Rule 5 moves

AzPhil of TCR does a good job of keeping folks on track with his list. It can be seen on www.thecubreporter.com in the right side panel.

3 Guys that I hope are kept (in order):

Welington Castillo – Still think he’s a bit underrated. Cubs could put him as the 3rd catcher. I’ve compared him to Bengie Molina before. Defense improved according to some, and his offense got better in the 2nd half, after being a bit unlucky in the first half. If Soto doesn’t bounce back, Castillo could fight for PT come 2011.

John Gaub – Lefty in the DeRosa trade tore through the minors. That said, with the Cubs likely to resign John Grabow (according to reports), and with Marshall/Gorzelanny, Gaub isn’t as significant as before. Still … good depth to have that could help save some money.

Blake Parker – Former catcher with a good low-mid 90’s fastball and a solid slider. Some control issues, but imo, has some setup potential.

Two guys I hope are kept:

Rafael Dolis – I wasn’t leaning this way earlier in the year, but he’s supposedly looked sharper in instructs (according to AzPhil) with his secondary stuff, and he was always a hard throwing big dude. Worth the risk.

Alessandro Maestri – Was leaning Maestri as a borderline must keep, but Dolis has a higher upside, and while Maestri has a better slider than Parker, they are similar and Parker probably has a better fastball and is a bit more developed. That said, if we can keep 5 around, sure, would love him.

Others (random order):

Jeremy Papelbon/Jayson Ruhlman – Earlier in the year, I was somewhat leaning towards hoping that Papelbon was staying due to the Cubs lefty pen issue. But with Grabow likely to return and Gaub’s development, neither of these guys are that important anymore, and it’s doubtful that both would get picked.

James Adduci – Somewhat similar to Sam Fuld, he produces, but unlike a guy like Fuld, is probably not as well-rounded to be anything more than a depth OF (whereas Fuld has a really borderline shot of being a regular … but still a bit more chance than Adduci, IMO)

Chris Robinson/Steve Clevenger – Potentially decent cheap backup catchers for some team. The former’s a bit better defensively, the latter is iffy defensively but has a solid enough bat. That said, Castillo should be ahead.

Greg Reinhard – Arm the Cubs got in the Jae-Kuk Ryu deal (along with OF Andrew Lopez) had a decent season out of the pen. Average stuff, IIRC, so losing him won’t hurt, but could perhaps be a cheap 12th arm for some team that eventually gets stashed.

Robert Hernandez – So frustrating. Two years ago, he was a really young arm that was succeeding in low A with a solid fastball good changeup. PED suspension and 2 years later, he’ll likely start 2011 in Peoria or Daytona still looking to step forward. I’d love to have him around, but he’s not important enough to protect right now.

Thomas Diamond – Signed with the Cubs due to his former coach in college being in the org as Asst. GM I think. If we can, so be it, but there’s enough arms to ponder that he shouldn’t rank high.

Matt Camp – Will never be more than a 13th or 14th man, but he has played almost everywhere.

I thought we were looking at specific players like top50s, but I’ll give my team analysis.
Yankees have a ton of roster spots opening. Hairston, Bruney, Hinske, and Matsui are unlikely to be resigned. Nady is in that category too, but he doesn’t have a roster spot. Josh Towers, Sergio Mitre, Jon Albaladejo, Edwar Ramirez, Shelley Duncan, Freddy Guzman and possibly Chad Gaudin can be DFAd. (I say Gaudin b/c of all the relief pitching surplus)
Possible DFAs also include Damaso Marte (anyone want him!) and Chris Garcia. Andrew Brackman is a longshot at a DFA. We may also want to look at the status of Melky Cabrera and Juan Miranda. Wang may be non-tendered.
Our team has a couple of obvious protections. The first one is Austin Jackson. The second is Ivan Nova. The third is Ed Nunez. The fourth (which I am against because he can’t hit in AAA) is Reegie Corona. The fifth is Kanekoa Texeira. The sixth is Kevin Russo.
Then we get into the questionable category. Two players we put in the AFL are here. Colin Curtis and Grant Duff. Colin Curtis is looking like a very good 4th OF and Grant Duff is a reliever who throws 99 mph. He didn’t come on until late in the season. The Yankees may consider protecting Lance Pendleton (strikeout starting pitcher), Jon Hovis (decent reliever), Tim Norton (overpowering, but injury prone reliever), Zach Kroenke (very good lefty), Romulo Sanchez (starter or reliever from trade w/ Pirates. Throws upper 90s), Josh Schmidt (side armed reliever), Chris Malec (organizational corner IF. I am against him, but he keeps succeeding), Kevin Whelan (very good reliever. Wildness had gone away), George Kontos (TJS in May I believe) and Humberto Sanchez (transition to reliever has gone pretty well)
Now that is a lot of players. You have the 6 definites. On top of that, I put Whelan, Kroenke, Pendleton, Hovis, and Humberto Sanchez. If Chris Garcia is taken off, I would put Kontos on. Tim Norton is a little old and injury prone to be protected. Malec and Romulo Sanchez are likely to be taken. Schmidt may or may not be taken. Those 12 would take enough spots. Then you have someone to sign to replace Matsui. There is still enoguh room for Marte/Gaudin, Miranda, Melky Cabrera, a Matsui replacement (possibly Melky, Miranda, or Austin Jackson so a FA at a different position can be signed) and Andrew Brackman.