The Rule 5 Draft, where teams can select unprotected minor-league players from other organizations, comes up at the end of the Winter Meetings December 9 (if those Meetings happen).
Today was the day for teams to add players who needed protection from Rule 5 selection to their 40-man rosters, and the Cubs added outfielder Nelson Velázquez, who has been tearing up the Arizona Fall League, and righthanded pitcher Ethan Roberts to their 40-man.
The 22-year-old Velázquez is hitting .385 (40-for-104) with 24 runs, seven doubles, nine home runs, 24 RBI, a .480 on-base percentage and a 1.