Sounders defender Marc Burch was taken in the Re-Entry draft last season and went on to have a productive first year with the club.
The Re-Entry Process is in just its third year, but has already made a big impact on teams around the league.
While the Stage One draft has been limited in its success, as just five players have been taken over the first two years of the new mechanism, Stage Two, which will take place one week later on Friday, December 14, is where more players have changed teams.
In Stage One, drafting teams must exercise the player’s option or, for out of contract players, extend a Bona Fide offer, which is defined as an offer at least equal to the player’s previous year’s salary. In Stage Two, teams can renegotiate terms of the contract.
The most successful of the Stage One picks over the first two years was defender Carlos Mendes, who went from the New York Red Bulls to the Columbus Crew last year. Though he only played 12 matches for the Crew, Columbus went 7-3-2 in those matches.
The Sounders FC selected Marc Burch in Stage Two of the 2011 Re-Entry process, trading a third round pick in the 2014 MLS SuperDraft to the Vancouver Whitecaps FC in exchange for the top pick in order to pick the former DC United left back.
Burch played 29 matches for the Sounders, starting in 19 of them while notching three assists.
Among the other successful picks in Stage Two has been Josh Wolff, who had five goals and seven assists after being the first player taken by DC United in Stage Two of the 2010 Re-Entry process.
Add to that list Juan Pablo Angel, who wasn’t as successful with the LA Galaxy but was then sent to Chivas USA, where he had seven goals in nine matches to close out the 2011 season. Additionally, defenders Hunter Freeman and Tyrone Marshall have been mainstays for the Colorado Rapids after moving to the Rocky Mountains in the Re-Entry process.
So as the Stage One draft kicks off Friday at noon, don’t be surprised to see a quiet day in MLS. However, also don’t be surprised to see things get busy next week as teams build for the 2013 MLS season.
Among the more recognizable players in the Re-Entry process are Juan Pablo Angel and Danny Califf from Chivas USA, Marvell Wynne and Conor Casey from the Colorado Rapids, Kevin Hartman and Julian De Guzman from FC Dallas and Will Hesmer from the Columbus Crew.
The Stage One draft will take place via a conference call at noon PT on Friday, with the results being announced upon completion of the draft. Stage Two will follow the same process on December 14.
