Rule 5 Draft Rules: They Should Just Call it The Fleece Draft
Major League Baseball’s Rule 5 DRAFT is being held as I type. With that in mind - as well as my complete love for all types of DRAFTS (except military) - let’s brush up on our Rule 5 DRAFT knowledge.
- How is a player deemed eligible for the Rule 5 draft: “A player who signed at age 19 or older and is not protected on a team’s Major League roster for the fourth (Rule 5) Draft after his signing is eligible for selection by another club for $50,000. If a player is 18 or younger when signed, he becomes eligible for the fifth (Rule 5) draft after his signing if not protected. “ Information from Dick Kaegel at MLB.com.
- How do you protect a player? Simple. Just put the guy on your 40 man roster. Any player on the 40 man roster is protected from a Rule 5 Draft fleecing.
- Can’t teams abuse this process? Not really. If taken in the Rule 5 draft, a player must be kept on the selecting team’s 25-man major league roster for the entire season after the draft. He can’t be sent to the minors at any point. But he can be waived. This rule is in place to protect the integrity of the draft, which was set up to prevent teams from hording talent in the minors, when other teams could use those same players in the majors.
- Well, surely no good players are left unprotected, right? FALSE! The following players were fleeced from other teams when they were taken in the Rule 5 draft: Hall of Famers Roberto Clemente and Christy Matthewson, as well as All-Stars George Bell, Bobby Bonilla, Darrell Evans, Scott Podsednick, Dan Uggla and, oh yea….JOHAN SANTANA. Josh Hamilton was actually plucked from Tampa last year by Cincinnati, and that worked out pretty well.
Stay up to date with all Rule 5 Draft picks at MLB.com.
Filed under: Arizona Diamondbacks, Atlanta Braves, Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Indians, Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers, Florida Marlins, Houston Astros, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Oakland Athletics, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, Washington Nationals
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