Twins Acquire Two In Rule 5 Draft

Lost in all the commotion of the Ben Revere trade on Thursday was the Rule 5 draft.

Known for famously gaining teams players such as Johan Santana, Josh Hamilton and most recently for the Twins, Scott Diamond, the Rule 5 draft is typically hyped as a quick way for teams to make improvements to their roster. More realistically, the Rule 5 draft is slightly overhyped, with many of the players acquired never amounting to much and being returned to their original teams. Last season’s Rule 5 draft pick up, Terry Doyle, flamed out in spring training and now pitches in Japan. (There are a lot more Doyles than Santanas).

The Twins made two selections in Thursday’s draft, acquiring right handed reliever Ryan Pressley from the Red Sox with the 4^th overall pick and then grabbing 3B Mark Sobolewski in the minor league portion of the draft.

Pressley, who is just turning 24, posted a 2.93 ERA in 27 2/3 innings of double A ball for the Red Sox in 2012. Prior to 2012, Pressley was being groomed to be a starter, but struggled in his starts as the game wore one. Boston adjusted by moving Pressley to the bullpen and promoting him a level. He saw his ERA drop from 6.28 to 2.93 and also picked up velocity on his fastball and more bite on his curve.

Pressley is required to stay on the 25 man active roster for the Twins, meaning if he can continue to show solid control and the ability to strike batters out, he’ll likely be a middle relief option for the club in 2013. Of course, there’s always the chance that he simply isn’t ready for Major League action and won’t pan out, in which case the Twins would be required to offer him back to the Red Sox.

Right now, Pressley has the potential to be another savvy Terry Ryan pickup (akin to Jared Burton last season) that could bolster the Twins already decent bullpen.

The most interesting aspect of this year’s draft is the acquisition of 3B Mark Sobolewski. Sobolewski was at the AAA level for the Blue Jays at the end of 2012. He was named the best defensive catcher in AA in 2012 and hit a respectable .260 with decent pop at the AA level. His AAA numbers were not as strong, but over only 80 plate appearances those struggles could be attributed to a lack of sample size.

The Twins have said they want to motivate Trevor Plouffe by having another option at 3B this season. Originally, the drafting of Sobolewski looked like a roster depth move, but shortly after they acquired the 3B from Toronto, they reportedly backed out of the Jack Harahan talks, giving an honest look at their intentions for the hot corner in 2012.

Sobolewski’s defense was likely the big attraction for the Twins. Even if Plouffe were to safely regain the fulltime starting 3B job, the Twins would likely keep Sobolewski on the bench as a defensive replacement late in games. His presence would also allow the team to DH Plouffe, keeping his strong bat in the lineup, while putting Sobolewski at third to improve the infield defense.

It will be interesting to see Sobolewski this spring. A strong outing from him may make the Twins infield a lot deeper – something they’ve been sorely missing for the past two years.