The 2025 Rule 5 draft is taking place this afternoon at the Winter Meetings in Orlando. This post will be updated with the results as they come in.
As a refresher, the Rule 5 draft is a way for players potentially talented enough for the big leagues but blocked by their current clubs to find opportunities elsewhere. Any players that were 18 and under at the time of their original signing and went professional in 2021, and any players who turned pro at 19 years of age or older in 2022, are eligible to be selected in the Rule 5 draft if they are not on a 40-man roster.
Though the amateur (Rule 4) draft now has a lottery to determine the selection order, the Rule 5 draft still goes the old-fashioned way of reverse order of standings from the season that just ended. Clubs need to have an open 40-man roster spot in order to make a pick but aren’t obligated to make a selection on their turn. If they do make a pick, they will have to pay $100K to the team they select from. The selected players must stay on the active roster (or injured list) for the entire 2026 season or else be placed on waivers. If they clear waivers, they must be offered back to their original team. They cannot be optioned to the minors.
Players like Anthony Santander and Ryan Pressly have been notable picks in other recent years while guys like George Bell and Roberto Clemente are found deeper in the history books. Last year, 15 players were selected. Only four of those remain with the club who selected them and only three of those have had their rights fully transferred to their new club. The White Sox took Shane Smith from the Brewers. The Marlins took Liam Hicks from the Tigers. Mike Vasil was taken by the Phillies from the Mets but was later traded to the Rays and then went to the White Sox via waivers.
The one other pick from last year’s draft which is still live is Angel Bastardo, who the Blue Jays took from the Red Sox. He was recovering from Tommy John surgery and spent the entire 2025 season on the injured list. He is still on Toronto’s 40-man but they don’t yet have his full rights, as a player needs at least 90 active days to remove the Rule 5 restrictions. If the Jays are willing to roster him for about three months during the 2026 season, they could then gain his full rights and option him to the minors. All other picks were eventually returned to their original organization and/or became free agents.
This year’s picks will be featured below as they come in…
- Rockies: RHP RJ Petit (from the Tigers) (Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs was on this before the official announcement)
- White Sox: RHP Jedixson Paez (Red Sox)
- Nationals
- Twins
- Pirates
- Angels
- Orioles
- Athletics
- Braves
- Rays
- Cardinals
- Marlins
- Diamondbacks
- Rangers
- Giants
- Royals
- Reds
- Mets
- Tigers
- Astros
- Guardians
- Red Sox
- Mariners
- Padres
- Cubs
- Dodgers
- Blue Jays
- Yankees
- Phillies
- Brewers
Photo courtesy of Mike Watters, Imagn Images
