Who Are The Seattle Mariners Rule-5 Eligible Players?
The Seattle Mariners are set to begin the first of several offseason events with the team's High Performance Camp already underway and the first game of the Arizona Fall League set to begin on Monday.
The Mariners will have top 100 prospects Colt Emerson and Cole Young in action in the Arizona Fall League and prospects like Lazaro Montes and Jurrangelo Cijntje are currently at the High Performance Camp.
Seattle's farm system already had a little bit of a shift on Friday when Ty Cummings was revealed as the "player to be named later" in the trade with the Tampa Bay Rays that brought Randy Arozarena to the Pacific Northwest.
But there could be more changes in the farm system before spring training rolls around in February.
The Mariners have several players that will be eligible for the Rule 5 draft in December.
The Rule 5 draft is one of several competitive equalizers in place across the MLB. The goal of the Rule 5 draft is to prevent clubs from hoarding MLB prospects. Teams that don't have their 40-man roster filled when the draft takes place at winter meetings can select players from other organizations and move them to their 40-man roster for a $50,000 fee paid to the club the player was selected from.
The team that drafts the player must have him on the major league roster for the entirety of the following season and be active for a minimum of 90 days.
According to a list published by Baseball America, the Mariners have four players that are Rule-5 eligible: RHP Jason Ruffcorn, RHP Jimmy Joyce, RHP Jordan Jackson and RHP Travis Kuhn.
Congrats to Jason Ruffcorn on his first save at Double-A! pic.twitter.com/FeykunsgZM
— Mariners Minors (@MiLBMariners) September 15, 2024
All four hurlers with the exception of Jackson were used mainly as relievers. Jackson made three appearances and one start this season with the team's High-A affiliate Everett AquaSox before going on a season-ending 60-day injured list stint on March 24. Jackson will be competing in the Arizona Fall League, as well.
Ruffcorn posted a 3.44 ERA with 55 strikeouts in 49.2 innings pitched and 42 appearances this season; Joyce had a 5.46 ERA in 28 appearances (10 starts) with 61 strikeouts in 61 innings pitched, Kuhn had a 3.33 ERA in 44 appearances with 64 strikeouts in 54 innings pitched and Jackson had a 27.00 ERA with four strikeouts in 1.1 innings pitched in his three appearances.
Perfect 4th inning by Travis Kuhn. pic.twitter.com/q4gkjgag1x
— Mariners Minors (@MiLBMariners) August 23, 2024
The four Rule 5 eligible players are talented relievers but Seattle also re-tooled their farm system with a lot of highly-projected bullpen arms in the 2024 draft.
It will be interesting to see what major league clubs, if any, give one of these four players a shot in the big leagues.
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