The last time Philadelphia selected No. 1 overall -- in the pre-draft lottery days of 2002 -- they struck gold with a generational talent in Albert Pujols.
The only other 100-loss team, Empire City (62-100), was leap-frogged by two other teams and will pick 5th. Green Lake (64-98) and Poovey Farms (69-93) each moved up one slot from their original 4th and 5th positions.
Hillsborough (82-80) got lucky for the second year in a row, making the biggest jump. The Hit Men improved from No. 10 to No. 6, after winning the lottery in 2023, going from No. 6 to No. 1 for the right to select Spencer Strider.
El Paso (75-87) improved by swapping places with San Francisco (74-88) at No. 7 and No. 8, respectively.
New England Crashfest, the former Rockland Racers (73-89), bore the brunt of Hillsborough's good fortune, falling 3 places from No. 6 to No. 9. The last time the draft lottery held form with the top pick was when Rockland, then Race Point, won and took Alek Manoah in 2022.
The Marietta franchise (84-78) improved their fortunes a smidge, moving up one spot from No. 11 to No. 11 while Blue Ridge (81-81) tumbled from No. 9 to No. 11. The pick is currently held by El Paso because of a trade ahead of 2023 protected lists that sent SP Max Fried to the Bombers in exchange for this 1st rounder + Philly's original 1st in 2023 (which the Chihuahuas used on OF Lars Nootbaar at 15th overall).
Allentown (85-77) held firm at No. 12.
| Lottery Result | Team | 2023 Finish | 1st Rnd Pick | Later Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Philadelphia Green Rage | 20th | #1 | #1 |
| 2 | Newark Sugar Bears | 19th | #2 | #2 |
| 3 | Green Lake Gators | 17th | #3 | #4 |
| 4 | Poovey Farms Dairy Cows | 16th | #4 | #5 |
| 5 | Empire City Trojans | 18th | #5 | #3 |
| 6 | Hillsborough Hired Hitmen | 11th | #6 | #10 |
| 7 | El Paso Chihuahuas | 13th | #7 | #8 |
| 8 | The San Francisco Experience | 14th | #8 | #7 |
| 9 | New England Crashfest | 15th | #9 | #6 |
| 10 | Marietta Mighty Men | 10th | #10 | #11 |
| 11 | Blue Ridge Bombers* | 12th | #11 | #9 |
| 12 | Allentown Mules | 9th | #12 | #12 |
* Currently held by El Paso
The first DMBL draft lottery was instituted in 2004.
The 12 teams that missed the playoffs entered the draft lottery. Allentown was the last team to miss the playoffs, finishing 9th in 2023, so they received 1 ball in the lottery and the number of balls for each team doubled after that, all the way to Philly, with 2,048 balls. Hillsborough, at No. 10, had 4 balls in the lottery.
After the 1st round, teams will select based on their records, so Philly selects first, followed by Newark, Empire City, Green Lake, Poovey Farms, etc.
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