Dodgers prospects who become rule five eligible this offseason

The Dodgers face a roster crunch every winter when their prospects become eligible for the rule five draft. This winter will be no different.

Every offseason, the Dodgers forty man roster becomes a crunch as talented prospects become eligible for the rule five draft.  This winter will be no different as the Dodgers will see some notable players become rule five eligible.  For those who may be wondering how a player becomes eligible for the rule five draft, here is a breakdown from MLB.com:

Players who signed with their current club at age 18 or younger and have played professionally for at least five years are eligible to be selected, as are those who signed at 19 or older and have at least four years of professional experience.

Some notable players who have been selected in the rule five draft are Johan Santana, Shane Victorino, Dan Uggla, Joakim Soria, and Roberto Clemente.  While loaded teams like the Dodgers usually avoid participating in the rule five draft, it is an opportunity for rebuilding teams to pluck talent from contenders who cannot protect all of their players from the draft.

Here is a breakdown of the Dodgers’ prospects who are rule five eligible this winter and will need to be added to LA’s forty man roster or risk being plucked from the organization.

DJ Peters OF

DJ Peters introduced himself to the baseball world when he mashed multiple home runs off of Madison Bumgarner when MadBum was working his way back from his notorious dirt bike incident.  Peters is the Dodgers’ 12th ranked prospect according to MLB Pipeline. He split his 2019 season between Tulsa and Oklahoma City while combining to hit 23 home runs.

Errol Robinson SS

Robinson was once ranked in the Dodgers’ top 30 prospects but has fallen off since.  He is a glove-first shortstop who split his 2019 season between Oklahoma City and Tulsa.  He struggled with the bat at the AAA level but had better results in AA posting a .310/.390/.400 slash line with the Drillers.

Mitchell White SP

White has seen his stock fall in recent seasons due to injuries and poor performance that has resulted from those injuries.  He is still ranked as the Dodgers’ 9th best prospect which is a testament to his ability. Mitch dominated at the AA level holding batters to a .165 average in seven starts but struggled mightily in AAA, pitching to an ERA of 6.50.

Zach McKinstry 2B

McKinstry is also outside of LA’s top 30 prospects but he had a very strong season.  In 95 games with the Drillers, he posted a solid .279/.352/.455 slash line.  Then he moved up to OKC and looked like the second coming of Gavin Lux in 26 games as he mashed seven home runs with a slugging percentage of .753.

Jordan Sheffield RP

Sheffield is the Dodgers’ 26th ranked prospect according to MLB pipeline and might be their best relief prospect in the minor leagues.  After limiting the Cal League to a .109 average, Sheffield moved up to AA Tulsa and held the opposition to a .193 average against.  He converted 13 of his 16 save opportunities between both stops.

Cody Thomas OF

Thomas is another prospect outside of LA’s top 30 but he has intriguing power potential since his 2018 season at Rancho Cucamonga where he slugged 19 homers with a .497 slugging percentage.  This year, Thomas was with Tulsa the entire season and slugged 23 home runs although he hit just .236.

Carlos Rincon OF

Rincon also finds himself out of the top thirty prospects in the Dodgers’ organization and is another all or nothing type hitter.  He slugged 16 homers between Rancho Cucamonga and Tulsa this season after crossing the 20 home run plateau in the previous two seasons.

Parker Curry SP

Curry was an undrafted free agent out of Samford for the Dodgers in 2016.  He appeared in 24 games for the Drillers this season including 13 starts and posted an ERA of 3.67.  He throws in the low 90’s and projects to be a middle reliever.