Could the A's target this Los Angeles Dodgers prospect in the Rule 5 Draft?

Jason Burke | Nov 21, 2024

Feb 21, 2024; Glendale, AZ, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Ryan Ward poses for a portrait during media day at Camelback Ranch. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The A's will have one of the top picks in the upcoming Rule 5 Draft, so it stands to reason that they should have a fair shot at getting any player they decide to target next month. The Athletics are slated to hold the No. 5 overall selection, yet in order to have a pick, teams must have an open spot on their 40-man roster, and right now three of the teams in front of the Sacramento-bound A's are filled up. If that holds, the A's would have the No. 2 overall pick after the Chicago White Sox.

The Athletics are also in an interesting position with how they approach the Rule 5, being that they are attempting to reach the .500 mark in 2025 and won't just have loads of open playing time to see how a player develops. They're also having a hard time acquiring players via trade, which had been their plan for how to add on this winter, so the Rule 5 Draft could play a bigger role for the front office than they'd originally mapped out.

The big wrinkle with the Rule 5 Draft is that any player selected in the Major League portion of the draft must remain on his new team's 26-man roster for the entire season. The A's tend to go with players that they see as more sure things to stick.

One player they could target would be Los Angeles Dodgers prospect Ryan Ward, who was listed among the "players to know" in Baseball America's Rule 5 preview. Roster Resource has him tentatively listed among L.A.'s 26-man roster as a bench bat, and if he's good enough for the World Series champs, he should be good enough for the rebuilding A's.

Ward, 26, is a lefty bat that has spent the past two seasons in Triple-A Oklahoma City, and in 2024 he bashed 33 bombs, drove in 101, batted .258 with a .317 OBP, and held a 103 wRC+ (100 is league average). The power is certainly intriguing.

One cause for concern could be that his walk rate dropped from 2023-24, going from 11.1% to 7.9%, so while he added 24 points to his batting average this year, his OBP actually decreased from .324 to .317. He also comes with a 27.1% strikeout rate in the minors last season, which isn't necessarily the best sign, but there is obviously a reason that the Dodgers left him unprotected.

He spent most of his time defensively manning either right or left field or first base. If the A's were to select him, Ward could serve as a younger version of Seth Brown.

Baseball America had this to say of Ward: "Ward’s 33 home runs with Oklahoma City led both the Pacific Coast League and all of Triple-A. His 34 home runs overall were second in the minors behind only Deyvison De Los Santos.

"The analytics under the hood aren’t as impressive and he has strikeouts to go with his home runs. Teams might worry the PCL boosted his power considering he didn’t a ball above 110 mph all season. But Ward has always gotten the most out of his power. He has averaged one home run every 20 plate appearances for his pro career."

This is where things get interesting, because the A's will be playing in a PCL park in Sacramento next season, so if there is one team that may not be as worried about that boost that Baseball America talked about, it would be the A's.

Sutter Health Park's right field is also the shallowest part of the park at 325 feet from home, five feet closer than left field. A left-handed bat, Ward showed a platoon advantage while facing right-handers in 2024, batting .280 with a .342 OBP and 28 home runs against them. His swing may be a nice fit for this park.

Of course, there is one other factor that is much more difficult to account for, and that is how Ward would adjust to facing MLB caliber pitching, even in a minor-league park. If that strikeout rate shoots up and he's not making enough contact to get to his power, then it doesn't really matter where the fence in right field is.

In reading through Baseball America's list of guys to watch out for, Ward was certainly one that stuck out given his power and the A's specific set of circumstances that could help him achieve success. The question with every Rule 5 pick remains, however. Is he ready?