The Most Surprising Prospects Left Unprotected From the Rule 5 Draft

For all of the prospect heads out in the world, this past Tuesday was right up there on the list of days to look forward to this offseason.

While we all have our own thoughts and evaluations of our team’s prospects, the deadline for teams to solidify their 40-man rosters ahead of the Rule 5 draft gives us a true sense of how each organization values those specific prospects.

As of 6:00 p.m. EST on Tuesday, November 18, each organization had made its decisions on which prospects to protect and which it felt comfortable exposing to the Rule 5 draft.

For those who are unfamiliar with the Rule 5 draft and how it works, it is an annual draft held on the last day of the Winter Meetings, where teams are able to select players from other organizations who are not on the 40-man roster.

While this does a good job of trying to balance out the prospect talent throughout the league, the one stipulation the selection comes with is that the player selected needs to stay on his new team’s 26-man active roster throughout the subsequent season. If the new team chooses to move him off the roster, that team must offer him back to his original team.

The draft order is established by reverse order of the previous season’s standings.

While this may not seem like a significant event, we have seen players like Anthony Santander, Garrett Whitlock, and Brad Keller taken in recent Rule 5 drafts. Those names stick out a bit, but how about names like Johan Santana, Dan Uggla, and Shane Victorino? I would say they had pretty good careers.

There were a slew of obvious prospects that teams would be quick to protect from this year’s draft, but there were plenty more that left us thinking, “Are we missing something?”

These are the most surprising prospects who weren’t protected from the Rule 5 draft.

Most Surprising Omissions

Blaze Jordan (1B/3B) – St. Louis Cardinals

2025 Stats: .29 G, 270/.331/.450, 19 HR, 99 RBI, 110 wRC+

Blaze Jordan has to be one of, if not the most surprising name left off of his team’s 40-man roster.

After he was acquired by the Cardinals at the deadline for left-handed reliever Steven Matz, many saw this new opportunity in the Cardinals organization as Jordan’s ticket to making his major league debut in a short time.

However, after he posted a 53 wRC+ in his brief stint with their Triple-A affiliate, the Cardinals decided not to protect him from the Rule 5 draft.

Jordan is best known for his prodigious power. This dates back to his days in high school, when he was hitting 480-foot home runs at showcases.

There is a good chance that a team at the top of the draft is willing to take a chance on the 22-year-old corner infielder, and it would not be surprising to see the decision to leave him unprotected come back to bite St. Louis down the line.

David McCabe (1B) – Atlanta Braves

2025 Stats: 133 G, .275/.367/.426, 14 HR, 71 RBI, 132 wRC+

The decision to leave David McCabe unprotected might not have been as difficult for the Braves’ front office because of how his career has gone so far since he was selected in the fourth round of the 2021 draft, but it still surprised me.

After missing the bulk of the 2023 and ’24 seasons recovering from Tommy John surgery, McCabe had his best professional season to date in 2025, showing some of the offensive upside that convinced the Braves to take him in the draft.

McCabe was hitting .286 in 105 games for Columbus before getting the late-season call-up to Triple-A Gwinnett.

Drafted as a third baseman, his defense was always seen as average at best, likely locking him in to first base as he continues to progress in his professional career.

There is a possibility that a team takes a chance on him after he showed he could still swing it despite missing as much time as he did. That said, it is more likely he goes unselected in the draft and ends up back in Triple-A.

Blake Burkhalter (RHP) – Atlanta Braves

2025 Stats: 32 G (16 GS), 103 IP, 3.32 ERA, 3.53 FIP, 88 K

This Braves omission is the one that likely stands out the most to people around the baseball world.

Blake Burkhalter was taken by the Braves out of Auburn as the compensation pick that they received after Freddie Freeman left for Los Angeles. Primarily a back-end bullpen arm during his time at Auburn, Atlanta was quick to announce him as a starting pitcher as soon as he was selected.

Like McCabe, Burkhalter also missed the majority of the 2023 and ’24 seasons recovering from Tommy John.

After making his return halfway through the 2024 campaign, he was able to limit opposing hitters to a .240 average and continued to showcase his four-pitch mix, comprising a 94 mph fastball, a cutter, a change-up, and a curveball; the two off-speed pitches were generating over a 30% whiff rate.

The 25-year-old right-hander should be selected in this December’s draft by any team looking for a back-end starter, or long guy to add to the bullpen.

Yohendrick Piñango (OF) – Toronto Blue Jays

2025 Stats: 131 G, .258/.361/.430, 15 HR, 70 RBI, 122 wRC+

As Aram Leighton highlighted in his write-up of Yohendrick Piñango in May, the outfielder is well-known as being a data darling. The issue with Piñango’s profile is that it comes with a lot of inconsistencies.

Piñango was a part of the 2018 International class, signing for $400,000 with the Chicago Cubs. He made his way to the Blue Jays in the Nate Pearson trade.

Watching him swing the bat is truly mesmerizing. Putting up exit velocities north of 105 mph, ranking in the 90th percentile, he offers intriguing power that is surprising to see in someone as young as he is. The most impressive part about it is that he has put up contact rates above 80% during his minor league career.

The issue comes with the rate at which he is swinging the bat. His swing percentage has been sub-50% since his 2023 season in High-A South Bend.

I would be surprised if Piñango is drafted, but the intrigue at the plate could be enough to have a team jump at the opportunity.

Hayden Mullins (LHP) – Boston Red Sox

2025 Stats: 22 G (21 GS), 101.2 IP, 2.21 ERA, 3.44 FIP, 123 K

Hayden Mullins is going to make a major league organization pretty happy when they get to submit the card to draft him in the Rule 5 this year.

The left-handed pitcher continued to rise up Red Sox prospect rankings as the season went on in 2025, putting up a 10.9 K/9 by season’s end. He is the traditional lefty, in that he lives in the low-90s with his fastball, topping out around 95 mph, but he does possess a strong slider/change-up combination that works off the same plane, creating unique deception to opposing hitters.

Even if he is not able to stick in the back of a rotation in the big leagues, Mullins would serve well as a bulk arm in a team’s bullpen.

Andrew Pintar (OF) – Miami Marlins

2025 Stats: 84 G, .269/.338/.384, 4 HR, 32 RBI, 23 SB, 99 wRC+

These might be the least eye-catching stats on this list, but Andrew Pintar is going to have a role on an MLB team for years as a fourth outfielder.

Being the final piece involved in the A.J. Puk return from Arizona to Miami was one of the best things that could have happened to Pintar’s career. He went from being in an organization with an absolute logjam in the outfield to one that gave him the playing time necessary to showcase his talent.

Despite being limited to 84 games last season while dealing with an injury, he hit .269/.338/.384. He was also not just the fastest player on his Jacksonville team, but in all of Triple-A; over one stretch, he went 15-for-15 in stolen base attempts.

While he does struggle against right-handed pitching, he is consistently putting up above-average fielding grades at a center field position that teams are always looking to get strong defense from.

We recently saw the Washington Nationals take a chance on a similar profile out of the Marlins system in Nasim Nuñez. It would not surprise me if a team is willing to use a 26-man roster spot on a player who can fill a particular role, like Pintar could.

Honorable Mentions

• Gavin Cross (OF) – Kansas City Royals
• Peyton Pallette (RHP) – Chicago White Sox