MINNEAPOLIS -- The Twins lost outfielder Akil Baddoo and right-hander Tyler Wells in the Rule 5 Draft on Thursday, and the organization passed on the opportunity to fill any of its openings on the 40-man roster in the Major League phase.
Both Baddoo, selected by the Tigers in the first round, and Wells, who went to the Orioles in the second, must remain on their claiming clubs' MLB rosters for the entire 2021 season or be offered back to the Twins for $50,000. Baddoo was the No. 13 prospect in the Twins' organization, according to MLB Pipeline, while Wells was unranked.
The Twins selected right-hander Jhonleider Salinas from the Rays and left-hander Josh Mitchell from the Royals in the Minor League phase and lost right-hander Rickey Ramirez (Orioles), right-hander Joe Record (Astros) and outfielder Jacob Pearson (Braves).
Baddoo and Wells could have been added to the Twins' 40-man roster at the Nov. 20 deadline to protect prospects from the Draft, but they were left off as the club added Jordan Balazovic, Ben Rortvedt and Bailey Ober. Both Baddoo and Wells underwent Tommy John surgery in 2019 and have not appeared in a professional game since then, though Baddoo was in action at the Twins' instructional league activities in Fort Myers, Fla., in the fall. Neither was part of the club's baseball activities in Minneapolis or St. Paul in '20.
Baddoo hasn't appeared at a higher level than Class A Advanced, but his high prospect ranking is a product of his talented skillset, which includes power-speed potential, defensive ability at a premium position and a strong eye at the plate. He was selected with the No. 74 pick of the 2016 MLB Draft as a high schooler and showed off his potential over a full season with Class A Cedar Rapids in '18, when he hit 11 homers, 22 doubles and 11 triples with 24 steals and 74 walks in 113 games -- good for a .243/.351/.419 slash line.
The 22-year-old played mainly center field in the Twins' organization and appeared in 29 games in Fort Myers before his May 2019 Tommy John surgery.
“He’s working on getting his timing back,” Twins farm director Alex Hassan said to MLB Pipeline's Jonathan Mayo earlier this offseason. “We’re trying to recoup as much missed time as possible here. He hits the ball really hard, and he can really play center field.”
Though Baddoo's talent is a loss for the Twins, the club also has plenty of outfield depth in the high Minors, including top prospects Alex Kirilloff (No. 2), Trevor Larnach (No. 3) and Brent Rooker (No. 12), who could all factor into the MLB picture alongside Byron Buxton and Max Kepler in 2021. Gilberto Celestino, the club's No. 14 prospect, is another center-field option already on the 40-man roster, though he hasn't played higher than Class A Advanced.
Wells is a 6-foot-8 right-hander with solid Minor League numbers who last made six appearances with Double-A Chattanooga in 2018 before missing the entire '19 season due to his surgery. He owns a career 2.82 ERA across three Minor League seasons, with 288 strikeouts in 255 2/3 innings. He was the Twins' 15th-round selection in the 2016 MLB Draft out of Cal State San Bernardino.