In this year’s Rule 5 draft, 13 players were selected by 12 teams, with the Chicago White Sox taking a pair of players and all other teams passing or selecting just one player.
As a quick refresher on Rule 5 rules, players who were 18 and under at the time of their original signing and went professional in 2021, and players who were 19 or older at the time of their original signing and went professional in 2022, are eligible to be selected if they are not on a 40-man roster. The Rule 5 draft is set up in reverse order of standings from the season that just ended, meaning the Colorado Rockies got the first pick in this year’s draft.
Clubs must have an open 40-man roster spot to make a pick, though teams are not required to make any picks. If a team makes a pick, they must pay $100,000 to the team they are selected from. Selected players must remain on the active roster or injured list for the entire 2026 season or be place on waivers. If the player clears waivers, they must be offered back to their original team. Players cannot be optioned to the minors.
Without further ado, here are the results of this year’s draft.
Second Round (All other teams passed):
I’ll quickly touch on each of the top three picks in the draft.
Petit, who turned 26 in September, was a 14th-round pick by the Tigers in the 2021 draft out of Charleston Southern University. He spent his 2025 season split between Double-A and Triple-A, and found success in both places. Across 47 appearances (two starts) between those levels, Petit went 10-2 with a 2.44 ERA and 79 strikeouts across 66 1/3 innings. The 6’8”, 300-pound righty was ranked as Detroit’s No. 30 prospect entering today.
Paez, who turns 22 this offseason, was an international signee out of Venezuela by the Red Sox in 2021, making his debut later that summer. He’s had success at every level he’s pitched at thus far, though he’s topped out at High-A, where he spent all of 2025. Across seven starts this season, Paez went 0-3 with a 2.79 ERA and 23 strikeouts across 19 1/3 innings. It’ll be interesting to see if his success in the lower levels of the minors translates to the majors. If you’ll recall, the White Sox found success with their Rule 5 pick in 2025, selecting pitcher Shane Smith from the Brewers, as he proceeded to earn an All-Star selection and 10th place AL Rookie of the Year finish with Chicago. Paez ranked as Boston’s No. 19 prospect — just ahead of Quinn Priester’s trade partner Yophery Rodriguez — entering today.
McGarry, 26, was a 31st-round pick out of high school by the Rangers in 2017 before opting to attend college instead. He was then selected in the fifth round by the Phillies in 2021, and he’s spent the last four seasons in their system. He spent most of 2025 at the Double-A level, though he did make one start at Triple-A. Across 21 starts between three levels this year, he pitched to a 3.44 ERA with 124 strikeouts over 83 2/3 innings. McGarry did not slot into the top 30 prospects for Philadelphia.
In the minor-league phase of the Rule 5 draft, the Brewers selected right-handed pitcher Cole Phillips, who was a third-round draft pick by the Braves in 2022. But Phillips needed Tommy John surgery before he finished his last year of college, and after going from Atlanta to Seattle in the Jarred Kelenic trade, he needed it again before the 2024 season. He has yet to throw a pitch in a pro game despite being around for almost four years. There’s a blurb about Phillips in last year’s article ranking the Mariners’ top 29 prospects last season — he didn’t make the cut but was listed as another “prospect of note.”
The Brewers also had several of their players plucked in the minor-league phase of the draft:
