MLB: Rule 5 Picks Making Their Marks

The Rule 5 Draft has provided MLB teams with some hidden gems in the past. Here’s a look at how this year’s draftees are faring with their new clubs.

Each December during the Winter Meetings, Major League Baseball conducts a draft in which teams are allowed to take players who have played four or five years as a professional (depending on their age when drafted) but are not currently on a 40-man roster. It is known as the Rule 5 draft, and it has been a part of Major League Baseball since 1903.

This allows players to get a shot in a different organization if for some reason their path to the major leagues is blocked. The only caveat on the pick is that the team who selects the player must keep him on the 25-man roster for the entire regular season, or else offer him back to the original team.

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While most players selected in the draft are at some point sent back to their original teams due to ineffectiveness, many exceptional players have been selected in the past.  Roberto Clemente, Johan Santana, and Jose Bautista were all selected in the draft at one point in their careers, Shane Victorino was selected twice and Josh Hamilton famously re-ignited his career after being taken by the Cubs and immediately dealt to Cincinnati in 2006.  Here is what this year’s batch of Rule 5 selections are doing:

• With the first overall selection in this year’s draft, the Philadelphia Phillies picked outfielder Tyler Goeddel from the Tampa Bay Rays.  Goeddel is a former first round pick from 2011 who is still only 23 years old. The power-potential scouts have long seen in him hasn’t come to play at any level in the minors but he’s had success there nonetheless. The Phillies have only given the youngster 28 at-bats this season, and with his poor performance and the team’s surprising early season record they might not be able to keep him on the roster all year.

• The Colorado Rockies owned the 4th overall pick, and essentially sold it to the Padres, trading Luis Perdomo immediately after selecting him. Perdomo got off to a terrible start to his big league career, allowing 6 runs in his first outing. He’s improved since then, but is still seemingly overmatched in the majors. His 10.97 ERA is coming down, but not quick enough. The Padres don’t expect to compete this year, so they will probably hold on to the 22-year-old; his live arm can get a fastball up to 98 mph.

• Colin Walsh was picked by the Milwaukee Brewers and has actually looked like a pretty good defender at third base. He’s got 44 plate appearances, and with Scooter Gennett battling injury and Aaron Hill seemingly finished, Walsh has a chance to stick around in the infield mix for a while for the Brew Crew.  His .107/.375/.143 slash line isn’t pretty, but he has always shown a solid walk rate and it hasn’t disappeared on him in MLB.

• The Padres also traded for Oakland’s pick, getting Jabari Blash to complete the Drew Pomeranz – Yonder Alonso trade from earlier that month.  Blash has seen spot duty in San Diego’s outfield, striking out in nearly half his at bats. The 26-year-old has shown a good amount of power in the minor leagues, hitting 109 home runs in just over 1903 PA. He’ll probably last all year, as the Padres try to find power wherever they can.

• Joey Rickard made headlines early into the season as the Orioles starting left fielder. The 24-year-old was selected from the Tampa Bay Rays at #8, and was on a tear to begin the year before cooling off the past week. Still hitting .269/.304/.375 on the year, Rickard has shown enough to stick with the team for the time being, even though Baltimore is in a fight for first in the AL East.

• The last two picks of the first round have both performed exceptionally well for their new clubs, with Matt Bowman throwing 12 innings for the Cardinals and Joe Biagini delivering 8.2 frames for the Blue Jays. Both these guys were starters in the minors and are successfully making the transition to the bullpen in the major leagues. Biagini has already recorded his first MLB win, while Bowman has only given up runs in two of his ten outings thus far.  Both have good chances to stick around through the season, with both teams looking to stretch them back out in the minors next year.

• Daniel Stumpf was selected by the Phillies in the second round and was off to a rough start before being suspended for 80 games for a positive PED test. As bad as it sounds, it actually helps Philadelphia keep the left-hander around, as now they can see where they are mid-season and only have to shelter him for the stretch run until rosters expand in September. At that point he’ll be able to accrue the 90 days needed on the 25-man this season to allow them to put him in the minors next year (otherwise, he’d need to stay on the big league roster for the entire season again, or be offered back to the Royals).

• The Brewers took Zack Jones in the second round, but the right-hander suffered a shoulder injury in Spring Training and has recently been moved to the 60-day DL after not progressing well.  Jones had surgery on the shoulder in 2014 after an aneurysm was found. Once thought of as a promising prospect in the Twins system, Jones will have to work his way back again and try to stay on a Brewers team that is playing well to open the year.

• The Angels selected Ji-Man Choi, the former Mariner prospect who was once a pretty promising hitter. His recent years have been marred by a PED suspension and a fractured fibula and the Angels will see if there is anything still in the 24-year-old’s future. He isn’t off to a very good start, hitting .067/.300/.067 in limited playing time, but maybe he will turn it around after being the latest MLB player to be haunted by a Milwaukee ghost.

Next: MLB All 30-and-Over Team

• Players from this year’s draft who have already been returned to their original club or released include: Jake Cave (pick #2), Evan Rutckyj (#3), Josh Martin (#7), Deolis Guerra (#9), Chris O’Grady (#13), Blake Smith (#15).  The 2015 draft results can be found here. Rule 5 draft information can be found here.