Blue Jays add two players, lose an outfielder in MiLB portion of Rule 5 Draft

After the Blue Jays took Angel Bastardo in the major league portion of the Rule 5 Draft, they begun making selections in the minor league portion. They made just two other additions in the minor league portion, but lost one aswell.

Let's examine the players the Blue Jays picked up and lost in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 Draft.

Blue Jays add and subtract multiple players through MiLB Rule 5 Draft

The Blue Jays only lost one minor leaguer as the Brewers selected outfielder Garrett Spain during the first round of the minor league portion. Spain was Toronto's 15th round selection in the 2021 MLB Draft, but he did not really turn out into a prospect to watch out for.

Last season in Double-A, Spain batted .167 with 11 home runs, driving in 32. His OPS was just .550, which came from an on-base percentage of .250 and a slugging percentage of .301. Additionally, his wRC+ was just 60 and he struck out at a 26.8% clip. These numbers are not good at all, but the Brewers saw something in him, resulting in their selection.

The two additions both came from the Cubs. One of which, replaced Spain in the outfield, while the other is a pitcher. These picks from Chicago both came in the first two rounds of the minor league portion, but they passed on the rest of the rounds.

Richard Gallardo is the pitcher they took from the Cubs and he missed the majority of 2024 to an undisclosed injury, but when he did pitch, he had some interesting numbers. Across 16.1 innings pitched, Gallardo posted an earned run average of 6.06 and struck out 17 batters. His FIP was excellent at 2.94 and a low walk rate of 5.3%, but opposing hitters batted .324 against him. Not ideal, but his command has shown to be solid with not allowing many free passes.

The outfielder they picked up from the Cubs is Jacob Wetzel, a 24 year old who played the majority of 2024 in Single-A. Last season in Single-A, Wetzel batted .255 with eight home runs, driving in 39. His OPS reached .845, along with a wRC+ of 145, a walk rate of 15.9% and a strikeout clip of 22.2%.

Overall, this was a solid day for the Blue Jays minor leagues. Spain has not produced so now he can go to the Brewers, but Toronto replaced him with Wetzel, who has done well in the lower levels. Gallardo had a very solid FIP, but he did get hit around a bit, but is still young.