Pick who you think Sounders should protect in Expansion Draft

Jeremiah Oshan -

It’s been less than 48 hours since the Seattle Sounders were eliminated from the MLS Cup playoffs, but players have already been informed if their options are being exercised and even those already on contracts have likely been told how they fit into the plans going forward. The next big marker of the offseason will be San Diego FC’s Expansion Draft, which will take place on Dec. 11 with the list of players each team will protect due one day earlier.

This will be the first Expansion Draft since 2022, when St. Louis City stocked their roster. The Sounders did not have a player selected, but that was only because they worked out a trade in which they gave up Sam Adeniran in exchange for what turned out to be $200,000 in General Allocation Money.

As a reminder, here are the rules for this draft:

  • San Diego is allowed to select five players, with no more than one coming from any team.
  • If a team has a player picked, they are compensated with $50,000 in GAM.
  • Each team is allowed to protect 12 players in addition to any players who are automatically protected.
  • Generation adidas players who occupy Roster Slots 21-24 and Homegrown Players 25 years old and under in the year in which the Expansion Draft takes place are automatically protected. Clubs do not have to use a protected slot on them.
  • Here’s the list of Sounders who fit into that category and are automatically protected without taking up a slot: Josh Atencio, Danny Leyva, Reed Baker-Whiting, Obed Vargas, Cody Baker, Dylan Teves, Jacob Castro, Stuart Hawkins and Sota Kitahara.
  • Free agents are eligible for the draft. If they are picked, they would be considered part of San Diego’s roster for purposes of the CBA, which gives the club added flexibility to offer raises. They would also be due some compensation if the free agent ultimately decides to sign elsewhere in the league. Free agents are still able to sign with other teams or leave the league entirely.

With all of that out of the way, Sounder at Heart’s “Protectionator” is back, albeit in a Google Form. This is your chance to select the players you’d like to see the Sounders protect:

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