The New York Mets lost a player and then gained a player…and then lost that gained one in the MLB Phase of the 2020 Rule 5 Draft.
The Mets selected RHP Luis Oviedo from the Indians with the No. 9 pick, but even before they saw RHP Dedniel Nunez selected 12th overall by the Giants, the Mets had dealt Oviedo to the Pittsburgh Pirates for cash.
In the minor-league phase, the Mets were one of two teams to make four selections, taking Astros OF Andrew Ferguson in Round 1, Blue Jays RHP Justin Dillon in Round 2, Dodgers 2B Drew Jackson in Round 3, and Reds RHP Jesus Reyes in Round 4.
The Mets also lost four players in that phase, with SS Sebastian Espino going to the Blue Jays in Round 1, C Wilfred Astudillo (Reds) and RHP Ezequiel Zabaleta (Rays) leaving in Round 2, and the Giants taking 2B Mitchell Tolman in Round 3.
Ferguson, 28, was the Astros’ 28th-round pick in 2015, and he slashed .281/.395/.440 with 11 home runs in 115 games at Triple-A Round Rock in 2019. He was at the Astros’ alternate site in 2020.
Dillon, 27, was the Jays’ 10th-round pick in 2017, and was 10-4 with a 3.63 ERA in 124 innings split between High-A Dunedin and Double-A New Hampshire in 2019.
Jackson, 27, was the Mariners’ fifth-round pick in 2015, and has been in four organizations. He was a Rule 5 pick by Philly in 2018 and was traded to Baltimore, where made his MLB Debut in 2019, going 0-for-4 with a walk in three games. Baltimore returned him to the Dodgers and he spent the rest of that season in Triple-A, hitting .209 in 82 games in Oklahoma City.
Reyes, 27, was a free agent signing of the Reds in 2015, and made his MLB debut in 2018, appearing in five games. He spent 2019 at Triple-A Louisville, going 1-6 with a 5.03 ERA in 77 innings as a swingman.
Nunez, 24, was an international signing in 2016 and reached full-season ball in 2019, going 5-4 with a 4.39 ERA in 80 innings between High-A St. Lucie and Low-A Columbia before being shut down with a shoulder injury.
Nunez (and Oviedo, for his brief stint) cost $100,000 to acquire, and must stay on the Giants’ 25-man roster all season (outside of injured list stints), or be offered back to the Mets for $50,000. Minor-league choices are not subject to the same rules, only the cost of acquisition (which is $25,000), so those players will be in the Mets organization no matter what.
Of the minor-league losses:
Espino, 20, was an international signing who has spent his entire career in Rookie ball, and most recently hit .251 in 52 games with Kingsport in 2019.
Astudillo, 20, has the same career path as Espino, and hit .267 in 36 games with Kingsport in 2019.
Zabaleta, 25, was also an international signee who reached as high as St. Lucie in six seasons. He split 2019 between St. Lucie and Columbia, going 4-4 with a 3.24 ERA and 11 saves in 43 relief appearances.
Tolman, 26, was the Pirates’ seventh-round pick in 2013. He hit .256 in 128 games (mostly at Double-A) in 2019, but was released by the Pirates in June, and had just signed a minor-league deal with the Mets (with a spring training invite) in November.
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