In 2010 Philly acquired Fred, a first round SuperDraft pick (which became Jack McInerney) plus allocation money for it.
In 2011 Vancouver used it to get Jay DeMerit.
Before the start of the 2012 season it was used by Montreal to get Lamar Neagle and Mike Fucito. The latter was later flipped for an international slot.
The slot?
The top allocation spot when the January transfer window opens. This year that spot belongs to Toronto FC (unless the Reds find a way not to finish last overall). Whereas everyone understands the value of the first overall Superdraft pick (top 5 selections are valuable. After that it’s a bit of a lottery). The allocation pick is a much more difficult thing to get a handle on.
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As you can see above it’s a real mixed bag. McInerney is a solid player, but hardly a star (in fairness, the selection ended up being Troy Perkins, who has been a bust so far). This year both Montreal and Seattle, the team they traded the selection to, are disappointed by the results (Eddie Johnson was selected).
But, there are DeMerit-like players that get picked up this way. So, what Toronto does with the asset is key to its re-building efforts for 2013. It absolutely must be converted into a starting player, whether from trade or selection.
Put aside feelings about Paul Mariner’s ability to find a player because, really folks, it’s a dead horse. He’s back. Debate about whether he should be is exhausting. It’s time to focus on what he needs to do. We can evaluate his performance next Spring. But for now who should TFC be looking at?
It’s hard to know for sure who might be available, but the nature of the rule should allow for some speculation. For those unaware, the allocation order is used when a U.S. international signs with the league, or when a former MLS player who was sold from the league, re-signs with the league.
So, Reds’ fans should be keeping a close eye on American internationals that are struggling for playing time at bigger clubs, or looking to return home. Same goes for players that have been sold from the league.
Often teams approach players they are interested in and then figure out the allocation process. If they, like Toronto, have the top pick then it’s a matter of trying to to work out a salary. If they are lower in the ranking then they need to work out a deal with the team at the top of the order to obtain the selection spot.
The only* time Toronto has actually used its allocation pick was to select Brian McBride. Then Director of Soccer Mo Johnston knew full well that McBride wanted to return to his hometown to play for Chicago and had no interest in playing for Toronto. The resulting trade negotiations dragged on and caused Toronto to lose some political points in the league (the Reds were seen as holding back an American legend from his chance at retiring at home).
In the end, Toronto got Chad Barrett. He would have been a serviceable, if uninspiring, pick-up until Johnston decided to pay him $250,000 a year.
The mistake Johnston made was not working with the Fire from the start. If Barrett was all they were willing to give up, then it might have made more sense to have passed the selection, received some political goodwill, and maintained the asset.
However, that’s hindsight. The truth is the top allocation spot is a tricky asset and it how it will used will be an early point of evaluation for Mariner.
Edit: *I forgot about Conor Casey. With Casey, Johnston pulled the same stunt by claiming a player that didn't want to play in Toronto. In that case he received even less -- Riley O'Neill, who has never played a game in MLS.