What Is An MLB Waiver Claim?

Question

How does a waiver claim process work in baseball?

Answer 1

here is a example from someone who asked same question.

Let's say for example the Marlins want to trade with the A's.

Situation #1: The A's put Frank Thomas on waivers. The Marlins claim him, but then the Mets claim him because they don't want their division rival Marlins to get him. The Mets and Marlins are both in the same league (National), so it goes by record. The Mets get priority because they have a worse record than the Marlins. The Mets will not trade anyone for Frank Thomas. The A's choose to give Frank Thomas and his salary to the Mets so that they don't have to pay him anyomore.

Situation #2: The A's put Emil Brown on waivers. This time, the Blue Jays and Marlins claim him. The Blue Jays are in the same league as the A's (American), so they get priority. The A's decide that they can only trade with the Marlins and not the Blue Jays. They decide Emil Brown is too valuable to just give him away, so they pull him off waivers and keep him.

Situation #3: The A's put Mark Ellis on waivers. No team claims him. Since he cleared waivers, he can be traded. The Marlins and A's work out a trade for him.

Answer 2

Explained by Depodesta himself:

    * No player can get traded after July 31 without being placed on trade waivers.

    * Unlike outright waivers, August trade waivers are NOT irrevocable. In other words, if we place a player on trade waivers, and another organization places a claim on that player, we can take him off waivers if we don't want to lose him or trade him.

    * Once a player is placed on trade waivers, the other 29 organizations have 48 hours during which to place a claim. If a player is claimed by another organization, one of two things can happen: a) the player can be traded to (or simply given to) the claiming organization only or b) the player can be pulled off of waivers by the originating Club. Any trade with the claiming Club has to be consummated within 48 hours.

    * If a player is claimed on trade waivers, and the originating Club pulls that player off of waivers, he CANNOT be traded for the remainder of the season unless... the originating Club puts the player on trade waivers a second time. If they do this, however, the waivers become irrevocable so any claim would result in the automatic assignment of the player to the claiming team.

    * If a player goes unclaimed, he can be traded to any other team at any time.

Answer 3

When a player is waived, another team can claim that player and the player immediately becomes their property!

Answer 4

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