Everything you need to know about the Rule 5 Draft and 3 Reds prospects to protect

Reds prospect Jacob Hurtubise must be protected from the Rule 5 Draft

It's not hyperbole to say that Jacob Hurtubise is the one prospect that the Cincinnati Reds must add to insure he is not selected in the Rule 5 Draft.

While you can, and should, make the case for both Rece Hinds and Christian Roa to be added to Cincinnati's 40-man roster, Hurtubise is the one Reds prospect that a team could select in the Rule 5 Draft and keep on the active roster for the entire season.

Hurtubise is extremely quick, plays good defense, isn't afraid to lay down a bunt, and found his way to the Reds organization through a rather odd set of circumstances. If that profile sounds similar to TJ Friedl, that's because it is. However, Hurtubise lacks the power that Friedl has in his bat.

That said, at the moment, the Reds do not need to consider Hurtubise for the 2024 Opening Day roster. Barring an injury to a player like Friedl or Jake Fraley, Hurtubise represents a redundancy that the Reds, as currently constructed, do not need on next year's active roster.

Still, it's imperative that the Cincinnati Reds protect Hurtubise from the Rule 5 Draft. The 25-year-old posted a wRC+ of 163 according to FanGraphs and had a higher walk-rate than strikeout-rate in 2023 while also posting an on-base percentage near .500.

But Reds fans should expect to see Jacob Hurtubise added to the team's 40-man roster before the 6 PM ET deadline on Tuesday, November 14th. Much like Friedl has endeared himself to the Cincinanti fanbase, Reds Country will be drawn to Hurtibise when he finally makes it to The Show.