Dodgers protect four prospects from Rule 5 draft by adding them to 40-man roster
The Dodgers added four players to their 40-man roster before Friday’s deadline to protect minor leaguers from next month’s Rule 5 draft.
Right-handed pitchers Gerardo Carrillo, Andre Jackson and Edwin Uceta were joined by outfielder Zach Reks as the additions. Carrillo, Jackson and Uceta were in the Dodgers’ 60-man player pool for the 2020 season, though Uceta was sent home for disciplinary reasons.
The 27-year-old Reks was invited to spring training before Major League Baseball suspended operations and the minor league season was cancelled. He is the only one of the four players to reach triple A. He batted .291 with a .921 on-base-plus-slugging percentage across 121 games between double-A Tulsa and triple-A Oklahoma City in 2019.
The Dodgers will cut ties with their rookie-level affiliate in Ogden, Utah, as part of the downsizing scheduled to take place across the minors for 2021.
Uceta, 22, finished the 2019 season with Tulsa. He compiled a 2.77 earned-run average with 141 strikeouts in 123 1/3 innings in 26 games (24 starts) between high-A Rancho Cucamonga and Tulsa. Jackson, 24, had a 3.06 ERA over 114 2/3 innings in 25 starts for low-A Great Lakes and Rancho Cucamonga in 2019.
Carrillo, 22, reached high-A in 2019. The Guadalajara native posted a 6.17 earned-run average in 23 games (21 starts) for Rancho Cucamonga. MLB Pipeline ranks Carrillo as the Dodgers’ 16th-best prospect, the highest of the four added to the 40-man roster.
Dodgers highly regarded minor leaguers left exposed for the Rule 5 draft, scheduled for Dec. 10, include infielder Omar Estevez, right-hander Brett de Geus, and outfielder Cody Thomas.
The Dodgers’ 40-man roster now stands at 36.
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