The drafting of Rule 5 took place on Wednesday afternoon. The Cincinnati Reds made no selections and did not lose any players in the big league version of the Rule 5 draft. However, they were quite active in the minor league version of the draft, selecting four different players and losing one.
Cincinnati lost Donovan Antonia to the New York Mets in the first round of the minor league phase. The now 20-year-old outfielder posted an .869 OPS as an 18-year-old in Arizona in 2022. Last season, he started the year back in Arizona, posting a 1.262 OPS in nine games and was promoted to Daytona in July. He got off to a good start there too, hitting .429/.529/.571 in the first six games. But after that, in limited playing time, he fell into a lull for the rest of the game. In the final 19 games he played over the next two months, he hit 5-34 (.147), giving him a .213/.339/.319 record with the Tortugas in 24 games.
The Reds have added several players to complete their roster for the 2024 season. At this point, we should note that unlike the big league phase of the Rule 5 draft, which requires a player to remain on a 26-man roster or return to his original team, this is not for the minor leagues version applies. A player does not have to spend time in a specific level squad and does not have to be sent back. Once selected, they move on to the other organization.
Cincinnati selected left-handed pitcher TJ Sikkema with its first-round pick. The 25-year-old spent his entire season with the Double-A Kansas City Royals team. He was used as a reliever for the first time in his career, but he struggled a bit, posting a 5.85 ERA in 72.1 innings and 34 relief appearances. That also included 39 walks and 63 strikeouts, but the splits were interesting. Despite being a lefty, he has 21 walks and only 19 strikeouts against lefties. Lefties still had a lower OPS against him than righties at 79, but he wasn’t exactly reliable against lefties in 2023. You can view his career statistics here.
The Reds used their next pick to acquire outfielder Alexander Ovalles from the Tampa Bay Rays. The now 23-year-old struggled in 2023 but hit well in 2022. His 2023 season began in Double-A Montgomery and he got off to a slow start, hitting .228/.344/.279 through May 12. In that game on May 12, he hit a single against the wall, but injured his thigh on the edge of 1st base and left the game. He would miss the next three and a half months before returning to Montgomery on August 24. Ovalles played only eight games after his return, going 3-for-26 (.115). His career statistics can be found here.
With their next pick, the team took 28-year-old Levi Jordan (pictured above). The infielder spent most of his season as a shortstop, but was also used at second and third. At Double-A Tennessee, he played in 45 games and hit .235/.371/.288. In 22 games with Triple-A Iowa, he hit just .179/.295/.358. He stole 14 bases in 15 attempts on the season. You can view his career statistics here.
Cincinnati used its last pick to select Brock Bell from the Boston Red Sox. Originally drafted in 2019, Bell, like all other minor league players, missed the 2020 season, but also the 2021 and 2022 seasons. The right-handed pitcher underwent Tommy John surgery in college and underwent a UCL revision in 2021, which left him for this and the next season. He entered 2023 as a 25-year-old and had 29.1 professional innings pitched. Bell began the season at Single-A Salem and was promoted to High-A Greeneville in late May. In his first 13 games of the year, he had a 5.40 ERA with six walks and 18 strikeouts in 23.1 innings. He really had a strong performance after that, posting a 1.93 ERA in his last 22 games. In that span, he threw 32.2 innings with eight walks and 32 strikeouts while pounding hitters with a .505 OPS. He is the brother of former Reds prospect Brantley Bell and son of former big leaguer Jay Bell. His full stats can be found here.