Chicago Cubs make some moves in Rule 5 Draft

The final day of the Winter Meetings concluded with the Rule 5 Draft. The Chicago Cubs lost one player, traded for another, and swapped at the minor league level.

The Chicago Cubs did not make a selection in the Rule 5 Draft. They did, however, make a trade to bring in more bullpen depth. In what appears to be a pre-arranged deal, the Cubs acquired LHP Caleb Smith from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for cash, according to Carrie Musket. The Brewers selected Smith from the Yankees as the seventh overall pick.

Smith, 25, reached Triple-A for the first time in 2015. He threw 63.2 innings at the Double-A level compiling a mediocre 3.96 ERA. He did, however, have a strong 3.15 FIP as well as an excellent 25.1% strikeout rate and 7.2% walk rate.

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The Cubs will have to keep Smith on the 25 man roster the entire season or risk sending him back to Yankees. Smith will likely join the revamped Cubs bullpen as a long man.

The Cubs also lost Triple-A reliever Armando Rivero to the Atlanta Braves, tweets Jesse Rogers of ESPN. Rivero, 28, has spent the last three seasons at the Triple-A level. Rivero features a 94-97mph fastball, a hard slider, and a split-change, but was never able to latch on with the big league club.

Losing Rivero

He finished Triple-A with a 2.13 ERA and a 2.84 FIP last season. The biggest problem for Rivero has been his incredibly high 12.5% strikeout rate. Rivero was destined to get chosen in the Rule 5 draft. Despite the good minor league numbers, the Cubs never called him up to the big league team.

Just like Smith, Rivero needs to remain on the Braves 25-man roster all season long or be offered back to the Cubs.

With the addition of Smith and the signing of Koji Uehara as well, a reunion with Travis Wood seems unlikely at this point.

Next: Cubs sign former Red Sox closer, Uehara

In the minor-league portion of the draft, the Cubs selected Yankees infielder Kevin Cornelius, according to Jesse Rogers of ESPN. Cornelius just finished High-A and slashed .277/.374/.493. At 24 years old, Cornelius is a bit older than most High-A guys and he also struck out 25.1% of the time.

The Cubs also lost infielder Daniel Lockhart to the Diamondbacks in the minor league portion. Lockhart, 24, reached Double-A last year, slashing .244/.290/.370.

Since these guys were selected in the minor league portion, they are not subject to the Rule 5 Draft rules. Teams get to keep minor league players without consequence, regardless of their roster status.