Bleed Cubbie Blue · Nov 24, 2020
Who could the Cubs lose in the Rule 5 Draft?
Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports Michael Rucker pitching for the Orioles in Spring Training 2020The immediate thought after last Friday’s deadline for protecting players from the Rule 5 Draft is which players might be poached in December. In 2019, the Cubs lost infielder Vimael Machin (for the duration) and reliever Michael Rucker (until just before the COVID shutdown). The Rule 5 process is heavily scouting-based. If a team has a scout willing to bang the table on behalf of a player, the six-figure fee isn't prohibitive. Normally, if a player is left unprotected, valid reasons exist. Here are a handful of names the Cubs might lose, if briefly, come early December.