Rule 5: Now that's entertainment
The Rule 5 draft takes place at 9 a.m. (PST) and I couldn't be more excited. This is the day when teams get to outsmart each other by drafting each other's overlooked minor league players.
Here's how it works. Teams have submitted protected lists to MLB, which include the players on the 40-man roster and certain younger players who are exempt from the draft. Anyone else can be taken in the draft for just a $50,000 claiming fee, but that player must be kept on the major league roster all year or offered back to the original team for half the claiming price. There's some other fine print, but it's too early in the morning to get all front office on you.
Some fine players have been taken in the Rule 5 draft over the years. Kelly Gruber, for instance, turned out to be a two-time All-Star for the Toronto Blue Jays after being rescued from the Indians organization in 1983. Of course, the vast majority do not pan out.
The Orioles are not expected to take anyone, but could derive a benefit from the fifth choice in the draft (which is based on reverse order of finish the previous year). Technically, it is against the rules to trade draft choices in baseball, but the Orioles could draft a player coveted by another team and trade him for another prospect or cash. Might happen.
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Comments
why would the orioles not want to take anyone? Wade Townsend is available...
Posted by: JOSH | December 11, 2008 7:30 AM
Pete - any decent SS prospects available in Rule 5? maybe Hainley Statia? With Freel able to play so many positions, he's a guy you can maybe hide on your roster for a year?
Posted by: Chuck | December 11, 2008 8:31 AM
There is a few catchers available. Adam Loewen is on the list. Didn't we get Sam Horn that way? Cannot remember/
Posted by: cb coach | December 11, 2008 8:48 AM
A team that loses 90 games a year shouldn't be passing on any options to find players.
Personally, I think Boras is using the O's to drive up his client's price-kind of like shopping for a house/car. I also believe that Boras' massive ego is a factor-he probably wants to exceed the CC contract just because he knows he can. I also don't take much faith in what players say initially-ie-CC apparently said at the outset that he wanted to stay in the NL and play on the West Coast...voila-AL and East Coast.
So I wouldn't place too much faith in the 'hometown' or even a winning team for that matter as Tex's signing criteria.
And finally, I seriously doubt that Tex's presence is going to make a big difference in OPCY attendance. Fans attend for various reasons but how many are going to watch just him if we are still losing on a consistent basis? Sure, he'll hit 30-40 dingers a year but we've had our share of decent players put together great seasons(Tejada/Raffy/Huff) and the place looked like a morgue in Aug/Sept.
The O's look like their putting together a serioius offer and who would be against a power bat? let's not get our hopes up and overestimate Tex's importance to our long-range success.
Posted by: TerryP | December 11, 2008 9:19 AM
Wasn't Johan Santana a Rule 5 draftee a few years back?
Posted by: Peter | December 11, 2008 9:38 AM
Jay Gibbons was a fine Rule 5 pickup fir us for many years.
Posted by: rhbalto | December 11, 2008 10:09 AM
Didn't the Orioles get Jay Gibbons via the Rule 5 draft? I guess that panned out for a while.
Posted by: brstevens | December 11, 2008 10:58 AM
Pete, dont forget the greatest player ever taken in the Rule 5 Daft, and I dont mean Jay Gibbons. Minnesota stole Johan Santana from Houston a few years ago. Talk about a great move.
Posted by: Mike | December 11, 2008 11:32 AM
Other Rule 5 studs: Roberto Clemente, Josh Hamilton, Paul Blair, Bobby Bonilla, Willie Hernandez, Johan Santana, Joakim Soria, Dan Uggla, Shane Victorino
Posted by: b | December 11, 2008 11:51 AM