Did the Oakland Athletics Miss an Opportunity in the Rule 5 Draft?

The Oakland Athletics struggled to a 68-94 record in 2015, their worst mark since the 65-win 1997 squad. The front office has said that they may take a page out of the Houston Astros rebuilding handbook, which likely means building through their farm system while enduring a couple more poor seasons. After yesterday’s deadline, the A’s have a full 40-man roster which could end up being a questionable move.

The Rule 5 Draft, held in December, is a way for players to be moved around so that teams can’t hoard talent in their minor league system for too long, but to have a pick in the draft a team must have room on their 40-man roster. There are a number of teams that left some of their top-ranked players unprotected in this year’s draft which should make for an interesting event following the Winter Meetings. Two names stick out from an offensive standpoint are Yankees’ #16 prospect Jake Cave, a 6th round pick in 2011, and Tampa’s #24 Tyler Goeddel a 1st rounder in the same year.

Cave will be entering his age 23 season in 2016 and spent the majority of 2015 in Double-A Trenton where he hit .267 with two homers and 37 RBI, adding 17 stolen bases in 20 attempts. The Yanks promoted Cave to Triple-A in September with the Rule 5 Draft in mind. With Scranton Wilkes-Barre Cave hit .458 in 24 at-bats.

With the center fielder getting that look in Triple-A, that means that he must be selected in the MLB portion of the draft and put on a team’s 25-man roster for an entire season in order to stay with that new team. MLB Pipeline said the following in the assessment of the outfielder: “Cave flashes all-around ability and draws praise for his constant hustle. He barrels balls and isn’t fazed by breaking pitches, so he should hit for average, provided he tightens his strike-zone discipline. There’s some question as to whether he can get to average power because most of his pop goes to the gaps, and he homered just nine times in his first 248 pro games.” Obviously there is some development left for Cave, but with the 2015 A’s having chemistry issues, Cave’s hustle would be a good fit.

Tyler Goeddel is a versatile player, manning all three outfield positions in Double-A Montgomery last season while playing in 106 games at third base in 2014. The 23-year-old has a nice mix of speed and power as evidenced by his line from 2015 which included a .279 batting average, 12 homers, 72 RBI and 28 stolen bases with an added .350 on-base percentage for good measure.

Again, we turn to Pipeline’s assessment: “Goeddel was projectable and athletic when the Rays drafted him in 2011 and he’s still working to hone his raw tools. He has a loose, line drive swing that should lend itself to hitting for more power once he physically matures. He knows how to use his speed on the bases and has stolen at least 20 bases in each of his first three professional seasons.”

Next: Nationals, Shortstops Lead Potential 2016 ROY Candidates

The Oakland Athletics are in the middle of a rebuild and either of these young outfielders could be a nice piece to have moving forward. Instead the A’s kept a 34-year-old and career .227 hitter (.210 and .197 the past two seasons with Oakland) in Sam Fuld, who will come cheaply, but not as cheap as two players that have yet to debut in the big leagues.

Of course, Oakland could go the same route they took last year and just trade for a player that is selected in the Rule 5 Draft, which is how they acquired Mark Canha, but with Oakland slated to have a much higher pick in this year’s version, it seems unlikely that they will do so.