Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred issued supportive comments on the possibility of an international draft when speaking to the media on Tuesday.

"I am of the view that at some point, for the good of the game, for the good of competitive balance, we are going to have an international draft," Manfred said.

There are a number of hurdles to be cleared if changes are to be made to the draft process, but Manfred's comments are a significant development.

"I mean this in the broadest possible sense," he said. "Whether it's one draft, two drafts. ... I won't comment on those details. Conceptually a single modality of entry in the draft system has always been very appealing to me."