So what becomes of David Patton?

[UMFan83]

I was just thinking about Rule 5 guys when looking up Veal's numbers for Pittsburgh this year and then Patton's. Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't the point of the Rule 5 draft to help players that are bogged down in a team's minor league system, giving them the opportunity to get taken by other teams that are willing to give said player a shot in the big leagues? But what is the point of taking a Donnie Veal (12.1 IP this year for PITTSBURGH), or Patton (26.2 IP for the Cubs)? Both Veal and Patton are 25 years old and just wasted a year of pitching so that their new teams can keep them and store them in the minors next year.

 

Obviously judging by their numbers and the IP they were given neither are going to be on the big league team next year (and that says a lot for Veal who plays for an awful team and still can't get burn). So why was it so imperative for the Cubs to use 1 of their 25 roster spots on Patton for a majority of the year (minus the phantom DL time)? What do the Cubs see in Patton that made what they did with him worth it? What is Patton's ceiling? Is he going to start in AAA and if he improves get called up during the year, or will he just go back to the mid minors and never quite develop enough to get a shot?

 

Just interesting in people's thoughts on this, because I'm looking at some of the better Rule 5 guys over the last 20 years, and they all have one thing in common, they were given somewhat significant time to play during their Rule 5 seasons. Santana (86 IP, 5 starts), Hamilton (337 PAs), Uggla (683 PA), Soria (69 IP, 17 SV), all were given significant time and their talents were evident. Others started out slowly and were deemed too risky to keep on the team and were returned. Either way, none of these players had to waste an entire season of development waiting for their Rule 5 status change so they could be a permanent member of their new team.

[chuckywang]

Santana was horrible his rule 5 season and was stashed in the minors the next year to develop. He came back the following season and was one of the best pitchers in baseball. I think his is the ideal scenario for Patton.

[Little Slide Rooter]

Im guessing he gets the chance to earn a spot in the pen, if that doesnt work out, hes DFAd, if he makes it through, off to Iowa.

[SouthSideRyan]

Im guessing he gets the chance to earn a spot in the pen, if that doesnt work out, hes DFAd, if he makes it through, off to Iowa.

 

If he doesn't make the big league team, he'll be optioned to AAA.

[UMFan83]

Im guessing he gets the chance to earn a spot in the pen, if that doesnt work out, hes DFAd, if he makes it through, off to Iowa.

 

Why would they DFA him after stashing him on the 25 man roster all season? They wouldn't keep him here all year if they didn't think there was some upside.

[biittner77]

Patton goes to Iowa where he replaces guys like Stevens or Caridad who are pitching out of the Cubs pen. People need to get past the idea that Patton sucks. He was over matched and not ready to get MLB hitters out on a regular basis. He has a live arm and showed enough upside to be a valuable piece perhaps the 2nd half of next season.

[Little Slide Rooter]

Im guessing he gets the chance to earn a spot in the pen, if that doesnt work out, hes DFAd, if he makes it through, off to Iowa.

 

Why would they DFA him after stashing him on the 25 man roster all season? They wouldn't keep him here all year if they didn't think there was some upside.

 

Didnt they have to keep him on the 25 man this season to keep him, but after 1 year we can do whatever with him, at least I thought thats how Rule 5s work. Either way, he'll probable end up in Iowa. Guz and Marmol are the only guarantees in the pen, and Stevens, Gaub, Marshall or Gorz, Caridad, and Heilman will probably round it out, plus they seem intent on resigning Grabow so you can bump 1 of the others off the list.

[RedFlash]

Didnt they have to keep him on the 25 man this season to keep him, but after 1 year we can do whatever with him, at least I thought thats how Rule 5s work. Either way, he'll probable end up in Iowa. Guz and Marmol are the only guarantees in the pen, and Stevens, Gaub, Marshall or Gorz, Caridad, and Heilman will probably round it out, plus they seem intent on resigning Grabow so you can bump 1 of the others off the list.

 

I will be vey disappointed and upset if Heilman is on this team next yr. We've got arm that can do a better job then Heilman, and this "veteran label" should not automatically include him onto the team next yr. I really hope Heilman joins Gregg on the train out.

[Little Slide Rooter]

Didnt they have to keep him on the 25 man this season to keep him, but after 1 year we can do whatever with him, at least I thought thats how Rule 5s work. Either way, he'll probable end up in Iowa. Guz and Marmol are the only guarantees in the pen, and Stevens, Gaub, Marshall or Gorz, Caridad, and Heilman will probably round it out, plus they seem intent on resigning Grabow so you can bump 1 of the others off the list.

 

I will be vey disappointed and upset if Heilman is on this team next yr. We've got arm that can do a better job then Heilman, and this "veteran label" should not automatically include him onto the team next yr. I really hope Heilman joins Gregg on the train out.

 

I'll be ticked off but by no means surprised when Heilman signs a 2/4.5 extension.

[Peoriaman]

Yeah, why would the Cubs DFA him? He will get a chance to make the team next year and if he doesn't, he will simply be optioned to the minors. The kid has a good arm.

[Tyrant]

Star of Powder 2?

[danonwaveland]

I'll be ticked off but by no means surprised when Heilman signs a 2/4.5 extension.

 

Thanks. I just lost my lunch.

 

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Sandberg>Mazeroski>Morgan

[dew1679666265]

So why was it so imperative for the Cubs to use 1 of their 25 roster spots on Patton for a majority of the year (minus the phantom DL time)? What do the Cubs see in Patton that made what they did with him worth it? What is Patton's ceiling? Is he going to start in AAA and if he improves get called up during the year, or will he just go back to the mid minors and never quite develop enough to get a shot?

 

From what I heard when they took Patton last year, they seem to think he has a fairly high ceiling. He definitely has a live arm and some nice stuff, but he certainly wasn't ready for the majors this year.

 

The upside of a guy like Patton is that he's another live arm to add to the system and hope that he can provide some low-cost innings out of the pen. If he makes the major league roster, then that's a worst case scenario. Had the entire pen performed better throughout the season, having Patton use one of the spots wouldn't have been much of an issue (especially since the Cubs kept 12 pitchers).

 

This is purely a guess on my part, but I'd think he'll start in AAA next year and be a bullpen replacement for any injuries that occur. Long term, I'd guess their hope is for him to be a cheap middle reliever/set up type pitcher.