Draft Analysis: Mariners Gains And Losses In Rule 5 Draft

The Mariners participated in yesterday’s 2016 Rule 5 Draft and made some solid selections that could prove useful, but also saw good, and young talent get scooped up.

The Mariners had another productive day, but this time without involving themselves in a trade or free agency. No, today the M’s added two players and lost two players via the Rule 5 Draft.

On The Way In

The two young guns that will be on the Mariners roster next season are the left-hander, Paul Paez who was taken from the New York Mets and outfielder, Chuck Taylor who flew from the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Paez was never expected to be a Steven Matz or Jacob DeGrom type player that grows in the Mets organization and then becomes a star. But it would have been nice if he grew into an essential bullpen role to back those guys up. Unfortunately for him, he never did, which is partly why he’s now with the Mariners.

Unfortunately for him, he never did, which is partly why he’s now with the Mariners.

Paez has been fairly decent at the single-A and double-A level over the past four years, though. He put together a resume with a record of 12-7 with an ERA of 3.29 as a reliever.

What was most impressive was how few home runs he was allowing. In his first three years in single-A, Paez gave up just three homers in one hundred and eight innings.

In pitcher-friendly Safeco Field (if he gets some quality playing time there) he could use the dynamics of the confines to keep those numbers where they have been.

Chuck Taylor can provide some important speed on the basepaths this coming season, whether he’s slotted in the lineup or comes off the bench as a pinch-runner. In his five seasons in the minors, he legged out sixty-one doubles, eighteen triples, and forty-four stolen bases.

He also could be used as a part-time left fielder. While in left, which has been his primary position in the outfield, Taylor had a fielding percentage of .987%. He has had fifteen outfield assists from the meadow, and even pulled off a double play.

Taylor will be the next youngster to vie for a primary role in left with the likes of Ben Gamel and Guillermo Heredia. Now that he must be an asset in the 2017 forty-man roster, the Mariners might as well give him a decent shot even with Heredia and Gamel.

Now that he must be an asset in the 2017 forty-man roster, the Mariners might as well give him a decent shot even with Heredia and Gamel in the mix.

On The Way Out

In more unpleasant news, the Mariners had to say goodbye to Austin Wilson, who was snatched up by the St. Louis Cardinals, and Kevin Gadea who was taken by the Tampa Rays.

Gadea’s departure is a big sting to the organization. Even though he had only been pitching at the rookie ball and single-A level, the Nicaraguan-born right-hander was spectacular.

During his four years in the minors, Gadea boasted a record of 17-6 with an ERA of 2.64. But, if we exclude his brief and underwhelming three Arizona League games in 2014, his ERA creeps down to 2.42.

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What will be missed most about Gadea is his strikeout ability. He was improving his K/9 year over year, and by 2016, batters didn’t have a chance. In his fifteen appearances, Gadea struck out 12.9 men per nine frames.

This doesn’t mean that the Mariners won’t feel an absence with Wilson gone, they will. The bulked up extra-base hitter will now be providing pop in the National League.

In his four minor league seasons, he hit a double, triple or home run in more than a third of his at-bats. In half of those years he smacked at least fifteen doubles, and in three of them, he hit ten or more homers.

His impeccable fielding will also not be forgotten. In three hundred and sixteen games,  Wilson committed eleven errors. In other words, over twenty-seven hundred innings, he nearly allowed just a dozen errors, calculating to about an error every two hundred and forty-five frames.

In other words, over twenty-seven hundred innings, he nearly allowed just a dozen errors, calculating to about an error every two hundred and forty-five frames.

Next: Mariners Add Giants Heston

Conclusion

With a pair of players coming and going, it will be interesting to see how all of them develop. One of the wonders of the Rule 5 Draft is the fact that teams are trading commodities based on a very limited sample size of games played, making these moves potentially some of the most nervewracking all off-season