N&N: Guardians lose three prospects in Rule 5 draft

Dec 8, 2022 - 1:37 PM

The Winter Meetings are officially over. Over $1 billion was spent on free agents and the Guardians came home with Josh Bell ready to be signed (for slightly less than $1 billion) as an instant boost to the offense in 2023.

The final step of the annual convention was the Rule 5 draft, which took place Wednesday evening. The Guardians lost two prospects in the major-league portion of the draft, meaning their new teams will need to keep them on the major-league roster all season or surrender them back to Cleveland if they clear waivers. Cleveland also selected a handful of prospects in the Triple-A portion of the draft, which entails a $24,000 payment to the former team but no roster requirements.

With Sean Murphy still on the A’s and the Guards without a true catcher besides Bo Naylor, there is still work to be done, however.

Cleveland Guardians news

Guardians lose pitchers Nic Enright and Kevin Kelly in Rule 5 draft | Cleveland
In summary, the Guardians lost Nic Enright (RHP), Kevin Kelly (RHP), and Eli Lingos (LHP). They added Michael Berglund (C), Justin Lewis (RHP), and Bradley Hanner (RHP) to their minor-league farm system.

Backstop on front burner for Guardians at Winter Meetings | MLB
The typically guarded Guardians have not been quiet about their desire to add a catcher in the offseason. While it’s seasoned with plenty of “we also believe in Bo Naylor” talk, it doesn’t take a baseball scientist to see that they are talking to a bunch of catchers. Because, even if Naylor turns out to be great, two great catchers are still better than one.

Guardians treading carefully with their players regarding World Baseball Classic | Cleveland
The Guardians may be “treading carefully” as the title here suggests, but it also doesn’t sound like they are going to outright forbid anyone from participating in next year’s World Baseball Classic unless they have an injury concern.

Guardians manager Terry Francona said the organization has “potentially” 19 players throughout the organization who could play for various countries competing in the WBC. He does not anticipate all of them doing so, but there will be some.

Around the league

• The Padres signed Xander Bogaerts.
• The Red Sox signed Masataka Yoshida.
• The Cardinals signed Wilson Contrares.
• The Tigers traded Joe Jimenez to the Braves.