Brookman, Lloyd selected in Rule 5 draft

ABC alum Archer Brookman (Pointe-Claire, Que.) and Okotoks Dawgs grad Matt Lloyd (Okotoks, Alta.) were selected in the Minor League Phase of the 2025 Rule 5 draft on Wednesday.

December 11, 2025

By Kevin Glew

Canadian Baseball Network

Canadians Archer Brookman and Matt Lloyd were selected in the Minor League Phase of the Rule 5 draft on Wednesday.

They were two of the 55 players chosen in the minor league portion of the draft.

Just 13 players were taken in the Major League Phase, none of which were Canadian.

Brookman (Pointe-Claire, Que.) was selected 30th by the Atlanta Braves from the Detroit Tigers. An ABC and Ohio State University alum, Brookman is a catcher who was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Tigers in 2022. He has spent three seasons in the Tigers’ organization. In 2025, the 26-year-old Canuck batted .230 with two home runs and 22 RBIs in 60 games for the High-A West Michigan Whitecaps.

Seven picks after Brookman, Matt Lloyd (Okotoks, Alta.) was chosen from the St. Louis Cardinals by the Boston Red Sox. A 15th round pick of the Cincinnati Reds in 2019, the Okotoks Dawgs grad suited up for parts of three seasons in the Reds’ organization, making it as high as double-A before joining the independent American Association’s Sioux City Explorers in 2023 and batting .321 with 14 home runs in 88 games. He was then signed by the Cardinals and hit .269 with 17 homers and 77 RBIs in 121 contests for the double-A Springfield Cardinals in 2024. This earned him a promotion to the triple-A Memphis Redbirds this year, where he hit .272 with eight home runs in 78 games. He will turn 30 in March.

Unlike players selected in the Major League Phase of the Rule 5 draft, players chosen in the minor league portion can remain with their new club without any restrictions.