The Reds have returned Rule 5 draft selection Cooper Bowman to the Athletics, per announcements from both clubs. Cincinnati’s 40-man roster count drops to 39. Bowman does not need to go onto the 40-man roster with the A’s.
Bowman, 25, was initially drafted by the Yankees but was one of four players who came to the A’s via the August 2022 trade that sent Frankie Montas and Lou Trivino to the Bronx. After that deal, he posted some decent Double-A numbers but struggled in his first taste of Triple-A.
He appeared in 152 minor league games from the start of 2023 through July 28 of 2024, mostly at Double-A but with four Complex League games in there as well. In his 705 plate appearances during that stretch, he walked at an 11.8% clip and kept his strikeouts down to a decent 20.9% pace. His combined .272/.369/.450 batting line led to a 125 wRC+. He also stole 73 bases in 81 tries and lined up defensively mostly at second base but with stints at third base, shortstop and center field.
He was promoted to Triple-A for the final few weeks of the 2024 season and struggled, hitting just .218/.284/.308 in a 38-game sample. But with the speed, defensive versatility and the decent offense at Double-A, the Reds perhaps saw enough for Bowman to carve out a utility role at the big league level, so they nabbed him in the Rule 5 draft.
That gave him a chance to break camp and make his major league debut but Bowman hit .120/.267/.120 in his 30 plate appearances this spring. That’s a small sample size but was apparently enough for the Reds to change course. Per Rule 5 regulations, the Reds would have had to keep Bowman on the big league roster all year or else put him on waivers. Any claiming club would have been bound by the same rules as the Reds, so it appears no other club was willing to give him a 40-man spot. Bowman will instead return to the A’s and give them some extra non-roster depth.
How does this work? Does he just drive over to A’s facility today and get added to Major League camp?
Pretty much. Just head across town to Hohokam. Atleast he didn’t have to catch a flight to Tampa or Miami.
More likely his career is probably over.
Luke strong- Probably not for a Rule 5 pick. The A’s would be a better place to be, actually. If Reds saw enough to nab him. A’s will find a spot.
plus two former A’s second basemen from Rapid City (Dick Green and Mark Ellis) will take Coop under their wing(s).
Ender Inciarte and Shane Victorino are both past rule 5 draftees that were returned. It’s not necessarily the end of his career. Could even be a boost if he mirrors Inciarte’s trajectory.
doubt that…he’s only 25
Not necessarily. When the Tigers got Will Vest back from the Mariners he was a much better pitcher than what they took in the first place. Sent to Toledo he worked his way to Detroit and has been doing great since. If the Cubs would like to return Gage Workman Detroit would be thrilled. Should have added him to the 40 man roster and should have dfa Akil then instead of later.
Hardly – he’s a young aggressive player – he’ll resurface.
Any player selected in Rule 5 draft needs to be on the team they were selected by 40 man roster for the entire season, if sent down they are returned to their team they were selcted from, and there are no roster restrictions once that player has been returned.
They need to be on the 26-man roster.
Which you can’t be if you are not on the 40 man. Weird bone of contention.
OP’s comment was inaccurate, so it was a necessary detail to add. Simply being on the 40-man is not what determines whether a player must be returned, as OP stated.
Can confirm: you must be on the Active Roster (26 Man) all season.
As someone who has been waiting for a South Dakota-born player since Sean Doolittle called it quits, I can assure you the Brad Meadle needs to count his days.
can’t help but root for a Rapid City fella
Hat tip from one SD to another
Trading for Lux hurt his chances of sticking with the Reds. It also appears that Blake Dunn can run the bases and defend CF as well as Bowman. Lastly, Reds have better use of that 40 man roster spot. Good luck Cooper.
Middle Infielders are one thing the Reds have an abundance of, even after trading India. No surprise there was not a spot for him
No surprise. He didn’t show much in camp. A head scratcher why they chose yet ANOTHER INFIELDER anyway when there had to be someone they could actually USE available somewhere.
No surprise here under Tito. When the Reds picked this guy I had a Stewart Turner flashback
Just hate being reminded of the Montas deal….injured on the day he was traded, and the Yankees could have kept (the competent) JP Sears….but, what the heck.
Spent the past week in AZ and saw a couple games and some practices. Honestly, small sample size or not, he looked every bit as clueless at the plate as his numbers suggest.
If the Reds saw little enough to jettison him halfway through camp, it would seem like an admission they were wrong. The A’s didn’t see enough to put him on the 40-man.
At this point his best case would seem to be one of those 5th outfielders who bounces between AAA and a few scattered weeks here and there on the big league roster for a few years.
Then when he’s out of options maybe he heads to Asia?
Bowman was not drafted only as a 2nd base insurance policy for McLain but as a cf insurance policy for Friedl as well. Both Matt and TJ are healthy. Lux and Fairchild are better backups and Dunn , Hurt looked better than Cooper, are already on the 40 man plus have options. Reds had good reason toselect him, but no reason to keep him.
opinions vary
Love these Rule 5 low-cost scouting mission disguised as a roster move.
he’s likely no Joey Batts with a late career renaissance. but you never know. keep fighting for your dream, Cooper. maybe you’ll get to harness your potential one day in Vegas.
Good thing they hung on to the receipt
You can count on Buffalo Bob doing that!