Actually, this year's winter meetings are in Indianapolis. I'd rather go to Orlando.
With baseball's Rule Five Draft looming large on Thursday, four Major League clubs have made roster moves that will affect notable ex-ABLers. Daniel Stange and Blake Wood have been added to their parent clubs' 40-man rosters, while Brian Jeroloman and Matt McBride were left off, making them available to be taken in the draft.
(For those of you not familiar with the Rule Five Draft, check out that link. It explains it better than I could here.)
Daniel Stange came to the Miners in 2004 as a freshman out of UC Riverside. In 13.2 IP for Mat-Su he compiled a 1.98 ERA with 6 walks and 7 strikeouts. He was drafted by the Diamondbacks in 2007 and has become overpowering in the minor leagues, striking out 181 batters in 167.1 IP since going pro. Stange was working his way up the minor-league ladder pretty quickly but hit a bump in the road when he was forced to undergo Tommy John surgery.
His earlier success notwithstanding, I'm surprised that the Diamondbacks rostered Daniel. While he's got a great fastball and can strike out minor league batters effectively, he's not known to have a great second and third pitch, and he suffers from some mechanical problems that lead to control issues. Until he gets those straightened out I don't see Stange as a Major-League caliber pitcher. On the other hand, maybe the D-Backs were worried another club would try to polish him up while he served as a mop-up reliever, and with their roster still four men short of 40, why not cover that base?
Blake Wood (Bucs, 2004), the other protected player, is someone we've talked about before in our coverage of ABL alumni in the Arizona Fall League. Wood has had his share of struggles, but he finished up the AFL season strong. The Kansas City organization put him on their 40-man roster the day of the deadline, which means either they see something in Wood, or are at least lacking a logjam of prospects with more upside to protect.
Of those not protected on the 40-man roster, least surprising is catcher Brian Jeroloman of the Toronto organization. Brian played for the Bucs in 2004, where he hit .314 with a pair of homers and took home All-ABL honors. He is currently regarded as one of the top defensive backstops in the Toronto organization and could possibly be chosen by an MLB club looking for a backup catcher that could be used as a defensive sub in later innings. However, he has struggled offensively in the minor leagues and has undergone (or will undergo) hip replacement surgery this offseason, making him a risky investment. It's probably these two liabilities that make the Blue Jays feel relatively comfortable with leaving him out there.
On the other hand, leaving Matt McBride off of the 40-man roster seems like a higher stakes gamble for the Cleveland Indians. The 2005 Miner is another player we've followed since this year's Arizona Fall League season and is in some ways the opposite of Jeroloman. McBride is one of the best offensive prospects behind the plate but it would be kind to call his defense mediocre. That being said, it seems like Major League catchers get away with being lousy d-men all the time if they can swing the lumber. I'd be hesitant to say that it's likely McBride will be taken, but if I had the roster room I'd put him on my 40-man just in case.
There are undoubtedly some other ABLers-gone-pro who are Rule 5 eligible, but unless I missed someone, these moves (or lack of moves) cover the ones who are most likely to be taken in the draft. In any event, the speculation will end in less than a week, and I'll be sure to let you know if any of the at-risk players end up packing their bags.
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