The New York Yankees have eight prospects ranked among their organizational top 30 who need spots on the 40-man roster to avoid exposure to the Rule 5 Draft, according to MLB Pipeline.
Teams must make their protection decisions by Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET. Right-hander Carlos Lagrange, ranked No. 3 in the Yankees’ system, is the highest-ranked New York prospect on MLB Pipeline’s eligibility list.
Which Yankees prospects need protection?
The Yankees’ eligible ranked prospects include five pitchers and three position players. MLB Pipeline lists:
- Carlos Lagrange, right-handed pitcher — No. 3.
- Allen Facundo, left-handed pitcher — No. 7.
- Kyle Carr, left-handed pitcher — No. 12.
- Luis Serna, right-handed pitcher — No. 18.
- Cade Smith, right-handed pitcher — No. 21.
- Jace Avina, outfielder — No. 24.
- Omar Alfonzo, catcher/first baseman — No. 28.
- Coby Morales, third baseman/first baseman — No. 29.
Being listed does not mean a player has been added to the roster or will be selected by another club. It identifies prospects who need protection to remain unavailable in the draft.
How Rule 5 eligibility works
Players who first signed at age 18 or younger generally must be protected within five seasons. Those who signed at 19 or older reach that point within four seasons, according to MLB.com. This year’s eligibility group includes international signees and high school draft picks signed in 2022, along with college players drafted in 2023.
The Rule 5 Draft is scheduled for Dec. 9 in San Diego. A club pays $100,000 to select a player in the major league phase and must keep him on its 26-man roster for the full season. If it cannot meet that requirement, the player must be offered back to his former organization for $50,000.
Across baseball, eight prospects on MLB Pipeline’s overall Top 100 list need protection this year. None of the eight Yankees prospects appears in that group. MLB.com reported that all 104 eligible Top 100 prospects over the previous 11 seasons received roster spots before their respective deadlines.
The MLB Pipeline report identifies eligible ranked prospects across all 30 organizations; it does not announce the Yankees’ final protection decisions.
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