The 2023 Rule 5 Draft is complete, and the Orioles were not as big of participants this year as they have been over the last two decades.
It was the end of an era, as the Orioles hadn’t passed in the first round of the Rule 5 Draft since 2005, including the 2021 meetings canceled due to the lockout. All of the O’s players eligible for the draft were left unprotected, and none were chosen, including the club’s No. 17 prospect, outfielder Hudson Haskin.
Orioles GM Mike Elias said during a press conference at the 2023 Winter Meetings that he probably wouldn’t be very active in this year’s draft. Nonetheless, the Orioles did select a player in the Triple-A phase and lost a player as well.
The Orioles selected 20-year-old right-hander Nelvis Ochoa, who spent the 2023 season in the Colorado Rockies organization as a member of their Dominican Summer League team.
In 17 games, the Venezuelan native went 6-2 with a 3.38 ERA and 1.15 WHIP in 17 relief appearances and struck out 37 batters in 34.2 innings pitched. He’s posted a 3.52 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 25 games over two professional seasons, with 11 walks and 52 strikeouts in 53.2 innings pitched.
The Orioles also lost a player in this year’s draft, as right-hander Connor Gillispie was selected by the Cleveland Guardians. The 26-year-old spent his 2023 season with the Double-A Bowie Baysox and had a 3.89 ERA in 27 games.
The former Virginia Commonwealth University product carried a WHIP of 1.15, earned two saves, pitched a shoutout and compiled 99 strikeouts in 115.2 innings pitched. Gillispie was drafted by the Orioles in the ninth round back in 2019.
What do you think of the O’s pickup of Ochoa and subtraction of Gillispie? Let us know in the comments below! Make sure to follow The Baltimore Battery on Facebook, Twitter (X) and TikTok, and use the hashtag #baltimorebattery when sharing our content!
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