Yankees pick Jamie Hoffman first in the Rule 5 draft

By Craig CalcaterraDec 10, 2009, 9:05 AM EST
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I’ll level with you: I don’t know most of the guys in the Rule 5 draft. But you don’t either, so we’re all in this together. I’ll pass along what people who know more than us say about whatever goes down.

First up: the Yankees — picking first because the Nats sent them the pick in the Brian Bruney deal on Monday — are going to take Jamie Hoffman.  He’s an outfielder from the Dodgers’ organization.

Descriptions of Hoffman buzzing around here:  “His ceiling is as a fifth outfielder.”  “a stronger, slower Brett Gardner.”  If that doesn’t excite you, Yankees fans, I don’t know what will.

Orioles sign Alcides Escobar

Alcides Escobar
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By Ashley VarelaFeb 16, 2019, 3:22 PM EST
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The Orioles have inked shortstop Alcides Escobar to a minor league contract, MLB.com’s Joe Trezza reported Saturday. The deal comes with an invitation to spring training and will allow Escobar to earn $700,000 in the majors if he breaks camp with the team (via Jon Heyman of MLB Network). The team has yet to formally announce the agreement.

Escobar, 32, completed an eight-year run with the Royals in 2018. No longer the .280-average, 3.0-fWAR player of seasons past, he hit several career lows after batting .231/.279/.313 with four home runs, eight stolen bases (in 10 chances), and a .593 OPS through 531 plate appearances last year. His defensive ratings also took a hit, and FanGraphs pegged him as the fourth-worst shortstop in the majors after he accumulated -12 DRS over the course of the season, only slightly higher than the Orioles/Dodgers’ Manny Machado, Mets’ Amed Rosario, and Red Sox’ Xander Bogaerts.

Still, Heyman holds that Escobar is being considered for the starting gig this spring and could yet prove an upgrade over top prospects and infield candidates Richie Martin and Drew Jackson. At the very least, the veteran shortstop figures to stabilize the position given Martin and Jackson’s relative inexperience, as both infielders played to varying results in Double-A Tulsa last year and have yet to break into the majors. Should either player earn consideration for the position in camp, however, Escobar might still work his way onto the Opening Day roster in a utility role as he saw some time at third base, second base, and center field in 2018.