Dodgers Lose Ryan Noda, Jose Hernandez & Gus Varland In Rule 5 Draft; Pick Yon Castro & More

The 2022 MLB Rule 5 Draft took place on Wednesday as the Winter Meetings in San Diego concluded, and the Los Angeles Dodgers lost Ryan Noda, Jose Hernandez and Gus Varland while selecting no one in the Major League phase.

All players taken during the first round must remain on the selecting team’s Major League roster for the entire season or be offered back to the previous club. If they are offered back, the original club may choose to take them back or allow the selecting organization to keep them.

With the second overall pick in the Rule 5 Draft, the Oakland Athletics selected Noda from the Triple-A Oklahoma City Dodgers.

The 26-year-old left-handed hitter was a non-roster invitee with the Dodgers last spring and batted .259/.395/.474 with 25 home runs, 90 RBI, 86 runs scored and 20 stolen bases during the 2022 season.

Across five Minor League seasons, Noda has hit .264/.407/.486 with 94 home runs, 361 RBI, 361 runs scored and 58 stolen bases in 555 games as a first baseman and outfielder.

He was originally selected by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 15th round of the 2017 MLB Draft out of the University of Cincinnati. Noda was traded to Los Angeles on Feb. 23, 2021, as a player to be named later in the Ross Stripling trade that took place Aug. 31, 2020.

With the third overall pick, the Pittsburgh Pirates selected Hernandez, who spent the 2022 season with the High-A Great Lakes Loons and Double-A Tulsa Drillers.

The 24-year-old went a combined 4-4 with eight saves, a 3.32 ERA, 69 strikeouts, .215 batting average against and 1.21 WHIP in 59.2 innings between the two levels.

The southpaw began the 2022 Minor League season with Great Lakes, where Hernandez was charged with one earned run, struck out 18 batters and recorded a .156 batting average against and 0.98 WHIP in his last 13 appearances before being promoted to Double-A on May 28.

During his last 15 outings from August 7 through the end of the season with Tulsa, Hernandez recorded a 2.93 ERA, 26 strikeouts, a .135 batting average against and a 1.04 WHIP.

Hernandez was originally signed by the Dodgers as a non-drafted free agent on May 12, 2016, and began his professional career in the Dominical Summer League. In his career, Hernandez has gone 17-10 with nine saves, a 3.41 ERA, 231 strikeouts, a .223 batting average against and a 1.29 WHIP in 206 innings.

With the 10th pick, the Milwaukee Brewers selected Varland from the Drillers’ roster.

The 26-year-old went 4-4 with two saves, a 6.11 ERA in 70.2 innings with 85 strikeouts and a 1.64 WHIP. He has spent the past two seasons with Tulsa after pitching for the High-A Advanced Stockton Ports in 2019.

His 2021 season was not much better as he posted a 5.71 ERA in 34.2 innings with a 1.47 WHIP. In his career, he has gone 7-10 with two saves, a 4.30 ERA, 184 strikeouts, a .249 average against and a 1.35 WHIP in 169.2 innings.

Gus was originally selected by the Oakland Athletics in 2018 out of Concordia University, and he is the brother of Minnesota Twins prospect Louie Varland. He was acquired by the Dodgers as part of a trade that sent Adam Kolarek to Oakland.

Dodgers lose 2, select 3 in Rule 5 Draft Minor League phase

In the Minor League portion of the Rule 5 Draft, the Dodgers lost catcher Kekai Rios to the Blue Jays and right-handed pitcher Jose Martinez to the St. Louis Cardinals.

Rios hit .219 with four home runs in 2022, splitting time with the Loons and Drillers. Martinez pitched to a 5.16 ERA with 45 strikeouts in 61 innings for the Drillers and OKC Dodgers.

The Dodgers selected right-handed pitcher Yon Castro from the New York Yankees, right-hander Carlo Reyes from the Philadelphia Phillies and outfielder Josh Stowers from the Texas Rangers.

Castro posted a 3.59 ERA with 103 strikeouts in 87.2 innings for the Single-A Tampa Tarpons. Reyes pitched to a 3.54 ERA in 56 innings with 62 strikeouts for the High-A Jersey Shore BlueClaws and Double-A Reading Fightin Phils. Stowers hit .222 with 10 home runs for the Double-A Frisco RoughRighders.