THE BOOK--Playing The Percentages In Baseball

p. 33-34, on the parallels of age-restrictions and regional-restrictions:

MR. MILSTEIN: And just suppose Clarett entered the league before the Second Circuit reversed, and the NFL and the union were upset about it. And they decide that they need to prevent schools like Ohio State from alienating players like Maurice. So, for the next five years they say that teams cannot draft players from Ohio State, because that is what is best for our league. It is good for the league. It is bargained for. Can they do it? You obviously think they can.

AUDIENCE: I doubt that the union would agree to that.

MR. MILSTEIN: But suppose they did. Can they do it?

AUDIENCE: I would suppose they could.

p. 36:

MR. MILSTEIN: That is correct: I am opposed to any age restriction. And the main difference is that no one is drafted unless he is capable and ready to be in the league. No one makes the squad unless he is good enough to be on the squad. No one gets a starting position unless he is ready to start. And if he is ready, why should he be prevented?

AUDIENCE: So you are arguing that maybe the NBA should have let Lebron play at sixteen?

MR. MILSTEIN: I wanted that case. Lebron would have been the number one pick in the draft after his junior year in high school. There is no question about that. Why couldn’t he play in the NBA. What was preventing him from doing it? Because he would lose the opportunity to go through twelfth grade? Is that your argument? Believe me, you can go though twelfth grade with two million dollars in your pocket. You can do that.

My biggest problem with the age requirement is that is actually worsens any problem its supposed to fix.  Say for example (made up)we force Greg Oden to go to college.  He needs a scholarship, so Ohio State gives him one.  That means they don’t give one to someone else.  He then goes to Illinois.  Well now Illinois was going to offer the scholarship to a guy instate, but now they have a higher talent they don’t.  Instead this guy goes to Northern Illinois.

This bumps a guy off the squad who doesn’t get any other offers.  So instead of a guy going to Northern Illinois and earning a teaching degree to teach high school, Greg Oden has to play as an indentured servant. But I’m sure that low income youths are better served by that.

I have never seen the point of the age restrictions from the point of view of the league.  It would seem they’re best served by getting talent into their league as quickly as possible and keeping it there as long as possible.

Is it a matter or risk?  Are they trying to help out collegiate athletics?  Is there some kind of potential social backlash for drafting kids before they’re out of high school?