One of the more interesting aspects of each year’s Winter Meetings is the Rule 5 Draft.
The Rule 5 Draft allows for teams to select players unprotected on the 40-man roster who have accrued five or more years of service time with the club that originally signed the prospect.
In the past, some serious gems have been Rule 5 picks, like Kevin Millar, Johan Santana, and Shane Victorino. One of the conditions of the pick is that a Rule 5 player must remain on the big league roster for the entire subsequent season after being selected or said player must be returned to his original team. (Such a player can be hidden on the DL, but must be on the active roster for at least 90 days.)
What that promises, at least in deep keeper and AL/NL only contests is a potential cheap guy who will indeed remain on the team roster all season. For example, in 2013 the White Sox grabbed Adrian Nieto from the Nationals as a Rule 5, and in Tout Wars I was happy to pick the backstop as a $1 second catcher. As it was, Nieto did not help much, going .237-2-7 over 108 at-bats. But, in a two-catcher league where the spot is so thin anyway, the best I can say is Nieto was a benign addition.
Note that Nieto did not help me win, but he was cheap, was on the roster all year, and, certainly, if you can score a Bip Roberts or Geronimo Berroa — both Rule 5 acquisitions — for a buck gamble they can indeed be difference makers. So here is my annual look at the Rule 5 players who seem the most interesting — though this year’s list is not that promising. Here is the complete list of 2017 Rule 5 draftees.
Victor Reyes (OF, from Dbacks, to Tigers): A .299-12-265 line over his five years, with 87 doubles, 92 swipes, and 289 runs over 582 games in the minors, coupled with a .347 OBP (154 walks to 354 whiffs) doesn’t bode that well for Reyes, who is likely a fourth flychaser at best on the team that is shuffling thanks to the Ian Kinsler swap. He’s a marginal acquisition.
Carlos Tocci (OF, from Phillies to White Sox): Tocci moves from a log jam, compounded by the signing of Carlos Santana, to a young potentially fluid developing team, so that bodes well. Still, Tocci’s profile is not that dissimilar from Reyes with a .266-12-210 line over 665 games with 65 swipes. Further, Tocci’s OBP is a meager .317 (147 walks to 429 strikeouts) making Carlos somewhat less attractive as a player, but clearly in a deep league, a better gamble with respect to potential playing time.
Nick Burdi (P, from Twins to Phillies): What makes Burdi, like a few others on the Rule 5 list, is that he was swapped by the Phillies to the Pirates as soon as the selection was made. That means Pittsburgh coveted the hurler, who is a reliever with 80 games under his professional belt but none as a starter. Burdi has a 10-6, 2.97 line over his tenure, with 142 strikeouts over 104 innings to go with 10 saves and a 1.17 WHIP. Since he is in the pen, that alone suggests marginal value in most leagues, but as the season progresses a cheap quiet middle guy can often be a stat stabilizing tonic, so don’t lose sight of Burdi.
Burch Smith (P, from Rays to Mets): Another place holder, the former hard-throwing Padres pick from 2011 was transitioned to the Royals, where, like Burdi, Smith gets a chance to work the pen. The righty has had a pair of TJ surgeries that waylaid his career, and even has 36.3 ugly Padres frames, but in the minors he notched 20-14, 3.45 numbers over 284.6 innings with 302 punchouts and a 1.18 WHIP.
Albert Suarez (P, from Giants to Dbacks): Suarez was with the hapless Giants for parts of two season (3-8, 4.51 over 115.3 innings with 88 strikeouts and a 1.288 WHIP. Suarez is likely more bullpen fodder, but his K:BB rate over some lousy frames last year was 3:1 and his 2017 WHIP 1.23, so there is potential.
Anthony Gose (P, from Rangers to Astros): A poor man’s Shihei Ohtani at this point, Gose was a Toronto outfielder last time we wrote about him (.240-12-69 over 1128 at-bats), indicating a different side of the dish might be appropriate. Gose, now a pitcher, can throw hard (near 100 mph) but he has just 11 AAA IP (7.51 ERA with 14 K to 6 BB), so using a roster spot for a full year on such a gamble is interesting but not worth pursuing.
Brett Graves (P, from Athletics to Marlins): New GM Derek Jeter certainly needs all the live bodies he can find as he heads to a core rebuild, and the former third-round pick in 2014 from the University of Missouri might be of some help. Graves must keep the ball down, for he allowed 31 minor league homers over 362 innings, with just one-tenth (literally, 36.6) at AA with none above. He’s durable and could be an innings eater, but not much more.
Jose Medina (from Mets to Padres): A southpaw who moved from the rotation to the pen, Medina has a pretty good line with a 7-12, 3.14 mark over his 206.3 minor league innings, which feature just 122 whiffs but a solid 1.226 WHIP. Medina, who allowed just 11 big flies in the minors, could be an interesting pen possibility, but not a lot more in this somewhat disappointing season of Rule 5’ers,
Remember to tune into the Tout Wars Hour on the FNTSY network, hosted by me, with Justin Mason and featuring Lord Z every Thursday night at 9 PM ET.
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