The Rule 5 draft begins at 12 p.m ET as this year’s Winter Meetings in San Diego draw to a close. Those unfamiliar with how the draft works can check out MLBTR’s full primer on the event here, but the short version is that teams with open 40-man roster spots can select a player with four to five years of pro experience from other organizations if said player hasn’t been given a spot on the 40-man roster. Players who signed at 18 years of age or younger but have five years of experience can be selected, as can players signed at 19 or older who have four years of experience. Each selection costs $100K, but it’s not mandatory for teams to make picks. Clubs must carry chosen players on their active rosters (or the major league disabled list) throughout the entire 2016 season. Otherwise, the player must be placed on waivers; if no other team steps into the Rule 5 rights, the player is offered back to his original club.
The Rule 5 order is based on the reverse order of last season’s standings. You can find Baseball America’s preview of the festivities right here (subscription required). Here are this year’s results:
1) Tigers: RHP Rony Garcia (Yankees)
2) Orioles: RHP Brandon Bailey (Astros)
3) Marlins: RHP Sterling Sharp (Nationals)
4) Royals: RHP Stephen Woods Jr. (Rays)
5) Blue Jays: pass
6) Mariners: RHP Yohan Ramirez (Astros)
7) Pirates: pass
8) Padres: pass
9) Rockies: pass
10) Angels: pass
11) White Sox: pass
12) Reds: OF Mark Payton (Athletics)
13) Giants: RHP Dany Jimenez (Blue Jays)
14) Rangers: pass
15) Phillies: INF Vimael Machin (Cubs) (traded to Athletics)
16) Cubs: RHP Trevor Megill (Padres)
17) Red Sox: SS Jonathan Arauz (Astros)
18) D-backs: pass
19) Mets: pass
20) Brewers: pass
21) Cardinals: pass
22) Nationals: pass
23) Indians: pass
24) Rays: pass
25) Braves: pass
26) Athletics: pass
27) Twins: pass
28) Yankees: pass
29) Dodgers: pass
30) Astros: pass
Second Round
2) Orioles: RHP Michael Rucker (Cubs)
The entire 2016 season? Is this a Back To The Future re-boot?
Lots of typos around here lately.
Lots of people like you to make unnecessary and useless comments about the free content you read. You do understand this is a peak volume period for the writers?
The writers aren’t babies who need you to defend them. And this was in no way some scathing criticism, so calm down.
They take a lot of posts like this from previous years, so it’s possible that they copied and pasted the post from 2016 and forgot to change the year. Plus it’s the winter meetings, so I’m more than willing to deal with a typo or two in exchange for on-time reports.
Yep, definitely a copy/paste thing. He also didn’t change “disabled list” to “injured list”.
…and you were offended by this how??
Nobody is acting “offended”. Stop trying to escalate non-existent conflicts that don’t exist. The internet’s rife enough with that already.
Dan…you don’t know Clepto very well do you?
Looks the Orioles are grabbing everything they can hoping something sticks. I feel for their fans.
When was the last time Boston picked up a Rulev5 player. The new chapter is officially Blooming. While other teams will fill that 26th roster spot with someone who might help now, Chaim will try to hide this kid on the bench for future depth.
The entire 2016 season? Charging the flux capacitor!
Great Scott!
The Miracle Of “Copy & Paste”………….LOL
I’m curious to see with the 26 man roster this year if there will be a little more activity in the rule 5 draft.
Doubt it. I think most teams will just carry an extra catcher. The few who don’t will probably carry an extra reliever. Internal options on a lot of teams are probably better than the castoffs here.
Yea my feeling is it will open spots for guys like Terrance Gore or someone similar. A player who has one elite skill. The extra reliever thing was also my first thought, but with the rule changes that pitchers have to face three batters minimum, I’m not sure.
Billy Hamilton will be a great 26th man with his amazing baserunning and defensive metrics. Especially for a team like the Padres or Giants who play in a large ballpark and dont particularly have a true CF.
I am also curious about where Billy Hamilton will end up.
I think with the 3 batter minimum an extra reliever might be the way to go. Having each reliever throw between 10-20 pitches each time they pitch can get tiring in a 162 game season
Isn’t there a limit on how many pitchers you can have on the roster, essentially to force that 26th man to be a hitter?
Believe you can carry a maximum of 13.
If they have a full 40 they are skipped over and they keep going until the 40s are full/passing
Wow the Cubs actually made a pick. I assumed they couldn’t afford the $100K fee.
Megill might even stick.
It looks like a decent pick.
Hawk won Ford C Frick
Took out a 2nd mortgage on Jason Heyward.
Make no sense to make the roster 26 and the expanded rosters only 28. Make it 28 during the season. Then make it up to 33 when they expand.
Laureano trdae is now a complete failure
Lol Cubs having 2 players drafted. Teams will be begging for the Cubs to take them back by mid April
Have you seen the Orioles pitchers lately?
Lol ur team must really be in trouble then Rucker last season was a 25 yo repeating AA and had an ERA of 4.28
They’re banking on developing him further. This draft is the example of a dart throw. The cubs haven’t exactly developed any pitcher not named Kyle Hendricks in a long time either….
Hendricks is from the Rangers !
His last 220 innings of minor league ball were in the Cubs System. I’ll throw them that bone.
That’s a pretty big bone to throw. Hendricks was impressive in the Rangers system.
He threw 160 innings in the Rangers system. Never getting past high A. He only made 21 starts as a member of the Texas Rangers org. He threw 250 innings in the Cubs system- A+ to AAA.
Going to have to disagree. That’d be like saying Dylan cease was developed by the Cubs. I’m sure you wouldn’t want me to say that.
“Lol ur team must really be in trouble then”
Are you unfamiliar with the Orioles?
Jays pass on making a Rule 5 Draft pick at #5… SMH
Jays didn’t pass.
Hobie Harris (NYY)
Everything I have read says pass.
Ah, it was the AAA phase.
Joel is mistaken. He meant to say his favorite character on Baywatch was Hobie.
Total misunderstanding.
he was selected in the AAA portion
Surprised Zach Brown & Griffin Jax were not selected. I also really like PJ Higgins from the Cubs as a backup catcher (or 3rd catcher with the addition of the 26th man) and corner infield depth.
Does anyone know why it says the Phillies selection, Vimael Machin, is expected to be traded and whom he’s expected to be traded to?
The Orioles added two pretty intriguing arms they can use in mop-up duty to see how they react to MLB hitters.
likely cash considerations or bonus slots. (like Burdi and Jackson the last two years)
Traded to the A’s for $$$$$
I was surprised no one picked up PJ Higgins too considering the crazy cost of catchers and lack of depth on the market this year.
Those 3 Astros will be back in the system by June. Bailey may hold his own for a while. What a disservice to these players. Aruaz is 20, still undersized and barely performed in A ball.
Ramirez could stick with Seattle as a reliever. They did it successfully last year and their pen is even more of a disaster currently.
Beauty of the 26th man, these teams could stash these players for the year and just operate as if roster limits hadn’t changed.
That year off of playing will probably hurt the player’s career
depends. Luis Torrens for example didnt miss a beat. actually, the rest seemed to help his health.
I can see the Red Sox trying to steal a guy with a big ceiling just by buring him as the 26th man, using him as a pinch runner and occasional defensive sub (although Bogaerts doesn’t really need one). Add in some bogus injury time. They’re not going anywhere this year anyway.
Bailey is as good as gone. He will be solid in the pen.
Disservice? If they crack the roster they’ll make major league minimum, over 500k, pro-rated over however long they stay on the big league roster, rather than less than minimum wage in the minors. There’s no guarantee that any of these guys would make it to the majors otherwise.
At least they will make some money while getting embarrassed by ML pitching/hitting, having their confidence shot and development side tracked by these franchises.
These guys weren’t protected by their club for a reason, they’re fringe mlb talents at best. Better than even odds that none of them would make half a mill in their career without being rule five’d for a whole season.
Disagree with Bailey and Aruaz. I believe Aruaz is a top 20 prospect for the Astros and Bailey looks like he will be a multi inning RP, but not now… someone posted on here for every 1 player that are successful, 10 are not. I would imagine that’s an accurate statement based on year over year results. But yea, if they make it out of spring training, they get an additional pre tax $65k for 2 months before washing out. Good for them.
So you think 2 months of struggling in the big leagues does soooo much harm to their development? Thats ridiculous. Either they make a half million and lose legit development time, or they dont make that much, get a little time in the show, a little extra money, and go right back to where they were in the pipeline.
The Astros got hit.
The trash can hit back?
Mark payton is semi interesting, former yankres prospect, went im milb rule 5 last year to oakland. Only 5’8″ yet hit 35 homeruns last year in pcl although playing in vegas helped
If the Reds were wanting a lefty OF, I’m a little surprised that they took Payton over Ka’ai Tom of Cleveland. He, too, put up impressive numbers last year (plus not in the PCL) and is 2..5 years younger.
I was also surprised no one took Tom. Figured he would be a good cheap 4th OF for someone
Name change from the Baltimore Orioles to the Baltimore Rule 5s. Remember the Colt .45s?
Yeah they were replaced by the astroturfs
Has any team ever kept 2 Rule 5 players all season? Orioles could set a new standard.
3 all year
Padres and tigers
The reds years ago had josh Hamilton and jared Burton
The Orioles have taken 2 a few times, but I don’t believe they’ve ever actually kept more than 1 for an entire season. Last year they took Richie Martin and Drew Jackson, but only kept Martin. Could be a similar situation here. Bring both to ST and keep one. What do they have to lose lol
Once again, the most overrated part of the baseball off season comes to an end. For every player that sticks there are 10 that don’t. Maybe one of these guys makes an impact, but in general the Rule 5 hype is far bigger than the Rule 5 results.
Brad Keller is a rare one.
Roberto Clemente was pretty good, too.
Of course, that I have to go back to a guy who was taken in a Rule 5 draft about 60 years ago is the definition of the exception proving the rule.
Johan Santana says hi remember me? Rule 5 pick from Astros to Twins.
Uggla, Johan Santana, Herrera, Keller, Jay Gibbons (lol for orioles fans), Willy taveras,Shane Victorino, podsednik, Josh Hamilton……
Obviously your probability of success is low. That should be obvious. If you aren’t good enough to crack another teams top 40; it’s highly unlikely that you’re going to be good enough to make another teams 25 and seriously contribute. But there are those that do. If this draft helps even 3-5% of the guys taken—-it’s worth having.
I have no doubt that this draft has its use and obviously there have been some stellar successes, but probably around 80% of the players taken are rarely heard from again. I’m not saying it should go away, I’m just saying that there is far more chatter about this draft throughout the season and off season than it warrants.
I believe Marwin Gonzalez was a rule 5. He was pretty good for the stros
I certainly don’t mind the Rule V. For the rebuilding teams it’s something to look forward to. It gives these players a new opportunity and a chance to compete. I believe Victor Reyes has a bright future ahead of himself, the rule 5 draft contributed to others success as well.
Somebody tell me all the WARS and the other stats… who are these guys?!?!?
I can’t determine if a player is good or not if I haven’t seen EVERY GAME, and I haven’t with these guys.
Rule 5 seems like a waste….they should allow you to draft 1 player that has made it to AAA before and keep them. That would help those players that are blocked at the MLB but would get a chance some where else….guys like Seby Savala .
Then you’d defeat the purpose. You would see guys held back at AA if there wasnt a 40 man for them yet, and, most of aaa would hold the 14 remaining slots.
While the actual draft results are often underwhelming, it DOES force teams to make moves of the type it intended.
The rule 5 draft is great for players. It gives a guy who otherwise may never make it to the major leagues a shot. There’s real world implications here. Even if they aren’t significant contributors, it gets these guys a pension— if they’re able to stick around. Every once in awhile you find a Herrera, Keller, or Deshields who makes an impact too.
There’s a AAA phase of Rule 5, too. The Cubs lost Justin Bour to the Marlins that way.
Right. Scott Podsednik was one of those guys too. I incorrectly lumped him in w the ML rule 5 guys above. The successes are few and far between but they are there.
Dan Uggla was a huge get for the Marlins many years ago.
Johan Santana was one also sending him to the Twins via the Astros to the Marlins in the draft, then traded to the Twins.
I’m happy for these guys. They’ll get MLB minimum rather than $20K-$30K, at least for a while.
Not sure why the Cubs protected Zach Short and not Machin?
Given the names off the board I’m mildly surprised no one took Cody Sedlock. Given his former first round pedigree. He looks about as good as any of these guys taken.
Alright, the Marlins get Wide Receiver Sterling Sharp!
Glad that he’s finally fully recovered from that neck injury.
Over/Under on when Garcia becomes the Tigers set up man…..Memorial Day?
wow that’s depressing. i was really looking forward to this and there were actually less selections then i expected. surprised Brown was safe.
Josh Hamilton was a Rule 5 pick. Sterling Sharpe is a cool name.
The former Packers’ WR late career change?
I wonder if this Sterling Sharp has a little brother that will eventually outshine him as well.
Dany Jimenez just got some love from Jim Callis on MLB network. The Giants Rule 5 pick has a good slider and can run his fastball to the upper 90’s. He’s a good bet to stick with the big league club.
Well done Farhan, keep building.
it is interesting but I am always wary of these sub AA guys that are suddenly thrown on a roster – it is an opportunity but also a lot of pressure for the guy
Just need to make opening day to get that health insurance. That in itself is a huge get for the rest of your life.
He kinda dominated AA according to baseball reference
1.87era
1.01 whip
46ks
33.2 ip
Royals pick some nobody from Tampa Bay again when they could of selected Zack Brown or Joe Barlow. I hope this guy proves me wrong and becomes the next Brad Keller.
In 2018, since I now have time on my hands, I watched Brown pitch quite a bit on Milb-TV. I marveled nightly on how this kid ever got anybody out. And that’s when he was the rage of the Southern League, with a tool package that was less than Kolby Allard’s. And at least Allard a lefty.
No stuff, nada, nuttin’. I knew he’d get wacked in the PCL with the super ball, but even I couldn’t foresee how bad he was roughed up.
Brown might be a long-range prospect, but remember you have to keep these guys on your 26-man all year. No way Brown fits, even on the Tigers, Royals et al.
Zack Brown and joe Barlow are pretty much nobodys themselves.
Surprised no one took Jose Rojas. Other than his high K numbers and poor defense he looks like he could be a solid bat for someone, possibly as a pinch hitter in the NL
The link to Baseball America still doesn’t work…..
Mark Canha was a rule 5 draft pick by Colorado and traded to Oakland that day. That was a good pickup by the A’s
How many rounds are in the Rule 5 Draft and when does the minor league portion of the draft take place?
However many rounds as a team has an open slot on their 40 and takes someone.
Once a team passes they’re out and it continues with the next team that hasn’t passed.
There’s 40 rounds, but 38 don’t count.
the minor league phase alsp happened today. mlb.com has the results.
Mark Payton to the Reds. .334 30 HRs 97 RBIs
I like it.
I’m flummoxed as to why the Nats had 10 spots open on their 40 man and left Sterling unprotected. Hes gonna be a good one. Good luck on the Marlins. You’ll be in the Show soon.
Same here. They lack pitching depth in general and it wasn’t like they were under a crunch. Seems like an unforced error.