Mariners stand pat at Rule 5 roster deadline — see who is left unprotected
Nov 20, 2019, 4:37 PM
Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto's quiet offseason remained quiet on Wednesday. (Getty)
(Getty)
One offseason deadline for the Mariners is officially in the books as teams were required to set their 40-man rosters ahead of the Rule 5 draft by 5 p.m. Wednesday. For the Mariners, it was a quiet deadline day as they did not add any players to their 40-man. As a result, a number of interesting names have been left unprotected for the Rule 5 draft, which will take place Dec. 12 during the Winter Meetings in San Diego.
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Per baseball’s rules, any player who was 19 or older on the June 5 immediately preceding the signing of his first contract is eligible for selection on the fourth Rule 5 draft following his first qualified season, as long as he is not on a team’s 40-man roster by that year’s deadline. Players who were 18 or younger when they signed wait until the fifth Rule 5 draft following their first qualified season.
The Mariners placed a number of Rule 5 eligible players, including Kyle Lewis, Justin Dunn and Art Warren, on the 40-man roster before calling them up late last season. Notable players left unprotected this year include Ljay Newsome, who posted a 3.54 ERA with 169 strikeouts and just 17 walks in 28 starts split mostly between High-A Modesto and Arkansas in 2019, outfielder Dom Thompson-Williams, who was acquired from the Yankees last year in the James Paxton trade, and reliever Jack Anderson.
The Mariners selected Brandon Brennan in the Rule 5 draft last year and are expected to make a selection in the Major League portion of the draft once again this year. Teams must pay $100,000 to select a player in the Rule 5 draft, and then that player either must (A) stay on the active roster for the entire season, or (B) get offered back to his former team for $50,000. With a 26-man active roster in the MLB expected in 2020, it will be interesting to see if more teams partake in the Rule 5 draft and if we see more position players selected.
With no moves made at the deadline, Seattle’s 40-man roster remains at 35. Up next on the baseball calendar is the tender deadline, which falls on Dec. 2.
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