Rule 5 Review - Season 5

I took a stab at the picks and graded each pick and also added notes that I found interesting. In addition to stats I considred age and upside. I hope you all enjoy it.

Quinn Turner in Toledo, Sam Wilson in Arizona, Magglio Franco in Chicago, Mac Stull in Cheyenne, and Larry Creek in Wisconsin get special mention.

1 – pick returned to owner

2 – Martin Garcia (C-) Has to be considered a disappointment. His .228 AVG and .279 OBP are poor, but he has performed better in the last week. The upside is he is 23 so he may be better yet if Toledo has patience.

3 – Little Rock – Rafael Gallaraga (C-) A really high ERA at around 7.87 so the number 3 pick has soaked up innings but has been bad overall.

4 – Mexico City – Damon Tallet (C ) Another pitcher and another high ERA, this time not as bad at 6.09! MC expected better than they got on this guy.

5 – Arizona – Marquis Pride – (B-)The best of the top three pitchers but still no star with a 5 plus era. At 22 he appears to be a pretty decent pickup. Is he a starter or a LR? That remains to be seen.

6 – San Diego – Alex Flores – (B) Injured but has a promising future with the Conquistidors. We expect SD is fairly pleased with this pick.

7 – New York – Patrick Morton – ( C)Another average pitcher with a 5 plus era. As we work through this list the question lingers, were there any stud Rule 5 pitchers in this draft? So far
the answer is no.

8 – Cincy – Oscar Chang – (D)Offered back and claimed off waivers. He now hurls for Fargo and he is not setting the world on fire.

9 – Fargo – Julio Flores – (B+)A decent Catcher with decent numbers both hitting and catching. Fargo got a cheap player to fill some gaps with Julio! At 22 he is young so Fargo may be onto something with him.

10 – Wisconsin – Larry Creek –(A) Drafted, offered back and claimed by Las Vegas. His 3.33 era as a setup man makes him the best pitcher of the first 6 taken this year.

11 – Cleveland - Dave Spencer – (B+)Drafted by Cleveland, cleans out his locker but just drives a few hours to Toledo where he is playing well. He is on pace for 65 RBI and 33 stolen bases. Toledo has a nice young player here.

12 – Charleston - Bennie Cooper –(C-) He tried to do the Charleston and the Toledo shuffle but neither team seems too excited by him. He is just 22 so he may be held onto for now.

13 – Chicago – Magglio Franco – (A) Mags has decent numbers. He is a good gap filler for the Pizza guys. That is what I wrote a week ago, but that underestimates him. A good young player.

14 – Cheyenne – Mac Stull – (A)Nothing short of fantastic work by Stull. The best team in the AL West was shrewd to get this guy. A great pick at 14.

15 – SD – Paul Hall – (D)First pick of Round 2 ends up in Pawtucket and he is a nice inning eater but he does not have the numbers to show he will get much better!

16 – Toledo – Quinn Turner –(A) Just a super player for Toledo. He has been another nice find for the GM in Ohio, solid work!

17 – Arizona – Sam Wilson – (A)What’s not to like? He will easily get 100 RBI and hits .300. He is the best hitter of the group picked so far and will be hard to top!

18 – New York Bombers – (F)Lorenzo Cruz – An era approaching 10…..yikes!

19 – Fargo – Felipe Perez – He was offered back and accepted back. Playing AA ball

20 – Chicago – Gaylord Hudek – (inc)A part time player that at 23 may be kept by Chicago.

21 – Cheyenne – Stump Barkley – (inc) ERA of 8 plus, no great shakes……but he has only pitched 18 innings

22 – Toledo – Jerome Murphy – (inc) Part time 22 year old, upside is the reason for this rebuilding project

23 – Chicago – Arthur White – Not likely to be kept after this year. He is a part timer and 26.

24 – Toledo – Rob Price - He was offered back and accepted back. Playing AAA ball

25 – Chicago – Gus Harriger – (B) A surprisingly good pickup! He strikes out a lot but he is pushing toward 35 home runs.

26 – Toledo – Cody Heath – (C+) A nice young player for that may show some improvement next year more than this year.

27 – Chicago – Jamey Bennett – ( C ) A gamble pick that is average at best. Chicago took a flyer on him to see what would happen. The results are mixed.

28 – Toledo – Denny Park - He was offered back and accepted back. Playing AAA ball

29 – Chicago – Wilton Hollins – (B+) Plenty of upside for this young pitcher. Likely to stick with Chicago and stay in the pen.

30 – Toledo - John Thurman - He was offered back and accepted back. Playing AAA ball

31 – Chicago – Bucky York – He was offered back and accepted back. Playing AA ball