On Roberto Clemente Day, MLB faces a Puerto Rico problem. Jorge Castillo reports that the pipeline from the island to the majors has disintegrated. Nearly two dozen insiders point to MLB's 1989 decision to include Puerto Rico in the Rule 4 draft. "We are neither one thing nor the other," an agent said. "Being part of the draft, I can tell you, is definitely what has hurt us the most."

The decline is stark. For the first time since 1988, no Puerto Rican-born players were on either All-Star team this July. Just five Puerto Rican-born players were selected in the 2026 MLB draft, none before the 13th round. No Puerto Rican-born player has been taken in the first round since Heliot Ramos in 2017.

So far this season, 27 Puerto Rican-born players have appeared in games, down from 54 in 2001. Francisco Lindor leads with 1.9 bWAR, which would have ranked 13th in 2001. There are no Puerto Rican-born players on Kiley McDaniel's top 100 prospects list. At the World Baseball Classic, injuries sidelined Lindor, Carlos Correa, Jose Berrios and Javier Baez. Puerto Rico lost in the quarterfinals to Italy.

"It's poor right now," a longtime MLB front office executive said.