Elliott: Pro scouts can't visit indoor facilities until Jan. 15

Scouts gather years ago to watch an indoor winter workout. A new major-league baseball ‘recovery’ rule, prevents them from scouting indoors until Jan. 15.

November 23, 2025

By Bob Elliott

Canadian Baseball Network

There will be a little more elbow room around indoor facilities across Canada until Jan. 15.

The infielders, the catchers, the pitchers and the coaches will all be there.

Yet, the scouts won’t be allowed to drop in on winter workouts this off season.

Under the major league’s new recovery program, scouts can’t observe high school players from Oct. 15, 2025 to Jan. 15, 2026 during indoor winter sessions. The same goes for evaluating college players in the USA, at the University of British Columbia and Douglas College from Nov. 15, 2025, to Jan. 15, 2026.

So you won’t here a player whisper to another, “Look who just walked through the door,”

Domestic amateur players with remaining eligibility for the player draft (players who have not previously signed a professional contract) who are enrolled in high school, junior college or college, will be subject to the policy.

This means hard-working scouts like Patrick Griffin (Oakville, Ont.), of the Toronto Blue Jays, Athletics’ Matt Higginson (Grimsby, Ont.), Philadelphia Phillies cross checker Alex Agosotino (St-Bruno, Que.), New York Yankees’ Denis Boucher (Lachine, Que.) and Kansas City Royals’ Adam Stern (London, Ont.), Cincinnati Reds cross checker Bill Byckowski (Erin, Ont.) and others won’t be sliding in for a look see at 2026 draft-eligible players.

“We can still do home visits to discuss signability, but we can’t see a player hitting in the cage like other years,” said one scout. “Pitchers aren’t usually throwing bullpens until the new year anyway.”

Since this is the first year of the new rule one scout, who often helps out with pre-high schoolers is wary of entering a facility, asking “what if I go to see a friend’s younger team and a high school guy comes in, someone takes a picture and there I am larger than life in the background. I’ll wait and go after Jan. 15.”

The new rule reads in part, “Clubs are prohibited from attending events, either in-person or remotely (tournaments, showcases, games), or hosting events (private workouts, scout teams) in which players are participating in baseball activities.

Also ... “Clubs are prohibited from obtaining, purchasing, or collecting data and video that include activities for players, either directly or through a third-party provider.”