The Cubs acquired RHP Hector Rondon from Cleveland in the rule five draft this morning. He was a former relatively top prospect in the organization (#7 in the org going into 2010) before a few surgeries. This is what BA had to say about him going in to last season.
Rondon moved quickly, reaching Triple-A in 2009 as a 21-year-old. So far that has been the highlight of his professional career. He struggled when he returned to Columbus in 2010 before injuring his elbow. After trying rehab, he finally had Tommy John surgery after the 2010 season, which essentially wiped out his 2011 campaign. Rondon pitched in the Venezuelan League this winter and struggled with his command before he suffered a setback. He had a second surgery on his elbow to repair a fracture and isn't expected to be ready for the start of the 2012 season. At his best, Rondon has shown good command of a lively low-90s fastball that has touched 96 mph. He flashes an average changeup, though his fringy slider never has developed into a legitimate weapon. Rondon is a good athlete who repeats his delivery and fields his position well. When he's healthy again, the Indians will ease him back as a reliever at a Class A stop with the hope that he can be stretched out into a starter's role later in the year. They removed him from the 40-man roster in December.
I guess two surgeries is enough to expose someone to the Rule 5 draft. Before the injuries, he was profiled as a future midrotation guy, with a fastball in the high 90s, a good changeup (rated best in his league in 2008) an fringy e slider, and great control*. Rondon never really got going in 2012, only pitching seven inning between rookie league and AA in August. He was reportedly hitting 97 and 98 in those outings, the big question is whether his control will come back. He's pitched 17 innings in the Venezualan Winter League, and the scouts there have been impressed according to BA's Ben Badler. If he stays healthy, I think he's got a good shot at sticking around as a pen arm this season, and maybe as a starter down the road. Nice pickup by the Cubs.
*I'm not sure how his 'best changeup in his league' translates to average. We don't really have much new info on him post surgery other than that he's hitting 96-97
Seems like a good pickup. Since we picked him up from Rule 5, he has to be on the 25-man roster right?
I imagine he will probably start on the DL then and won’t come off until June-ish then.
@ WaLi:
Calcaterra’s blog from early this morning suggests that hiding Rule 5 draftees with phantom injuries may not be as easy as in previous years. If the guy is throwing gas in Venezuela then maybe they just put him in the bullpen and see what happens. The fact that he seems to throw more strikes than Rafael Dolis has to be promising, at least.
@ Rice Cube:
I read that too, but wondering how difficult that will be for the league. You can stick dudes on the DL for all sorts of wacky reasons. I wonder which side the MLBPA would come down on in that matter? Protecting the players privacy if they are on the DL for something private that the team calls a sprained ankle, or wanting the players to stay in the bigs.
@ Rice Cube:
I haven’t read that. I like the rule, although as mike says it may be hard to enforce. But it seems like in this case he wouldn’t be ready to start off the season anyway.
I think it’s beneficial for the team and the player. Mostly because if a team sends back the player to the previous team, that player goes back the minors, doesn’t accrue more service time, and won’t be paid the MLB min salary.
I really don’t think players have a problem with the “phantom” injuries. Especially if it’s an A baller like Lendy Castillo.
@ WaLi:
Rondon was pitching in Venezuela this winter league season based on various reports. I don’t know how they’d enforce the phantom injuries rule, but I think they have to at least say something to appease the players’ union. Being stashed in phantom injury mode has got to be bad in terms of rust and also in not being able to show teams what the player can do, which would obviously impact future earnings.
To prevent the abuse of the Rule 5 draft, the rule also states that the draftee must be active for at least 90 days. This keeps teams from drafting players, then placing them on the disabled list for the majority of the season. For example, if a Rule 5 draftee was only active for 67 days in his first season with his new club, he must be active for an additional 23 days in his second season to satisfy the Rule 5 requirements.
@ P. Hertz:
Yeah, saw that on Wikipedia too, but I’m not sure that prevents abuse either. I’d DL a rule 5er and have them play in several “rehab games” at lower levels and then assume that he’ll be better the next year because of age and experience, and would have no issue keeping him on the 25 man.
Why are people calling this a “High Risk, High Reward” signing?
Where is the risk? We are picking this guy up for cheap. Is the risk that he wastes a spot on the 25-man roster (which is already shitty)?
@ Suburban kid:
Nice snark
@ WaLi:
I think it might be the injury thing that causes people to view it as high risk, but even so, it’s league minimum for the 25-man spot on a shitty team. I think of it as low risk.
Berselius wrote:
Knock it off.
@ WaLi:
I also wonder if the “risk” is that we could have had a different “safer” Rule 5 player, or gotten something in return for trading it.
@ Xoomwaffle:
How much would one actually expect for a Rule 5 pick in trade when the Cubs were willing to give Josh Hamilton to the Reds for $50K in a prearranged trade?
@ Rice Cube:
YOU MEAN THE CUBS TRADED HAMILTON AWAY FOR $50K??? OMFG
@ Suburban kid:
Is it necessary to do this?
No, it is not.
@ WaLi:
FIRE THEO
@ WaLi:
@ Berselius:
Although you have to wonder how fucked up Hamilton was at the time. If you were the Cubs even back then, wouldn’t you want more than $50K to throw your pick away? *shrug*
@ Rice Cube:
I’m not saying that I believe they would get anything at all in return, but probably some of the same people calling this a “risk” are the same people who hear the words “trade the second pick” and start thinking about prospects who are worth something.
Rice Cube wrote:
That was the off-season the Cubs were throwing shit tons of money at anybody on the free agent market. Soriano, Lilly, Marquis, DeRosa, they re-signed Ramirez. They were “going for it” so they weren’t going to waste a roster spot on Josh Hamilton, who was far from being who he is today. If Hamilton had stayed on the Cubs roster, there is no way the fans, the press or the ownership would have supported him in the way that was probably necessary to help him break out of his self-destructive rut and he’d just be a cautionary tale today.
@ Aisle424:
Well, I’m glad we solved the third base problem.
I feel like the people who call this high risk are the same people who forgot we spent like 10 of these guys to get Concepción and have already forgotten him
The Hobbit says Stewart’s deal isn’t guaranteed. Sounds like a minor league deal with a chance to make that much if he makes the team so he doesn’t even occupy a roster spot.
I don’t remember but wasn’t Hamilton part of a 3-team trade or something? I was thinking he was on the Cubs roster in name only.
@ josh:
They picked him and traded him to the Reds almost immediately.
@ Berselius:
That’s what it was. Okay, that is kind of weird.
@ josh:
The Reds were picking 15th and figured he wouldn’t last, so they came to an agreement with the Cubs that they would pick him and the Reds would trade cash for him. The Cubs had no plans to stash a prospect, so what the hell, free money. The Reds then also picked Jared Burton from the A’s at 15.
http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/prospect-bulletin/2006/262980.html
New shit
http://www.obstructedview.net/transactions/cubs-winter-meetings.html