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Rule 5 Draft

Reds Return Rule 5 Pick Mark Payton To Athletics

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4:03pm: Payton has indeed been added to the Athletics’ player pool, the team announced.

3:02pm: The Reds have returned Rule 5 pick Mark Payton to the Athletics, per a club announcement. The 28-year-old outfielder was not claimed by another club on waivers. It’s not yet clear if he’ll be part of Oakland’s 60-man player pool.

Last season was Payton’s first in the Oakland organization, and he made an impression with a gaudy .334/.400/.653 batting line in 447 plate appearances at the Triple-A level. Payton bashed a career-best 30 home runs last year, albeit in an extremely hitter-friendly setting amid a leaguewide home run surge. (The Triple-A ball was the same as the MLB ball last year.) That said, Payton also altered his swing and hit fly-balls at a career-high rate in 2019, so the uptick in power wasn’t solely attributable to the league context.

Unfortunately for Payton, the Reds added multiple high-profile outfielders to a group that already included Nick Senzel, Jesse Winker, Aristides Aquino and Phil Ervin. Cincinnati signed both Nick Castellanos and Shogo Akiyama this winter, leaving Payton as a long-shot to make the club — even with an expanded roster. That crammed outfield already led to a DFA for Scott Schebler and Payton’s return to the A’s, but outfielder Travis Jankowski has been told he’ll make the Reds’ Opening Day roster, Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets.

Royals Acquire Rights To Rule 5 Pick Stephen Woods Jr.

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The Royals announced today that they’ve sent a player to be named later or cash to the Rays in exchange for unrestricted rights to Rule 5 pick Stephen Woods Jr. Such moves are only possible once a player first goes unclaimed on outright waivers. Normally, a Rule 5 pick is then offered back to his original club, but the Royals worked out a trade to keep Woods in the organization — and because he’s already cleared waivers, the right-hander won’t require a spot on the 40-man roster.

Woods, 25, missed the entire 2018 season due to shoulder surgery but returned in 2019 to throw 86 1/3 frames of 1.88 ERA ball with 8.2 K/9, 3.4 BB/9 and a 53.4 percent ground-ball rate in Class-A Advanced. Pitching the majority of last season at age 24, Woods was a bit old for the level, but the results were obviously quite encouraging for a pitcher coming back from a major surgical procedure. The Kansas City organization was clearly enamored of the former eighth-round pick’s upside and will now be able to hang onto him for the foreseeable future.

Woods has a history of control struggles, but he’s also missed plenty of bats in both his NCAA and professional career. His velocity was down a bit from its previous levels in 2019, FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen noted at the time of the Rule 5 Draft, but Woods also posted the lowest walk rate of his career in ’19.

Orioles Return Rule 5 Picks Brandon Bailey, Michael Rucker

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3:01pm: The O’s announced that both players have cleared waivers and been returned to their prior teams.

1:37pm: The Orioles have decided against carrying both of their Rule 5 selections from the December draft, GM Mike Elias told media members including Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). The departures of righties Brandon Bailey and Michael Rucker will open two 40-man roster spots.

It isn’t yet entirely clear whether these two hurlers have cleared waivers. Every other team in baseball will have (or has had) a chance to step into the O’s Rule 5 rights. If nobody places a claim, then they’ll be offered back to their prior teams — where they will not lock up a big-league roster spot unless and until they’re added.

The 25-year-old Bailey came over from the Astros organization after a strong 2019 season in which he pitched to a 3.30 ERA over 92 2/3 innings at the Double-A level with 10.0 K/9 and 4.0 BB/9. He had been selected with the second overall pick in the Rule 5 draft. The Orioles could’ve utilized him as a swingman in the majors this year but evidently didn’t see enough upside to merit the effort.

As for Rucker, who’s also 25, he’d be heading back to the Cubs. Last year, he transitioned into a full-time reliever, throwing 79 2/3 upper-minors innings over 36 appearances. Rucker carried a 4.18 ERA with a healthy combination of 10.5 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9 on the season. He also threw five scoreless innings over three appearances in camp, with three strikeouts and a pair of free passes.

2019 Rule 5 Draft Results

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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)

Winter Meetings Previews: Royals, White Sox

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In advance of the winter meetings, let’s take a moment to quickly preview a couple teams from the American League Central…

  • The Kansas City Royals will look for value buys on the free agent market, per Lynn Worthy of The Kansas City Star. Given the sale of the team and the managerial transition underway, the Royals have more justification than usual for patience this offseason. With Kansas City, however, there’s often a sense that internal valuations of the talent on hand differs from those of the general public. The Royals continue to present the idea that they are happy with their core, an impression bolstered by the “moon, sun, and stars” type packages the Royals are demanding for players like Whit Merrifield, Danny Duffy and Ian Kennedy. Senior VP of Baseball Ops & GM Dayton Moore refined his fence-walking trick recently while saying both, “…we’re very encouraged with where we are based on how our players performed individually last year,” and also, “I think we’ve got to upgrade everywhere, really.” Pitching is definitely a target, and Moore has been active in trade discussions already, enough to have a sense of where trades might happen – though from Moore’s comments, it seems the Royals are disinclined to be major players on the trade market unless opposing GMs become more amenable to Moore’s ask(s). They do have four open spots on the 40-man roster and should be active in the Rule 5 draft, per The Athletic’s Alec Lewis.
  • After being spurned by Zack Wheeler, the White Sox remain in the hunt for starting pitching, per MLB.com’s Scott Merkin. Chicago was also among the teams in on Jordan Lyles before the righty signed with the Rangers, tweets the MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. Their rotation candidates are currently made up of high-ceiling but largely-unestablished youngsters, fronted by 2019 breakout superstar Lucas Giolito. Speculatively, Dallas Keuchel fits nicely from a culture perspective as the perennially-attention-starved White Sox have already added Yasmani Grandal from the nobody-believes-in-us free agent pool – and they like playing with a chip on their shoulder on the southside. As for position players, Chicago boasts close to a full house now that Grandal and Jose Abreu are officially on board. With prospects Luis Robert and Nick Madrigal expected to play a large portion of 2020 in the big leagues, they have one of the more intriguing groups on that side of the ball. Still, there’s definitely room to tinker around the edges, especially in the outfield, where Luis Alexander Basabe, Daniel Palka, Leury Garcia, Adam Engel, and Luis Gonzalez make up the flexible collection of candidates to join Eloy Jimenez and Robert in the outfield.

Marlins Notes: Free Agents, Castellanos, Urena, Chen, Mejia

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While the Marlins have made it clear that upgrading the offense is a priority this winter, the team would prefer to stay away from long-term contracts so as not to block its younger position players, Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald writes.  Any number of veterans could fit as short-term adds for 2020, though it does mean the Marlins likely won’t be signing Marcell Ozuna or Nicholas Castellanos, two free agents Miami was rumored to have interest in signing.  Jackson notes that the Fish aren’t keen to give up the draft pick necessary to sign Ozuna (who rejected a Cardinals’ qualifying offer), while Castellanos is probably also unlikely, though the Marlins “could enter the bidding if he’s still available in a few weeks and willing to accept a shorter deal.”  One would imagine that if Castellanos was open to a short-term deal, however, he might prefer to take such a contract with a contending team rather than the rebuilding Marlins.

Some more from South Beach…

  • Also from Jackson’s piece, “the Marlins are leaning toward tendering” a contract to Jose Urena, who is projected for a $4MM salary in arbitration this offseason.  After solid results in 2017-18, Urena struggled to a 5.21 ERA over 84 2/3 innings in a season hampered by injury, and it’s possible Miami could now opt to use him as a reliever rather than the rotation.  Even for a low-payroll team like the Marlins, $4MM doesn’t seem like too expensive a sum for a pitcher with Urena’s resume, though Jackson notes that Miami could tender Urena a contract now and then release him before Opening Day (thus paying only a fraction of his agreed-upon salary) if they don’t like what they see in Spring Training.
  • After a busy day of roster additions and subtractions on Wednesday, president of baseball operations Michael Hill discussed the team’s moves with reporters (including MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro and Wells Dusenbury of the South Florida Sun Sentinel).  The most notable transactions was Wei-Yin Chen being designated for assignment, which all but officially ended the southpaw’s disappointing tenure in Miami after signing a five-year, $80MM deal in the 2015-16 offseason.  Chen still has one year and $22MM remaining on that contract, though the DFA “was not about money.  It was about building the best and deepest 40-man roster to allow us to compete in 2020 and beyond,” Hill said.  Since Chen wasn’t expected to be a big contributor next season and his trade value was virtually non-existent, it isn’t a shock that the Marlins felt that Chen’s roster spot was better used to protect a young player from the Rule 5 Draft.
  • All in all, six players were added to the 40-man in advance of the Rule 5 deadline — shortstop Jazz Chisholm, first baseman Lewin Diaz, and right-handers Sixto Sanchez, Nick Neidert, Humberto Mejia and Edward Cabrera.  It seems like Mejia was the only member of the group who wasn’t a no-brainer, as his inclusion on the 40-man “took a lot of discussion among our group,” Hill said. “He battled injuries in his history, but you’re talking about a very physical right-handed pitcher with three pitches and he’s an extreme strike-thrower.  We feel he’s a future major league starter and we didn’t think we should leave that profile exposed.”  As Hill noted, Mejia “pitched his way onto the roster” following a strong 2019 season that saw the righty post a 2.09 ERA over 90 1/3 innings at the A-ball and high-A ball levels.

Brewers Notes: Grandal, Moose, Rule 5 Draft, Lucas

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The latest on the Brew Crew….

  • Yasmani Grandal is now a member of the White Sox, though the Brewers made “multiple offers” to the free agent catcher, as per reporter Robert Murray (via Twitter).  Milwaukee had natural interest in a reunion given how well Grandal played in 2019, though Chicago’s four-year, $73MM contract was enough to outbid the Brewers.  With Grandal officially no longer an option, catcher becomes perhaps the Brewers’ biggest area of need this winter, as the club will be looking for a solid regular to join in-house options Manny Pina, David Freitas, and Jacob Nottingham.  Grandal, by the way, issued a thank-you to both the Brewers and their fans on his Instagram account today.
  • With Grandal gone, Mike Moustakas is the biggest remaining Brewers free agent.  While Milwaukee would also like to retain Moustakas, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel tweets that the infielder “has considerable interest” from other teams.  The Phillies, Braves, and Rangers are three of the clubs who have been linked to Moustakas in past reports, and it’s fair to imagine that lots of other teams would see a fit for a power hitter who can play second or third base.
  • The Brewers added three players to their 40-man roster yesterday in advance of the deadline for teams to set their rosters in advance of the Rule 5 Draft.  As you might expect, “these are not 100 percent easy, clear decisions to make on some players,” Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns told MLB.com’s Adam McCalvy and other reporters.  While Milwaukee has only 36 players on its 40-man, teams often leave spaces open for future additions or other roster maneuvering prior to December 12, when the Rule 5 Draft takes place.  This means that other teams could select some notable Brewers youngsters who weren’t protected, such as right-hander Zack Brown, currently ranked by MLB.com as the third-best prospect in Milwaukee’s farm system.  Brown was quickly ascending up the minor league ladder and was the Brewers’ minor league pitcher of the year in 2018, though his 2019 numbers (5.79 ERA over his first 116 2/3 innings at the Triple-A level) were a step backwards.  Stearns admitted that these struggles “certainly influenced our decision,” though “we still have high hopes for Zack Brown.”  If Brown is chosen, his new team would have to keep him on its Major League roster for the entire 2020 season to gain his permanent rights, or else the team would have to offer Brown back to Milwaukee.
  • Former Marlins infielder Ed Lucas has been hired as the Brewers’ new minor league hitting coordinator, as per Robert Murray (Twitter link).  Lucas’ post-playing career has thus far included three seasons in administrative and development roles with the Phillies and Marlins.  Lucas played for seven different organizations from 2004-16, a career that includes 163 MLB games with Miami in 2013-14.

Players Added To 40-Man Roster: National League

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We’re going to see a whole lot of players added to 40-man rosters in advance of tonight’s deadline to protect players from the Rule 5 draft. We will use this post to track those contract selections from National League teams that are not otherwise covered on the site.

NL West

  • The Dodgers announced that they’ve selected the contracts of right-hander Mitchell White, infielder/outfielder Zach McKinstry and outfielder DJ Peters. Both White and Peters are considered to be among the club’s top 15 prospects. McKinstry isn’t generally ranked inside L.A.’s top 30, but the 24-year-old had a big season between Double-A and Triple-A in 2019 while appearing at six defensive positions (shortstop, second base, third base and all three outfield slots).
  • The Diamondbacks announced that they’ve selected the contracts of right-handers Taylor Widener and Riley Smith as well as the contracts of infielders Andy Young and Wyatt Mathisen. Widener, 24, was one of the organization’s best pitching prospects coming into the season but was blown up for an eye-popping 8.10 ERA in 100 innings. He’s only a year removed from 137 1/3 innings of 2.75 ERA ball and an 11.5 K/9 mark in Double-A, however. Smith, 24, was sharp in Double-A before struggling in Triple-A — like many pitching prospects throughout the league (and with the D-backs in particular). Young, acquired in the Paul Goldschmidt trade last winter, hit 29 homers while playing three infield positions between Double-A and Triple-A. Mathisen, 26 in December, hit .283/.403/.601 in 345 Triple-A plate appearances.
  • The Giants, surprisingly, did not add anyone to their 40-man roster prior to tonight’s deadline.
  • The Rockies selected the contracts of infielder Tyler Nevin, left-hander Ben Bowden and right-handers Ashton Goudeau and Antonio Santos (Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post first reported the news on Twitter). Those four moves will fill the team’s 40-man roster. Of the four, Bowden and Nevin draw the most fanfare. Nevin, the No. 38 pick in the 2015 draft and son of former MLB slugger Phil Nevin, posted deceptively solid numbers in an extremely pitcher-friendly Double-A environment in 2019 (.251/.345/.399 — good for a 122 wRC+). Bowden, a second-round pick in ’16, posted gaudy strikeout numbers but struggled in Triple-A after dominating in Double-A in 2019.
  • The Padres selected outfielder Jorge Ona’s contract and designated outfielder Nick Martini for assignment, as outlined here.

NL Central

  • The Cardinals announced the additions of Jake Woodford, Elehuris Montero and Alvaro Seijas while designating righty Dominic Leone for assignment (as detailed here at greater length).
  • Outfielder Corey Ray and right-hander J.P. Feyereisen will head onto the Brewers 40-man, per Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel (via Twitter). It’s not yet known if the team will make further roster additions, but it would have five additional spots to work with to do so. Ray was the fifth overall pick in the 2016 draft but is coming off of a rough season. Feyereisen, who was added in a quiet September swap, will have a chance to challenge for MLB relief opportunities. Milwaukee also added infielder Mark Mathias to the 40-man roster after acquiring him in a trade with the Indians tonight.
  • The Cubs announced that they’ve added catcher Miguel Amaya, infielder Zack Short and right-handers Tyson Miller and Manuel Rodriguez to the 40-man roster. Amaya is the most highly regarded of the bunch, ranking second among Chicago farmhands and drawing some top 100 consideration at MLB.com.
  • Four additions to the 40-man were announced by the Reds, who have selected the contracts of catcher Tyler Stephenson and right-handers Tony Santillan, Ryan Hendrix and Tejay Antone. All four rank within the club’s top 30 at MLB.com, headlined by Santillan at No. 4 and ranging all the way to Antone at No. 30. Santillan thrived in a brief Double-A debut in 2018 but struggled there in a larger 2019 sample (4.84 ERA, 8.1 K/9, 4.8 BB/9 in 102 1/3 innings). He’s still just 22, though, and is regarded as a potential big league starter. Stephenson is a former first-round pick who hit well in a highly pitcher-friendly Double-A setting (.285/.372/.410; 130 wRC+). Hendrix posted big strikeout numbers as a reliever in 2019, while Antone displayed sharp ground-ball skills as a starter and reached Triple-A for the first time.
  • The Pirates added prospects Ke’Bryan Hayes, Oneil Cruz, Will Craig, Blake Cederlind and Cody Ponce to the 40-man roster while also designating four pitchers for assignment (as explored in greater length here). Lefty Williams Jerez and right-handers Dario Agrazal, Montana DuRapau and Luis Escobar were cut loose.

NL East

Orioles Seeking Veteran Shortstop And Pitching Depth

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The Baltimore Orioles primary goal for the near-term remains adding as much talent to the organization as possible, primarily in the minor leagues. That said, GM Mike Elias does have a winter checklist in this, his first full offseason as GM  (the Orioles hired him on November 16th of last year). Namely, the Orioles will be looking for pitching and a veteran shortstop, per MASNSports’ Roch Kubatko.

While still in the infancy of their rebuild, the Orioles do not plan to shop in the premium aisles of the free agent market, but adding free agent talent is as much about protecting the organization’s youngsters as it is about the talent influx itself. Said Elias, “…we want to have more depth than we went into last year in the event that injuries occur, that we can protect our young pitching prospects who will be coming up.”

The Orioles first have to decide which of their own players to protect before the Rule 5 draft, and with rosters expanding to 26 players this season, teams could use the extra roster spot to be more aggressive in the Rule 5 draft, as the Orioles themselves were last year in keeping shortstop Richie Martin on the roster. It was a tough campaign for Martin, who authored a .208/.260/.322 line across 355 plate appearances, likely ticketing him for extended time in the minor leagues in 2020 now that he is officially a part of the Baltimore organization. Martin’s example is the reason Baltimore will emphasize adding depth this winter, both on the hill and at shortstop, so that they are not forced to rush further prospects before they are ready.

Jonathan Villar is the only rostered player who saw significant time at shortstop last season, almost equally splitting his time between second and short. Hanser Alberto covers second and has spent some time at shortstop in the past, but the Orioles roster is devoid of middle infield depth beyond those two, assuming a Martin demotion.

Marlins Return Rule 5 Pick Julian Fernandez To Rockies

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The Miami Marlins have returned right-handed pitcher Julian Fernandez, who was selected in the Rule 5 Draft, to the Colorado Rockies, according to the Rockies’ official Twitter account. The move leaves 36 players on the Marlins’ 40-man roster.

Fernandez was originally selected by the Giants in the 2017 Rule 5 Draft, but was unable to pitch in the following season after suffering an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery. In the 2018-2019 offseason, he was claimed off waivers by the Marlins. After suffering a setback in his recovery from surgery, he was again unable to pitch for the entire year.

Since he hasn’t spent any time on a Major League roster in the two years since he was selected in 2017, he will be returned to the Colorado organization.

Fernandez’s career has certainly followed a curious, if unfortunate, path. He’s now accrued two years of Major League service time despite not having thrown a pitch in the big leagues. And with Fernandez returning to Colorado, the Rockies have stumbled into an interesting arm. At 6’6″, Fernandez is a physical specimen who attracted interest for his ability to touch triple digits with his fastball prior to surgery. He’s still just 23 years old, though he’s now lost two critical years of development and hasn’t thrown a pitch above Class-A ball.

In his most recent season, 2017, Fernandez threw 58 quality innings for the Rockies’ Class-A affiliate, striking out 57 batters and notching a 3.26 ERA. His high-octane fastball led many to believe that he had potential as a high-leverage reliever, though of course that potential had to be put on hold. Still, he’ll be an interesting case to monitor moving forward: when he’s at full health, will he retain his electric fastball velocity? Where will the Rockies assign him in his return to action? It’ll be fun to see if he can carve out a role with his new/old organization, which first signed him when he was 16.

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