Baseball's annual Rule 5 Draft is an often forgotten source of talent. It's designed to help players that are stuck in the minor leagues, perhaps blocked by a superstar like Albert Pujols or Evan Longoria, reach the big leagues with a different organization. Make sure you check out our Rule 5 Draft primer if you're unsure of how it works or what makes a player eligible.
For the most part, teams look to acquire role players in the Rule 5 Draft (a bench piece, long reliever, etc.) rather than hit a home run and find a star. The Dan Ugglas and Joakim Sorias are few and far between. The Orioles did select a future All Star in the 2003 Rule 5 Draft, but unfortunately Jose Bautista's breakout didn't occur until six years later with the Blue Jays. Jay Gibbons hit .260/.314/.455 with 126 homers in parts of seven seasons with the O's after they grabbed him from Toronto in the 2000 Rule 5 Draft.
The Orioles have selected a player in major league portion of the Rule 5 Draft every year since 2005, most notably landing Alfredo Simon back in 2006. Steve Melewski of MASN Sports recently spoke to one of Baltimore's higher-ups about how they prepare for the event…
"Now you simply go through all your reports and most people don't realize that there are more than 10,000 reports on this year's (available) players in virtually every club's system," said John Stockstill, the Orioles director of player development. "In our case, (assistant director of player development) Tripp Norton we be involved, I'll be involved and Lee MacPhail (director, pro scouting) will head that with all our scouts … Lee will use all of our reports available and we'll eventually target several players that we'd like to acquire."
Baltimore is a team with a lot of young talent on their roster and the financial means to make a splash in free agency, but they're still looking to fill some holes by being creative. Stockstill said they rank the Rule 5 Draft eligible players on their radar in several different ways, including by position and by team need. This year they could be searching for a shortstop or backup catcher, and of course pitching.
It's not often that the Rule 5 Draft bears fruit, but considering the cost (just $50K to select a player), it's a great way for a rebuilding team to add some young pieces to the roster and see what sticks.
Roberto Clemente, Johan Santana, Joakim Soria, Josh Hamilton, Dan Uggla, etc.
Gotta at least due your due diligence and throw a dart now and then.
And Shane Victorino – twice!
Sadly…
Um. I would disagree with your assertion that its designed to free up a player that might be blocked by a superstar like Pujols or some other. That’s just not true. Ever. Quality AAA players who are blocked by a star in the majors are pretty much gauranteed to be protected by the 40-man roster. They are more likely to stay in the system, or, get traded. The players who are most likely to be left unprotected are AA or AAA guys with promise but some blemishes, projects, high draft picks who are busts, and prospects derailed by injuries. I don’t think any club likes to lose even these players, but it’s a calculated risk they take, that they will be able to squeak through. You generally never never never see a AAA prospect who has posted years of good production but are blocked by a star. For instance, the Phillies probably held back Ryan Howard a couple seasons and he was never exposed.
You’re right. That’s what it’s supposed to do, but it’s definitely not what it does.
For example, Mat Gamel says hi.
Yes, I guess I just mean it’s not designed to help those blocked good players. At all. It’s just a mechanism to keep teams from hording talent, of any quality, a way for talent to leave a system in a orderly fashion.
This process usually benefits the players who aren’t quite finished products, not because they are blocked.
The Orioles selected someone last year but they immediately traded that player.
Who?? Justin Turner?
Ben Snyder. He was selected from the Giants’ organization and immediately traded to the Rangers as the PTBNL in the trade for Kevin Millwood.
Ben Snyder. He was selected from the Giants’ organization and immediately traded to the Rangers as the PTBNL in the trade for Kevin Millwood.
Ben Snyder. He was selected from the Giants’ organization and immediately traded to the Rangers as the PTBNL in the trade for Kevin Millwood.
The Orioles should take Wynn Pelzer this year. That guy’s pretty good, he’s rated as the #6 prospect by Baseball America in the O’s system.
Oh, crap!
Alfredo Simon was actually drafted by the Orioles in Rule 5 off the Texas roster on Dec 7 2006, then traded that same day to his original team, the Phillies…then when he failed to stick with the Phils he was returned not to the O’s but to the Rangers on Mar 17, 2007 and later released…he was then signed and later released by the Dodgers…it was Sept 5, 2008 that the Orioles re-signed him and he began his current stint with the O’s…so he wasn’t really a Rule 5 acquisition for them…
Joakim Soria. Crazy that it cost the Royals $50k for one of the best closers in baseball right now.
Let’s face, sometimes you just get lucky. I had a poker game where I won five bucks off nickel ante, and I’ve had plenty more games where I lost my shirt. Most of the time, the Rule 5 isn’t gonna grab you a star, but there’s the possibility you strike gold.
It’s a worthy gamble for a team that has free roster space, which also means, a non-contender. In a pennant run, it’s very hard to justify hanging onto that Rule V guy when you need an extra bullpen arm late in games, or, you have a hole being exposed on the bench.
For losing teams, especially ones who are trying to replenish the farm, it’s a worthwhile move. Those teams tend to struggle just to pick out 25 quality guys who they’d rather keep longterm.
Who’s the most likely first pick if anyone knows
Who is out there that could really help the O’s this year? Anyone have a guess?
Hope they find someone better than Randor Beird, the 2007 orioles RuleV pick. He still reeks for Boston’s AAA team unless they release him over the winter.