Blue Jays select righty Luciano in Rule 5 draft, lose Romano, Bergen

Blue Jays' GM Ross Atkins talks about the upside of Rule 5 Draft pick Elvis Luciano and the 'significant chance' the teenager has to become a starting pitcher.

LAS VEGAS – The Toronto Blue Jays aren’t leaving the winter meetings empty-handed, selecting right-hander Elvis Luciano from the Kansas City Royals in Thursday’s Rule 5 draft.

They also lost two players early in the first round, with the Chicago White Sox taking Canadian right-hander Jordan Romano with the third pick and the San Francisco Giants using the ninth pick on lefty Travis Bergen.

Luciano, an 18-year-old who pitched in rookie ball last season, was only eligible in the draft because of a renegotiated contract, according to Baseball America, making him an intriguing upside grab while presenting problems of how to carry him.

The Blue Jays initially had no plans to add in the Rule 5 draft, but GM Ross Atkins said Wednesday that, "as we did more work, and candidly, as I got more up to speed, it’s become more apparent that there could be some potential there for us."

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