The last day of the Winter Meetings is famous for the annual Rule 5 draft in the morning, followed by a mad dash by executives to the airport to fly home. After their acquisition of Jerry Blevins on Wednesday, the Washington Nationals 40-man roster is full, meaning the team was ineligible to select a player during the major league portion of Thursday’s Rule 5 draft. This draft is often overanalyzed by passionate baseball nerds, and while most players selected will be returned to their original team prior to opening day, superstars such as Roberto Clemente, Josh Hamilton, and Johan Santana have been discovered over the years.
The Chicago White Sox selected Nationals catcher Adrian Nieto with the 2nd selection in the 1st round of this year’s draft. Nieto, the Nationals 5th round pick in 2008, is a switch-hitter with solid tools but unrefined defensive skills behind the dish, and hit .285/.373/.449 with 11 home runs and 29 doubles at High-A Potomac last year. One of my favorite sleepers in the Nationals farm system, Nieto will be overwhelmed by major league pitching, but his defensive skills are good enough that he should be able to serve as the White Sox backup catcher in 2014, if they are willing to accept his growing pains.
In the minor league portion of the draft, the Nationals fortunately did not lose another player and selected both outfielder Theodis Bowe from Cincinnati and right-handed pitcher Martires Arias from the Mets. The 23-year-old Bowe struggled in his first taste of Double-A in 2013, hitting only .206/.260/.307 with 4 home runs and 13 stolen bases in 99 games. A left-handed hitter who can play all three outfield positions, Bowe should serve as outfield depth for Harrisburg next season. Arias, also 23-years-old, spent last season pitching in rookie ball and posted a woeful 5.81 ERA with only 36 strikeouts against 28 walks in 52.2 innings pitched. Listed at 6-7 207lbs., the Nationals scouts must like his raw tools and gambled on a chance to refine his mechanics.
Other interesting selections in the Rule 5 draft include 3B Michael Almanzar going from Boston to Baltimore, LHP Brian Moran to Anaheim via a trade with Toronto, and Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson being selected by the Texas Rangers. Almanzar, signed for a $1.5 million dollar bonus out of the Dominican Republic, has struggled to have his raw talent translate to on-field performance. Almanzar should see plenty of repetitions in spring training as Orioles third baseman Manny Machado recovers from knee surgery, but a career minor league batting line of .250/.302/.373 means he is a poor bet to make the 25-man roster.
Brian Moran, brother of Marlins’ 2013 1st round pick Colin Moran, is a left-handed reliever armed with a mediocre mid-80s fastball but has put up excellent career numbers in the Seattle organization, with a 3.06 ERA and 339 strikeouts in 288 innings pitched. Although he possesses an underwhelming arsenal, scouts expect Moran to continue to succeed against lefties in the majors, and he stands a reasonable chance of earning a spot in Anaheim’s bullpen.
Finally, in an obvious public relations decision, the Rangers selected former North Carolina State infielder and current NFL quarterback Russell Wilson from the Colorado Rockies in the Triple-A portion of the draft. The Seahawks quarterback was a talented college baseball player and could attend spring training with the team next year, but do not expect Wilson to become a two-sport athlete any time in the future.