Speaking at Melbourne's annual general meeting at the MCG on Thursday night, Bailey said the club's six recruits - Tom Scully, Jack Trengove, Jordan Gysberts, Luke Tapscott, Max Gawn and Jack Fitzpatrick - must earn the right to play at the highest level.
"They will only get an opportunity to play for this club when they have earned the right on the training track and they've worked hard enough to get it," he said.
"There will be nothing just given out."
Bailey said it mattered little where the recent crop of youngsters had been selected in last November's NAB AFL Draft now that they were in the AFL.
"When you get drafted and you walk in, it doesn't matter what number you've been picked, we expect you to deliver," he said.
"We have great expectations on pick 51 as we do on the first couple - don't worry about that."
Meanwhile, Bailey couldn't speak highly enough of the pre-seasons of leadership group members Jared Rivers and Brent Moloney.
He said the seasoned duo had been among the benchmark players over summer.
"Jared Rivers has had an exceptional pre-season - the best he's ever had; and Brent Moloney has had one of the best pre-seasons he's ever had," he said.
"You've just got to look at Brent Moloney train and it's extraordinary, the development and improvement that he's made.
"[They are] two players who have been on the list for a number of years and now are really striving to succeed."
Bailey said Colin Sylvia and Aaron Davey had also improved their fitness by "15 to 20 per cent" over the pre-season.
Overall, he said it had been "an exceptional pre-season" from his players.
