Today is Rule-5 protection deadline day. The Washington Nationals must decide any players they want to add onto their 40-man roster in order to protect them from the Rule-5 Draft. Names must be announced by 6 p.m. ET today.
Teams must decide which minor league prospects to add to their primary 40-man roster to shield them from being selected by other organizations in the Rule-5 Draft that is held during the Winter Meetings. The most prominent name for the Nats is LHP Jake Bennett.
It has been another busy week for President of Baseball Operations (PoBO) Paul Toboni and his front office staff to make these roster moves as they are simultaneously trying to assemble a full coaching staff after they formally introduced manager Blake Butera at a press conference yesterday.
“When we think through who we’re going to protect or not, I think the big piece of it is like, ‘Hey, what are the odds that we think a certain player is going to not only get selected, but then stick on a team’s roster the duration of the season?’ A lot of that plays into this. Then also, just the talent at the bottom of our roster and whether we think there is a pick worth making and what kind of upgrade it would be for us. Those are all important considerations.”
— Toboni said
The Nats’ calendar will be busy even beyond today as Friday is non-tender decision day for arbitration-eligible players. The Nats have seven players on that list.
After the roster purge two weeks ago, the Nats 40-man roster is at 34 players right now.
Before any Rule-5 players are protected, these are the players on the 40-man roster:
STARTING PITCHERS (11): Andrew Alvarez, Cade Cavalli, Jake Eder, MacKenzie Gore, Josiah Gray, DJ Herz, Jake Irvin, Andry Lara, Brad Lord, Mitchell Parker, and Trevor Williams
RELIEF PITCHERS (9): Clayton Beeter, Julian Fernandez, Jose A. Ferrer, Cole Henry, Sauryn Lao, Konnor Pilkington, PJ Poulin, Orlando Ribalta, and Jackson Rutledge
CATCHERS (3): Riley Adams, Drew Millas, and Keibert Ruiz
INFIELDERS (6): CJ Abrams, Andrés Chaparro, Luis García Jr., Brady House, Nasim Nuñez, and José Tena
OUTFIELDERS (5): Dylan Crews, Robert Hassell III, Daylen Lile, James Wood, and Jacob Young
The Rule 5 Protection Process Explained:
Eligibility: Players signed at age 18 or younger must be protected within five seasons, while those signed at age 19 or older must be protected within four seasons.
Protection: By adding a player to the 40-man roster, the team prevents other MLB clubs from selecting them in the Rule-5 Draft.
The Rule-5 Draft: Any eligible player left unprotected can be drafted by another team in the Rule 5 Draft, which in 2025 is scheduled for December 10 at the Winter Meetings.
Consequences: A team that selects a player in the Major League phase of the Rule 5 Draft pays $100,000 to the player’s original team and must keep that player on their 26-man active roster for the entire following season (or for at least 90 active days if on the injured list). If the player doesn’t stick on the roster, they must be offered back to their original team for $50,000.
Rule-5 Eligible Players listed in priority order:
Jake Bennett: He is the one lock to be protected today. The left-handed starter had a really nice stint at the Arizona Fall League. Bennett was also moved up to the №6 prospect in the Nats farm system by Baseball America.
Christian Franklin: The 5’9″ outfielder acquired at the trade deadline put up an .817 OPS this season in Triple-A. Will Toboni give him a spot ahead of Andrew Pinckney who isn’t Rule-5 eligible?
Riley Cornelio: One of the few players to impress in the Nats minor leagues this year, but after his second promotion of the season, he stumbled in Triple-A and pitched 8-games with a 5.35 ERA. Did he do enough in Double-A (2.44 ERA) and a few good starts in Triple-A to get protected?
Cayden Wallace: Once a Top-10 prospect who was acquired in 2024 from the Royals in the Matt Harvey trade, Wallace has been inconsistent in the Nats minor league system. He spent the entire season at Double-A Harrisburg and finished with a disappointing .686 OPS.
Marquis Grissom Jr.: One of the Nats top relievers in the minor leagues in 2025. He represented the Nats in the Futures Game as part of the All-Star roster for minor leaguers. While he looked great in Double-A this year, his Triple-A portion of his season was a mixed bag that finished with a 5.73 ERA and a 1.515 WHIP which won’t cut it.
Trey Lipscomb: He was just DFA’d and outrighted to Triple-A Rochester, and technically is eligible to be drafted. We will see if a team takes a chance on him.
Tyler Stuart : Acquired from the Mets in the Jesse Winker trade in 2024, Stuart immediately impressed. Unfortunately he suffered an arm injury in 2025, and as we reported he had TJ surgery which will probably move any Rule-5 decision to next year. The 6’9 big righty will miss a good part of the 2026 season on the TJ protocol.
Kyle Luckham: His 5.46 ERA in Triple-A probably cost himself a chance at protection this year. At the age of 26, the Nats have to decide what they will do with him.
Here are the rest of the Rule-5 eligible players: Chance Huff, Max Romero, Johnathon Thomas, Murphy Stehly, Luke Young, Cortland Lawson, and Jared McKenzie.
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