Despite an opening on their 40-man roster, the Boston Red Sox passed on filling it with a selection in the Rule 5 Draft.
As a quick refresher, the Rule 5 Draft allows any team without a full 40-man roster to select players from other organizations who aren’t on a 40-man roster. Only players with at least five years of professional experience (or four years if they signed after turning 19 years old) are eligible to be selected. Drafted players must spend the entire next season on their new club’s major league roster or disabled list, otherwise, they must be offered back to their original team.