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Watch: Detroit Tigers introduce AJ Hinch as manager
Detroit Tigers owner Christopher Ilitch and GM Al Avila introduce new manager AJ Hinch, Oct. 30, 2020.
With the No. 3 pick in Thursday’s Rule 5 draft, the Detroit Tigers selected outfielder Akil Baddoo from the Minnesota Twins.
As a second-round pick in the 2016 draft, Baddoo was ranked as the Twins’ No. 13 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, before the Tigers added him. The Tigers’ 40-man roster is now full.
The Tigers lost a player in the Rule 5 draft, as well. Right-hander Will Vest went 12th to the Seattle Mariners.
In 2019, Baddoo hit .214 with four homers and nine RBIs in 29 games in High-A. That year, he underwent Tommy John surgery. The left-handed hitter had a .243 batting average 11 homers and 40 RBIs in 113 games in Single-A during the 2018 season. He accumulated 24 stolen bases in 2018 and six stolen bases in 2019.
“Akil had standout tools when he signed out of high school, and we’ve definitely seen them on display during his time in professional baseball,” Tigers general manager Al Avila said in a statement. “We’ve seen the power, speed and defense from him, and are excited for him to work with our coaching staff.
“He’s got the rare athletic ability to be a high-level defender in the outfield and really impact the ball from the left side of the plate, and we look forward to him showing it this coming season.”
For the pick, the Tigers must pay the Twins $100,000. If the organization wants to keep Baddoo, the 22-year-old must stay on the 26-man roster for the entire regular season or be offered back to the Twins for $50,000.
In the Triple-A phase of the draft, the Tigers took right-hander Yunior Perez, who had a 4.73 ERA in 26⅔ innings in Short-Season A in 2019. During his 13 games (three starts), he recorded 30 strikeouts and 21 walks.
Before the Tigers, the Pittsburgh Pirates chose right-hander Jose Soriano (Los Angeles Angels) with the No. 1 overall pick, followed by the Texas Rangers selecting right-hander Brett de Geus (Los Angeles Dodgers).
Recently, the Tigers have used Rule 5 picks on left-hander Daniel Stumpf (2016), outfielder Victor Reyes (2017), right-hander Reed Garrett (2018) and righty Rony Garcia (2019).
Evan Petzold is a sports reporting intern at the Detroit Free Press. Contact him at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold.