DALLAS -- The Rule 5 Draft has been the unofficial final act of the annual Winter Meetings. This year’s edition will take place on Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET to close things out, and as always, there will be players who will get the chance to make Opening Day rosters in the spring.

Any player who turned pro at age 18 or younger in 2020 or at age 19 or older in 2021 is eligible for selection in the Major League phase of the Rule 5 Draft if he isn't on a 40-man roster. Clubs who take a player in that phase must pay his former team $100,000 and keep him on their active big league roster throughout the following season. The player can't be sent to the Minors without first clearing waivers and then getting offered back to his original organization for half his Draft price.

Below is a list of intriguing eligible players based on those rules who could hear their names during the Major League phase, listed alphabetically. As things unfold in Dallas, it will be updated as buzz around the lobby builds. A player’s ranking on his current team’s Top 30 is listed in parentheses when warranted.

Jose Acuna, RHP, Reds: A flexor strain limited him to just 39 innings during the regular season, but he did make it back to pitch in the Arizona Fall League, striking out 11.1 per nine innings there. He can run his fastball up to 96 mph and it could play up in shorter relief outings, and he backs that up with a slider and a changeup.

Angel Bastardo, RHP, Red Sox: A 6-foot-1 right-hander who is still just 22 years old, Bastardo spent the year with Double-A Portland, though he made just 10 starts before needing Tommy John surgery. It’s not unheard of for a team to take a guy rehabbing from elbow surgery and then wait a year before seeing if he can stick, with the chance of Bastardo’s fastball (which he runs up to 96 mph), a changeup that misses a lot of bats and a slider, coming all the way back once healthy.

Cooper Bowman, 2B/OF, A’s (No. 20): In two full seasons since coming from the Yankees in the Frankie Montas deal in 2022, Bowman has hit a combined 20 homers with 81 steals while reaching Triple-A. His speed is an asset and he’s shown he can play second base and now center field.

Logan Boyer, RHP, Dodgers: Boyer missed all of the 2022 and '23 seasons with an elbow injury that resulted in Tommy John surgery, but he returned to make 22 Double-A relief appearances in 2024, posting a 1.67 ERA, 11 K/9 rate and .192 BAA. He’ll be 27 for the 2025 season, but his fastball averaged 97.3 mph this past year and elicited an impressive 31 percent miss rate according to Synergy. His mid-80s slider missed the same amount of bats.

Carlos Duran, RHP, Dodgers: Duran was No. 16 on the Dodgers’ Top 30 Prospects list in 2022, but he missed all of the '23 season following Tommy John surgery. He pitched his way up to Triple-A in 2024, striking out 12.3 per nine. The 6-foot-7 right-hander leans heavily on his 83-85 mph slider (42 percent miss rate) while running his fastball up to 94 mph.

Lazaro Estrada, RHP, Blue Jays: In his first year of starting full time, Estrada reached Double-A for the first time and had success there. He has a career 10.9 K/9 rate, striking out 9.5 per nine in the Eastern League. He ticked that up to 14.7 K/9 in the AFL, with a particularly effective slider (52 percent miss rate). Teams will like his metrics.

Michael Flynn, RHP, Rays: Flynn started out with the Pirates, was released in April 2021, signed by the Mariners in May 2022, signed as a Minor League free agent with the Dodgers in December 2023, then was traded to the Rays for Amed Rosario at this past year’s Trade Deadline. He spent nearly all of 2024 in Triple-A and the now-28-year old struck out 12.8 per nine largely with a sinker-slider-cutter combination.

Christian Franklin, OF, Cubs (No. 21): A terrific athlete who missed all of his first pro season following a torn patellar tendon in his left knee, Franklin has plus raw power (though he hits the ball on the ground too much), solid speed when underway and plenty of arm strength. He hit .268/.398/.366 with five homers and 34 steals this year and could provide some versatility because he plays all three outfield spots well.

Liam Hicks, C, Tigers: The Tigers just got Hicks, along with righty Tyler Owens, from the Rangers at this past year’s Trade Deadline, but opted not to protect him. Teams could go shopping for big league backup options in the Rule 5, and Hicks has very solid on-base skills to boot.

Jack Little, RHP, Dodgers: A former Stanford product who was a fifth-rounder in 2019, Little missed the 2022 season following Tommy John surgery. In 2024, he pitched across Double-A and Triple-A and struck out 9.9 per nine while walking just 2.5. He can run his fastball up to 97 mph, and both that and his mid-80s slider produced 30 percent or better miss rates this past season.

Bryan Magdaleno, LHP, Rangers: Magdaleno went from Single-A to Double-A and finished with a 1.27 ERA and 68 strikeouts in 42 2/3 IP. He was one of the top relievers in the Minors with his .132 BAA, using a mid-90s fastball and mid-80s slider from a low, wide arm slot.

Garrett McDaniels, LHP, Dodgers: McDaniels began the year at Single-A and ended it at Double-A, finishing with a combined 3.19 ERA, .229 BAA and 10.3 K/9 rate. He originally signed as an undrafted free agent with the Dodgers in August 2021 while rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, making his pro debut with one outing late in 2022, then not pitching again until July 2023.

Jovani Moran, LHP, Twins: Moran has 79 relief outings in the big leagues on his résumé, with a hefty 11.1 K/9 rate over parts of three seasons. He was non-tendered after the 2023 season, signed back with the Twins as a Minor League free agent, then missed all of the 2024 season following Tommy John surgery. A team could roll the dice and hope they’re getting the guy who looked like a solid lefty reliever earlier in his career, with a fastball up to 96 mph and a nasty 83-85 mph changeup.

Joel Peguero, RHP, Giants: Peguero had a decent season pitching out of the Double-A Erie (Tigers) bullpen in 2024, finishing with a 3.14 ERA and 9.8 K/9 rate, then he signed with the Giants as a Minor League free agent. His fastball touched triple digits during the year with a low-90s slider, and reports of him routinely cranking it up to 101 mph in the Dominican Winter League created some buzz.

Kala’i Rosario, OF, Twins (No. 19): While he might be a little bit more of a tougher profile to stick in the big leagues at this point because he’s a corner outfielder only, the power potential could intrigue teams. Healthy in 2023, he was the Midwest League MVP and hit 21 homers. He also swung the bat well in the Arizona Fall League after coming back from an elbow injury.

Sammy Siani, OF, Pirates: There isn’t a huge track record of success here, but a swing change vaulted him out of High-A Greensboro to Double-A for the first time. If a team takes him, it will be based on his Fall League showing (.375/.457/.550) and because he runs well and can play all three outfield spots.

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Shane Smith, RHP, Brewers: Smith both started and relieved in 2024, reaching Triple-A and finishing with a combined 3.05 ERA, .204 BAA and 10.8 K/9 rate. His fastball averaged over 93 mph in 2024 and he has both a slider and curve, along with a below-average changeup. The stuff does tick up a bit in shorter relief stints.

A.J. Vukovich, OF, D-backs: There might be too much swing-and-miss here, but Vukovich has some track record of run production, with 24 homers and 96 RBIs in Double-A in 2023, then hitting 17 homers back in Double-A and reaching Triple-A for the first time while playing all three outfield spots in 2024.

Ryan Ward, OF, Dodgers: Ward spent his second year in Triple-A in 2024 and slashed .258/.317/.543 with 33 homers (second in the Minors), while landing in the top five in extra-base hits (66), total bases (268) and RBIs (104). Power is his carrying tool and he’s used it to mash 110 homers in his past four seasons. He could fit the profile as the lefty half of a corner outfield platoon.

Ryan Webb, LHP, Guardians (No. 26): Webb led the Fall League in strikeouts in 2023 and had a nifty 2.80 ERA with 151 strikeouts over 141 1/3 innings at the upper levels of Cleveland’s system last year. It’s not a big fastball, averaging 91 mph, but his slider, changeup and curve are all effective.