Rule 5 draft picks are guys taken by one team from the roster of another team. The key thing about Rule 5 draft picks -- the number one thing you need to know about them -- is that if they do not stay on the 25-man roster of the team which selected them all season, they are sent back to their old team. Often times a team will stash a Rule 5 pick on the disabled list so they can keep him without him counting against the 25-man, but not always. No, sometimes they just get a look at him, decide they don’t really need him after all and send him back to the team from which they drafted him.
Evan Rutckyj was a Rule 5 draft pick of the Braves last December. He was selected from the Yankees. Earlier this week Rutckyj was interviewed in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He had all kinds of nice things to say about being on the Braves. Most of which were described by negative comparison with what he experienced while on the Yankees:
That’s not exactly the sharpest smack talk, but in baseball anything less than glowing praise for your team and organization is considered controversial. Even if it’s merely by comparison, saying that a club is a place where you can’t talk to people and you have to put your head down and mind your own business is not likely to be too well-received, even if it’s true. In the Star Wars universe The Empire thinks they’re the good guys. In baseball, the Yankees probably think they’re a fun-loving and friendly organization.
All of which creates a problem for the Rutckyi, because today the Braves cut him and sent him back to the Yankees.
It’s not that long a drive from Disney World to Tampa, but I feel like it’ll be an unpleasant drive for him given the reception he’s likely to receive.
