photo: Brendan Donovan (Brian Walton/The Cardinal Nation)
The St. Louis Cardinals waited until Friday’s deadline to add three prospects to the 40-man roster to protect them from the Rule 5 Draft.
We've selected the contracts of RHP Jake Walsh, RHP Freddy Pacheco, and INF/OF Brendan Donovan.
Our 40-player roster stands at 36 players. pic.twitter.com/hztiOFIBfD
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) November 19, 2021
| 2021 | Prior | ||||
| 2021 protect | Tm | Pos | Rank | R5 | Qualify |
| Brendan Donovan | Mem | IF | 17 | 2018 coll | |
| Freddy Pacheco | Mem | RHR | 2017 IFA | ||
| Jake Walsh | Mem | RHR | 2017 coll |
The roster
With the additions, St. Louis’ 40-man roster went from 33 to 36 players. The club could choose to add Rule 5 eligible players from other teams in the December 8 draft. The primary use of the available slots will likely be to add free agents and/or trade acquisitions to the big league roster this winter.
The unprotected
The following players are among the over three dozen Cardinals who will be eligible for the Rule 5, left off the 40-man roster. Included are rankings in The Cardinal Nation’s Top 50 as of September as well as the player’s Rule 5 status in prior years, if applicable.
| 2021 | Prior | ||||
| 2021 unprotected | Tm | Pos | Rank | R5 | Qualify |
| Delvin Perez | Spr | SS | 29 | Y | 2016 HS |
| Kramer Robertson | Spr | IF | 37 | Y | 2017 coll |
| Jhon Torres | Peo | OF | 19 | Y | 2016 IFA |
| Julio Rodriguez | Spr | C | 30 | Y | 2016 IFA |
| Luken Baker | Mem | 1B | 16 | 2018 coll |
Even if selected by another organization, an unprotected player would have to remain in the majors with the new team for the entirety of 2022 or be offered back to the Cardinals. The organization is apparently willing to assume that risk.
Earlier prediction article for members of The Cardinal Nation
I was correct in the selections of all three – Donovan, Pacheco and Walsh – and missed none.
Full roster detail at The Cardinal Nation
To view and to track the status of all players in the system by position and level, check out the Roster Matrix, always free and updated here at The Cardinal Nation. Also included is every player transaction across the full organization all year long.
Detailed team rosters for the entire system can be accessed via the red menu column at the top left (see “ROSTERS/PLAYERS/MOVES”).
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