, majestic strikeout-to-walk ratio of 109:6.

For the second consecutive year, the New York Mets acquired utility man Kelly Johnson in a trade with the Atlanta Braves Wednesday. 

In an era of instant gratification, the MLB amateur draft takes a hit.

Few, if any, top prospects selected Thursday night will ascend to the majors over the next year. The top high school standouts—some of whom will forgo signing for college—will take years of seasoning before realizing their big league aspirations.

One day after his latest on-field incident—a brawl with Baltimore Orioles third baseman Manny Machado—reports have surfaced that the Kansas City Royals are considering trading pitcher Yordano Ventura.

Continue for updates.

NOTRE DAME, Ind. — After digging in the left-handed batter's box, a teenage Cavan Biggio stared over his shoulder at a familiar face.

Roger Clemens gazed back with his trademarked, surly, uber-competitive look any wannabe baseball player would recognize. But Cavan had a unique relationship with the 354-game winner, who was a teammate of his father, Craig Biggio, with the Houston Astros.

Mock drafts are tricky business regardless of what sport we're talking about, but that's especially true when it comes to the MLB draft.

A staggering 1,216 total players will be taken over the course of the three-day event that begins Thursday, June 9.

When you couple that vast pool of amateur talent with the fact that teams have bonus pool restrictions to take into account, it's fair to assume that all 30 teams have distinctly different strategies and draft boards.

Floating like a butterfly and stinging like a bee, not a bad way to go through life….

1. Mariners Paddle Along with Healthy Cano

Robinson Cano, or, as Derek Jeter always teased him, Robinson Canoe, always did have two things: a great smile and a beautiful swing.

Except, uh, last year, when both disappeared. And Canoe, er, Cano, was left up a creek without a paddle.

There is often a consensus No. 1 overall pick ahead of the MLB draft, but since that isn't the case entering the 2016 edition, teams near the top of the first round will have difficult and potentially franchise-altering decisions to make.

Baseball players are human beings, not cyborgs sent from the future to destroy Sarah Connor.

As a result, they get injured—some more seriously than others—and it's that unfortunate reality that is the driving force behind some of the trade ideas we're about to take a look at.

For fans of a Seattle Mariners franchise that hasn’t made the playoffs since 2001, doubt is a part of daily life.