Rule 5 Recap: Pirates take five in minor league phase, lose three
An in-depth move on who the Pirates selected, and lost, in the Rule 5 draft
At least when it comes to the Pirates, it was an uneventful Rule 5 draft on the major league side.
Sammy Siani and Omar Alfonzo were two notable players who were available, but neither were taken. The Pirates passed on their pick, opting not to add anyone they may have to carry on the active roster for the entire season.
On the minor league side, the Pirates selected five players from other organizations while losing three.
You are generally looking to add depth here, although the Pirates selected Joshua Palacios in the minor league phase a few years back.
Some notable players they’ve lost over the last couple of Rule 5 drafts, at least during the minor league phase, have been Dariel Lopez, Omar Cruz, and Trey McGough.
Lopez suffered a knee injury during training, and there were questions if he would play again. According to Instagram videos, he’s back hitting the ball and either playing in simulated games or maybe the Bridge League, but nothing official.
Originally acquired in the Joe Musgrove trade, Cruz had a good year back in the Padres system and was added to the 40-man roster this offseason.
Before we look at the new players in the system, here’s a rundown of the players that they lost:
Darvin Garcia
He spent most of the season in Greensboro but did see some time in Double-A, Garcia is a depth reliever with an excellent change-up. He can reach the mid-90s with the fastball, but the change-up was his best pitch.
It was named the best off-speed in the system by Baseball America.
Garcia, 25, posted a 4.60 ERA with 44 strikeouts in 45 innings pitched this past season. He also walked 14.3% of the batters he faced.
Dylan Shockley
Shockley, a depth catcher, was noted for his ability to call pitches and his overall defensive work. Since 2021, Shockley hadn’t played more than 40 games in a season and batted just .181 with an .530 OPS.
The defense also took a bit of a hit this year, although that hasn’t been uncommon with the new rules regarding throwing over to first.
Isaias Dipre
The 21-year-old Dipre played in the DSL this past season, hitting .301/.441/.579 with eight home runs, nine doubles, and two triples. It was his third year in a league where the numbers rarely tell the whole story.
Now, a look at the players the Pirates added to the system:
Franck De La Rosa
Standing at a towering 6’8”, De La Rosa pitched in Single-A Stockon at age 24 this past season. He’s never made it past Single-A yet, posting a career 5.93 ERA with 86 strikeouts and 49 walks in 68.1 innings pitched.
It looks like a fastball/slider is his primary arsenal, with what looks like an occasional change-up. None of the broadcast games he pitched had velocity readings, so it’s uncertain how hard he throws.
These are all his called strikes plus whiffs from his best outing of the season, where he struck out eight over four shutout innings. He still walked four in the game.
Aaron McKeithan
One depth catcher is out with Shockley, and another is in to replace him in McKeithan. He doesn’t play often and hit one home run in 191 plate appearances in Double-A Springfield last year. The Texas League is more on the hitter-friendly side, and McKeithan hit .264/.356/.325 with seven overall extra-base hits.
A former 16th-round pick out of UNC Charlotte, McKeithan struck out just 15.7% of the time. He’s thrown out 14.1% of would-be base stealers in his minor league career.
Randy Labaut
Formerly a 35th-round pick out of Arizona back in 2019, there are specific indicators in LaBaut’s pitches that sound familiar if you follow what the Pirates like in their pitchers.
The base numbers weren’t great last year, posting a 4.57 ERA with 52 strikeouts (18.6%) and 43 walks (15.4%) in 61 innings pitched. His strikeout rate has plummeted since making it to Triple-A, with the walk rate climbing. Labaut walked more than he struck out in 2023.
The fastball has some interesting metrics, such as he gets good extension, and both his secondary pitches registered right at a 40% whiff rate. However, they were all thrown in the zone well below average, and that’s been the main problem with Labaut lately.
With more strikes, this one is interesting, but there isn’t much to suggest it’ll improve unless the Pirates can cook something up.
Steve Hajjar
A 2021 college pick out of Michigan, Hajjar was MLB Pipeline’s 100th-ranked player available then when the Minnesota Twins drafted him. He’s bounced around since then, never making it above High-A.
Last year, he pitched primarily out of the bullpen and walked 40 batters in 39.2 innings, posting a 7.26 ERA.
His scouting report back in 2021 noted a fastball in the low 90s that topped at 95. It also noted his extension, something we know the Pirates love. His change-up is his best pitch, which he throws in the low 80s and keeps a fastball arm speed with it.
Watching some video, you can see him attack the top of the zone with the fastball. In the games I’ve seen with a radar gun on the broadcast, Hajjar has topped out at 93 mph but has sat mainly at 88-90.
It’s able to get miss at the top of the zone. They were short-inning outings, so he didn’t dive too deep into his arsenal.
Joel Mendez
The final player the Pirates selected. Mendez, 21, has played the last two years in the Florida Complex League for the Yankees. In 2024, he hit .292/.405/.569 with six home runs, 10 doubles, and four triples while driving in 30 runs.
His strikeouts were a bit high (26.6%) but also walked quite a bit (16.5%). There isn’t much more information available on him.
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Apparently, Hunter Stratton's rehab is ahead of schedule. I didn't think we'd see him until the second half next year, but he may be ready for ST.
Mayo said the AAA phase seemed like the longest he could remember. Pointing this out because of Anthony’s article the other day about domestic roster limits causing problems. The main purpose of the AAA phase is for teams to balance out their MiL rosters. That’s tougher now.