The Rule 5 draft was this afternoon. The Blue Jays selected right hander Angel Bastardo off the Red Sox’ AA roster in the MLB phase. In the Minor League phase, they took righty Richard Gallardo off the Cubs’ AA roster and outfielder Jacob Wetzel off the Cubs’ High A roster.
Bastardo posted a 5.36 ERA through 45.1 innings in 2024, though his underlying 26.2% K rate and 3.63 xFIP were more promising. He was shut down in June with an elbow injury that appears to have ended with Tommy John. He immediately goes on the Jays’ 40 man roster but presumably will be transferred to the 60-day IL as soon as possible. He features a plus change-up and solid breaking ball. While his fastball’s velocity is decent at 93-96, touching 98, it’s somewhat hittable. That, paired with below average command, suggests he’ll fare best in the bullpen, where he can hopefully sit towards the top of that velocity range in short stints and lean on his off-speed stuff.
Gallardo also spent most of the season on the IL with an undisclosed injury. When healthy he features average command of four average-ish pitches, and likely profiles as starting depth. Wetzel splits his time between centre and right. He’s hit reasonably well in A ball but failed for two seasons in a row when attempting the jump to High A.
The Brewers selected outfielder Garrett Spain off the Fisher Cats’ roster as part of the Minor League phase. Spain, a 2021 15th rounder out of Austin Peay, plays mostly centre field. He had a terrible year, posting a sub-.550 OPS mostly in New Hampshire with a cup of coffee in Buffalo, but does have a little pop.
This concludes the 2025 edition of Hot! Rule 5! Action!
in lesser news, the Red Sox have traided for Garret Crochet. Headed back to the south side are Kyle Teel, Bradon Montgomery, Chase Meidroth, and Wikelman Gonzalez.
Crochet had a massive break-out in 2024. The 2020 11th overall pick jumped straight to the majors as a reliever and had success in a brief stint that year and through 2021, but Tommy John wiped out his 2022 and most of his 2023. Finally fully healthy, he moved to the rotation this past season and dominated, striking out 209 in 146 innings over 32 starts and posting a 3.58 ERA. He features a fastball that sits at 97, a cutter at 92, and a slider and change at 85 and 91, respectively, and his command rated as above average this year with just a 5.5% walk rate. The only remaining question is whether he can hold up to an annual 160+ inning workload, but even if he’s not ultimately a workhorse he should perform like an ace while he’s on the mound. 2025 will be his second trip through arbitration, although because of his injuries he made nearly the minimum in 2024 and is set to make only $3m or so this coming season. The Sox also hold his rights for 2026.
Teel is the largest prize going back. The catcher is the #4 prospect in Boston’s loaded system, but Baseball America has him at #25 in all of baseball. The 2023 first rounder has rocketed all the way to AAA in a season and a half, which is remarkable for a catching prospect. He projects as more of a solid average player than a star, with defence and pure hitting that look to be above average but just OK power. That’s a rare commodity at the catcher position, though, as evinced by the fact that a playoff hopeful like the Red Sox themselves are staring down the barrel of starting Connor Wong all year.
Montgomery is a top 100 prospect in his own right, sitting at 59 on the BA list. The 2024 12th overall pick has yet to make his pro debut due to an injury suffered during this summer’s College World Series, but he projects as a solid everyday right fielder with plus hit and power tools and quality defence.
Meidroth is a bat-first utility infielder who makes loads of contact and draws walks but possesses limited power and isn’t an asset anywhere defensively. He’s probably a luxury bench bat. BA has him 13th on their Red Sox List.
Gonzalez, 16th on the list, is a 22 year old righty with well below average command of three potentially plus pitches. He’s reached AA as a starter, but looks like a reliever long term.
This is a big swing for Boston, trading two top end prospects and some useful depth for two years of an extremely exciting but uncertain commodity in Crochet. That said, they could afford to do it without touching their trio of mega-prospects in Roman Anthony, Marcello Meyer, and Kristian Campbell, so it’s hard not to like this deal for them. Meanwhile, the White Sox get a starter with upside to pair with top prospect Edgar Quero, setting them up behind the plate for the next several years, and significantly boost their farm system.