The Pittsburgh Pirates selected three players and lost two Wednesday in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 Draft but managed to escape without sacrificing any top-30 prospects.
The Pirates used three of their four available picks, adding relief pitchers Zach Matson and Nic Laio and corner infielder Jacob Gonzalez. They lost pitcher Steven Jennings and outfielder Jonah Davis, who were selected by the New York Yankees and St. Louis Cardinals, respectively.
More important, the Pirates were able to keep first baseman Mason Martin, outfielder Cal Mitchell and pitchers Tahnaj Thomas, Omar Cruz and Cody Bolton despite leaving them exposed. MLB Pipeline ranks Thomas 13th among Pirates prospects, with Martin No. 17, Mitchell No. 18, Cruz No. 27 and Bolton No. 29. In mid-November, the Pirates added shortstop Liover Peguero (MLB Pipeline’s No. 5 prospect) and outfielders Canaan Smith-Njigba (No. 28), Jack Suwinski (No. 30) and Travis Swaggerty (No. 16) to their 40-man roster.
The major league portion of the Rule 5 Draft was postponed when MLB owners locked out the players and canceled winter meetings. But the dispute doesn’t affect the minor leagues, so the Pirates had an opportunity to boost their farm system.
With the fourth pick of the first round, the Pirates selected Matson, a 6-foot-3, 225-pound lefty reliever who was 2-2 with a 5.73 ERA and averaged 15.5 strikeouts per nine innings over 33 innings in 35 appearances last season at Double-A Hartford.
The Yankees used the 24th overall pick to select right-handed reliever Steven Jennings, a 2017 second-round pick who was 9-1 with a 4.99 ERA while splitting last season between Low-A Bradenton, High-A Greensboro and Double-A Altoona.
In the second round, the Pirates picked Laio, 24, from the Texas Rangers. The 6-5, 205-pound righty middle reliever was 3-3 with a 5.43 ERA and 12.6 strikeouts per nine innings in 56 1/3 innings over 24 appearances in Low-A and High-A last season.
In the third round, the Pirates picked Jacob Gonzalez, a third baseman/first baseman from the San Francisco Giants. Gonzalez, 23, batted .250/.320/.404 with 13 doubles, eight home runs and 45 RBIs in 75 games between the Arizona Complex League and High-A last season. Gonzalez, a 2017 second round pick, is the son of former Arizona Diamondbacks star Luis Gonzalez.
The Pirates lost Davis, 24, to the Cardinals in the third round. The left-handed hitter batted .205 with a .749 OPS, 12 doubles, three triples, 15 homers and 38 RBIs in 92 games split between High-A Greensboro and Double-A Altoona last season.
