Minnesota Twins: Breaking down the 2020 Rule Five Draft

The Rule Five Draft is now in the rearview mirror, so we break down the players the Minnesota Twins both lost and gained.

The Rule 5 Draft finished up a few weeks ago, and with most of the moves completely finalized, we take a look back at the moves made by the team. Before we dive into the results of the draft for the Minnesota Twins, here’s a quick primer on what the Rule 5 Draft is.

Players in a minor league system who are not placed on a team’s 40-man roster are eligible to be drafted by another team with a few qualifications:

• Players who signed with their current club at age 18 or younger and have five years of experience are eligible to be drafted if they aren’t on the 40-man roster.
• Players who are 19 or older and have four years of experience are eligible, as well.

Once a player is drafted, the team drafting the player must pay $100,000 to the club from which the player is drafted. The selected player must stay on a team’s 25-man roster for a year. If not, he reverts back to his original squad for $50,000.

As expected, the Twins elected to not select a player in the Major League phase of the 2020 Rule 5 Draft. The Twins have not selected a player during this phase since picking up pitcher Tyler Kinley from the Marlins in 2017.

While this may not make sense to some fans, the Falvine strategy of leaving some flexibility at the bottom of the forty-man roster to preserve space for future pickups has worked well in the past. With that explanation out of the way, let’s take a look at the Rule 5 Draft for the Twins.

Minnesota Twins Moves in the Rule 5 Draft: Phase 1-The Major League Phase

As we mentioned earlier one, the Minnesota Twins didn’t bring in any new players in this phase, but it wasn’t a completely quiet round for the team. The Twins did lose two players in the Major League phase of the draft: outfielder Akil Baddoo and starting pitcher Tyler Wells.

Badoo went third overall in the draft to the Detroit Tigers. In terms of prospects, Badoo was one of the two highest ranked players selected in the draft. The Twins’ second round pick in 2016, Badoo has always been seen as a prospect with lots of potential who couldn’t stay healthy. He’s actually fresh off of Tommy John surgery that cost him most of 2019.

He was our 18th-ranked prospect in the Twins system, but likely would not have made the big-league roster in 2021. The Tigers likely feel cautiously optimistic that Baddoo can help them with his athleticism, speed, and hitting in the outfield. If he bounces back, this is a good get for the Tigers.

Wells went in the second round of the draft to the Orioles, even though like Baddoo, he is still recovering from Tommy John Surgery. A fifteenth-round pick in 2016, Wells has flashed a lot of potential, but the surgery meant he would have been a long shot to make the Minnesota roster in 2021.

This was a bit of surprise pick, but the Orioles like his 6’8″ height and his ability to throw strikes. If he can regain the form he had in 2018 in the Majors, the rebuilding Orioles got a nice piece. Both players need to stick on the major league roster for their new teams or they will end up back in Minnesota.