We know Pat Gillick loves the Rule 5 draft, and he’s likely got his eye on someone. Baseball America gave a brief list of potential selections here. Baseball Prospectus also gave some interesting names here. Just going off of the names given in these lists, as I haven’t had time to dig yet and maybe uncover other targets, here are my favorite guys I’d like to see the Phillies grab
Jamie D’Antona, 1B/3B/C, ARI
D’Antona, who will be 26 in 2008, seems kind of stuck in the Arizona system. There are no immediate openings at 1B or 3B, and he’s really just a 3rd string/emergency catcher type guy, so it seems he just doesn’t fit into Arizona’s plans. He’s a contact hitter, walking about 7% of his plate appearances, striking out only 10% of his plate appearances, but he has some pop (40% XBH% in 2007) and is a good hitter. If the plan is to use Dobbs in the infield and not the outfield, D’Antona probably doesn’t fit into the plans, and the Phillies are not likely to carry 11 pitchers instead of the standard 12.
Guevara has a good arm, but he’s one of the few guys in pro baseball that still throws a screwball, and because the pitch has kind of been phased out, scouts aren’t high on him. His numbers have been excellent, and he’s racked up a ton of strikeouts in the minors. He’s only 25 going on 26, so he’s not a castoff just yet. If the Phillies take him and try to turn him into something he isn’t, then it won’t work, but if they let him do his thing, he could be a nice 6th inning reliever.
Lubanski is a bit of a mystery right now. He had a strong debut in 2003, was mediocre in 2004, tore up the CAL League in 2005, was good in AA last season, and then fell apart in 2007 when promoted to 3A. He’s still young, just turning 23 in March 2008. He sports an .820 OPS in 2400 career minor league plate appearances, and is capable of playing right field. If his second half in 2007 was the aberration, and he’s more like the 2006 version, then he’d be an absolute steal here. Lubanski could serve as an idea 5th outfielder on the 2008 team. He’s got enough speed to cover any of the outfield positions, and he’s lefthanded, which would compliment Jayson Werth as part of a platoon. The problem is, Chris Snelling is also left handed, as is Greg Dobbs, which would leave us without a right handed bat on the bench.
Since Hernandez is a member of the White Sox organization, you know that Gillick knows who he is. He doesn’t have exceptional stuff, but he has good control (2.43 BB/9 in 2007) and also can miss bats.
Pino has always been on the fringe of the prospect radar, posting good numbers but not really wowing scouts with excellent raw stuff. Pino has excellent control and also gets strikeouts, not quite as many as you’d like to see, but up until his stint in AA this year, he’d also done an excellent job of keeping the ball in the park as well. Pino is very tough on righthanded batters, but he doesn’t have dominant groundball tendencies. I have a feeling someone will take him in the draft, not sure if it will be the Phillies.
In an ideal world, the Phillies would take Chris Lubanski and find one more righthanded outfielder, going with 11 pitchers instead of 12 and adding depth to our bench. Lubanski has the most raw talent of anyone on the list, in my opinion, and would be worth keeping as a 5th outfielder.
Phuture Phillies 
I wouldn’t mind taking a flier on Lubanski as well. He may be one of those guys like Ricky Ledee that take a couple of extra years to figure out their tools (development problems, minor injuries, etc.). Another plus is that he is from Pennsylvania.
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Isn’t Lubanski fro Philly ? Good PR move as well
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I don’t subscribe to BP, but the BA list doesn’t include any Phillies. Hmmmm, strange…..
I like the idea of grabbing a high ceiling guy like Lubanski, and if it doesn’t work out, no harm no foul. I also generally like the idea of snagging a bullpen guy or two (although Warden didn’t quite work out last year), and I tend to think Gillick agrees with me on that, so the draft should be interesting from that perspective.
Phuturephillies, an unrelated question for you: it’s just breaking now that the Mets traded Milledge for Ryan Chuch and Brian Schneider. What do you make of this deal?
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What are we going to do with the 40 man roster? We can’t sign 1-2 players and grab a guy in the rule 5.
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Nats get the better of it long term I think. Milledge was set up to fail by New York, and apparently that caused his value to dip a bit. Church is a good hitter, Schneider is a replacement level catcher offensively with a decent glove.
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I wouldn’t mind taking a flyer on a Red Sox AA minor leaguer named Beau Vaughan. He was throwing 95 late last season and had been disappointing with constant injury problems since he was drafted out of college. Now age 27, he might be fully healthy.
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D’Antona looks somewhat appealing. He had an .861 ops last year, which would have probably ranked him in the top 3 in the Phils minor leagues. If he’s got a decent glove, then I say give him a shot.
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Wow, surprising Lubanski is available, and surprising BA didn’t list him. I’d have to think he’d go pretty early. My favorite is Shane Lindsey- though i don’t think the phils would pick him after he’s been injured all year coming out of the Sally league- but he has the best stuff available- but that said he may be manageable if they take care of him like they did Castro- but ultimately, just too far away for a club like the phillies to take him.
Wait, the new rules say 5 years for an 18 year old signed- maybe there is a question as to if Lubanski is actually available. I can’t believe the royals would leave a first round pick who’s still young and in their upper levels up for the draft. He was 18 when he signed, i don’t think he’s available.
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Lubanski debuted in 2003 at age 18. He played 5 seasons, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007, thus, he is eligible. I just checked and he isn’t on the 40 man roster.
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Lubanski is available…and he is from Schwenksville, PA….just outside of Pottstown. I might be wrong, but I think some spots on the roster will open this weekend….Julio Mateo and Pete Laforest are still on the 40 man roster, so spots should be available. I do see at least one trade happening at the winter meetings, so I like Jose de la Cruz from the Mariners….a tall lanky RHP that has a nasty sinker and a splitter….he has low to mid 90s velocity, has some control problems tho!
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Brian Barton, of, Indians
Ever the enigma, Barton went undrafted in 2004 after clubs were scared off by his aerospace engineering major at Miami. The Indians signed him for $100,000 and an additional $100,000 in college funds after a brief showing in the Cape Cod League and Barton has not looked back. A five-tool player who can play all three outfield spots, Barton has been hampered by a lingering knee injury since his breakout year in 2006 when he hit .322 with 19 homers and swiped 41 bags in 49 attempts. Even with the knee problem, Barton still turned in a .305/.402/.420 season in 2007, finishing the year in Triple-A. Quiet and leading through example through his 2006 season, some scouts expressed concerns about Barton’s demeanor. “I loved him that first year in Double-A,” one scout from a National League club said. “But this past year, it was almost like he’d earned this elite status and you saw him have this lackadaisical approach to the game that wasn’t there before. Where he was playing with chips on both shoulders with something to prove initially, that part of his game was replaced by some sort of false bravado. He’s really tough to get a handle on, but the tools are very real.”
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I think Mateo pitches for the big club this year.
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Barton is an interesting guy. He’s always hit well, but he’s always been older than his competition. I guess his versatility in the outfield could be a plus for a team that takes him. I think the Nats might actually make a run at him.
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Would a defending championship divisional team with its leader set on winning 100 games in 08 go into the season with a Rule 5 player taking up a roster spot?
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PP,
Could be right about the Nats. I’m in the Nat Metro area, and it’d make sense by the way they operate. Probably the first time an athlete from U. of Miami that got a DEGREE that scared teams away and not a criminal record.
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Is Hernandez lefty? B-Ref says he’s righty.
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yeah my bad. I was looking at another player when I typed that.
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On MLBTR is says the Devil Rays are lookin at Barton with the 1st pick as well.
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I saw Lubanski play a handful of times while he was in high school and he was awesome. At 23, he’s worth the risk. Snelling has upside, but I’d rather go with Lubanski for a full season and see how he does if that’s the route the team takes as far as outfield goes next season.
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A name i just heard mentioned is Guzman from the Tigers system. He is coming off a major injury so he is either flying under the radar or scaring people off, but he his .315 at AA this past season with some quality power.
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Considering our lack of a Third Baseman, I’d prefer D’Antona. He’s got serious upside and just isn’t getting a chance in a prospect rich Diamondback system. Lubanski is also very intriguing…but keeping him in the majors all season seems unlikely. D’Antona is major league ready.
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An interesting relief pitcher in the Rule 5 is Ryan Basner, a RHP from the Braves AAA team. He was a 7th Round Draft pick and the first college player the Braves selected that year. He is also from West Chester, PA (West Chester East HS). He throws hard (FB 93-96mph) and has been used by the Braves as a Starter, Closer, Middle Relief and Long Relief. He has also participated in Major League Spring Training with the Braves (non-roster invite) each of the last two seasons.
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I’ve read that the Phillies more than likely will not lose any players in the draft. Does anyone know which players from the Phillies are available? I’ve read the rules about protecting players after so many years…but who does that leave unprotected??? How about Moran and Segovia???
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I am in favor of bringing in anyone named Guevara. The only condition is that when he is not playing he has to wear a beret and a Che T-shirt.
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Baseball America has this tidbit regarding Lubanski in their rumors section:
“Royals outfielder Chris Lubanski to the Marlins with the fourth overall selection. Lubanski, the fifth overall pick in 2003, was touted for his speed and developing power early in his career. He’s still just 22, and a lot of teams have him on their Rule 5 radar for that reason more than anything else, but the fact is that Lubanski isn’t a plus runner anymore as he’s grown into his frame. He’s not even above-average. “This is a fringe-average runner for me,” said one AL scouting director. And Lubanski didn’t do himself any favors in the Arizona Fall League, often making weak contact and wound up hitting .200/.266/.412 in 85 at-bats.”
http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/prospects/?p=677
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