Nats Lose Two, Pick Up One in Rule 5 Draft

The streak of players not taken in the MLB phase ended at five years when Sterling Sharp was taken by the Miami Marlins. Longtime farmhand David Masters (drafted in 2013) joined the Chicago Cubs as the final player selected in the minor-league phase.

The “One” referred to in the headline is Manuel Gerardo, a 23-y.o. Dominican from the San Francisco Giants organization who rose to High-A in 2019 after spending parts of three seasons with the Augusta GreenJackets in the Sally League from 2016 to 2018. Gerardo is primarily a SS (434G), but has spent some time at 2B (62G) and 3B (71G). His OPS of .669 was 50 points below the notoriously hitter-friendly California Lg. Avg. and he racked up 136K in 117G while stealing 18 bases and committing 15 errors.

The 11 players taken in the MLB phase was the fewest in since 2013, despite the expansion of the 25-man roster to 26 in 2020.