Rule 5 Draft Protection and the Brewers

The Milwaukee Brewers will have to decide which players to protect for the Rule 5 Draft as the deadline ends tomorrow. The Rule 5 Draft, which will take place next month, helps minor league players not on a 40-man roster, find a team that is willing to take them, but they must be put on the claiming team’s 25-man roster or be returned to their previous team.

In order to “protect” a player, they must be placed on a 40-man roster. Here are a few prominent players that could be drafted by other teams if the Brewers do not protect them:

Josh Prince did collect his first major league hit, a double, on April 7. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports

Josh Prince – OF

Prince didn’t make much of a splash in Triple-A Nashville this year, but still made his major league debut this season on April 6. Prince played in all of eight major league games before the team sent him back down to the minors. With the abundance of outfielders the team already has stockpiled, it seems that Prince’s future in Milwaukee is rather bleak, but funnier things have happened. However, Prince will want to work on his .237 batting average and less strikeouts if he wants a chance at the big leagues again.

Nick Bucci – RHP

Not too long ago, the Brewers took Bucci off of the 40-man roster to make room for the eventual returns of Ryan Braun and Rickie Weeks. In 2013, Bucci only made one appearance and missed the rest of the season due to a shoulder injury. Really, Bucci’s biggest season was 2011 when he pitched in 26 games and held an ERA of 3.84. Since then, Bucci hasn’t pitched in more than 10 games in a season, so you have to wonder if the Brewers really have much of a need for him anymore.

Kentrail Davis – OF

Davis is fairly new to the protection as he just completed his fourth professional year. Much like with Prince, Davis’ issue is that the Brewers already have many outfield options to choose from that it’ll be hard to fit him into the group. Davis did fairly well though this past season in Triple-A, hitting .270/.353/.367 with 12 extra base hits and 14 RBIs. Unfortunately, I don’t think that’s enough to earn him a spot on the 40-man roster in Milwaukee, especially with the plethora of players already in his position.

Arcenio Leon – RHP

For Leon, the 27-year-old has spent his entire professional career in the minors and unfortunately, it doesn’t look like that will change for him in the coming years. Leon hosts a career 4.58 ERA and has never made it into Triple-A ball despite nine seasons spent in the minors. Perhaps he’s one of those players that performs better at a higher level, but I’m not so sure the Brewers are going to protect Leon for the Rule 5 Draft.

Taylor Green – INF

It’s weird to think that the Brewers haven’t made a spot for Green on the 40-man roster considering they still need to re-sign Corey Hart, but here he sits. Green could be a nice pick-up for a team in need of a utility guy with some major league experience, albeit 78 games. Of course, Green did miss the 2013 season due to hip surgery, but still it would have been nice for the Brew Crew to have with the fall out of first baseman. It’ll be interesting to see what the Brewers do with Green in the next day.

Are there any Brewers on this list or any not listed that you would want to protect? Let us know in the comments below!