Dodger prospects could be surprisingly active come Thursday’s Rule 5 Draft, as there are two prospects drawing significant interest and two who might be plucked.

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Ben Badler of Baseball America has tweeted on more than one occasion in the last week that Jose Dominguez is seen as a potential Rule 5 draftee. Additionally, John Manuel wrote about him on Tuesday at Baseball America (subscription required).

Dominguez, 22, is facing a 25-game suspension after being busted last month for violating MLB‘s drug policy. He touched triple-digits in the minors this season and regularly sits in the high-90s.

Odds are the Dodgers left a flame-throwing reliever like this unprotected because of the drug suspension and the fact he threw just seven innings in Double-A this season after throwing 72 at Low-A Great Lakes.

Chance Of Selection: 60%

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Jon Paul Morosi of Fox Sports tweeted that Rafael Ynoa is generating interest as a possible selection.

Ynoa, 25, had a solid, yet unspectacular season at Double-A Chattanooga, posting a .278/.364/.352 triple-slash after drawing a career-high 58 walks. He profiles as a utility player, but his strength lies in the middle infield. Ynoa split time evenly between second base and shortstop this season. He also had a good Arizona Fall League, leading the Mesa Solar Sox in batting.

I wouldn’t be at all surprised if a team drafted Ynoa on Thursday. Despite having a limited ceiling, there is at least some value in his game.

Chance Of Selection: 40%

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Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com listed his top Rule 5 Draft prospects to watch and neither Dominguez nor Ynoa made the cut. However, Jarret Martin and Blake Smith did.

I hadn’t given Martin, 23, much thought — and I still don’t. He was acquired last winter along with Tyler Henson from Baltimore for Dana Eveland. He threw just 3 2/3 innings at High-A Rancho Cucamonga — his highest level of the minors.

Martin, who Mayo ranked 11th, has a good fastball that sits in the low-90s as a starter and can touch 95 MPH. He also has a slider. However, control issues have hindered him, as his 5.8 walks per nine innings would indicate.

Chance Of Selection: 10%

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Finally, Smith (one of my boys), is more appealing than I may have first thought. Mayo ranked him as the 18th-best prospect available.

Smith, 24, had a decent season with the Lookouts, hitting 13 home runs and posting a 12.1 percent walk rate — a career-high. Smith has good power potential, plays a good right field, and has a cannon for a right arm. All those skills are enticing. Last season was his first in Double-A, so I’m not sure just how attractive he is to other teams.

Chance Of Selection: 20%

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As for the Dodgers, I don’t really see them taking anyone. After all, part of the reason some of these guys are available to begin with is their 40-man roster crunch. On the other side though, odds are good that they end up losing a guy or two on this list to the draft.

Should be interesting to follow.

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Dustin Nosler is the founder of the site Feelin’ Kinda Blue. He also co-hosts the weekly podcast Dugout Blues. Follow him on Twitter @FeelinKindaBlue or like his site on Facebook.

Much to my surprise, Joc Pederson made his season debut with the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes on Monday night. It was surprising because by all accounts, the 2010 11th-round pick was slated to begin the season in Midland, Mich., with the Great Lakes Loons.

A groin injury in spring training caused him to miss the first two weeks of the minor league season. I asked him about it via Twitter on April 2nd, but he wasn’t sure where he’d end up.

@feelinkindablue still in AZ rehabbing my groin…so gotta get it better before I can break camp and they haven’t told me where I am going

So when I saw Pederson was skipping Low-A in favor of High-A, it was surprising.

Pederson played briefly in the Midwest League last season, going 8-for-50 with seven walks and nine strikeouts. He went to Ogden when the Rookie-ball season opened and promptly mashed there (.353/.429/.568) to take home team MVP honors.

Pederson, who doesn’t have one standout tool but is average across the board, went 0-for-4 in his California League debut. He hit third in the lineup and played center field. Leon Landry and Casio Grider have split time in center field this season, so if Pederson is with Rancho for an extended period of time, I could see Landry playing a lot of left field despite being a better defensive center fielder than Pederson.

Suddenly, the Quakes’ roster looks a little crowded. With Grider, Landry, and Pederson, the Dodgers also have outfield prospect Jonathan Garcia playing right field (and struggling) every day. Christopher O’Brien, a catcher by trade, is playing some first base while Austin Gallagher is splitting time between first base and designated hitter. Chris Jacobs, recently back from injury, is taking up DH duties as well.

In the end, there might not be enough at-bats to go around for these guys every day. Of the players mentioned, Grider is the least impressive prospect of the bunch. Grider was an infielder last year with the Loons, so I suppose there’s a chance the Quakes could move him back there, but Tyler Henson and Charlie Mirabal seem to be entrenched up the middle.

Manager Juan Bustabad (yes, it’s his real name) has a tough job ahead of him. It’ll be interesting to see how he juggles the playing time in Rancho.

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I’m actually attending Friday night’s game in Rancho with Jared Massey of LA Dugout. If I get a chance to talk to the skipper or any players, I’ll be sure to pass along the information. I know I’ll be snapping plenty of photos and probably taking some video. Zach Lee is tentatively scheduled to start.

Just moments ago, the Los Angeles Dodgers announced that they have traded Dana Eveland to the Baltimore Orioles for Jarret Martin and Tyler Henson.

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Jarret Martin will be going into his age 22 season next year, and he’s coming off a 2011 campaign in which he posted a 4.96 ERA over 110.2 innings pitched in A-ball. The 97 strikeouts speaks to his stuff, but 62 walks, 13 hit by pitches, and 12 wild pitches are why he was disposable.

John Sickels of Minor League Ball had this to say about him before 2011:

SLEEPER ALERT!! Martin was selected in the 18th round in 2009, from Bakersfield Junior College. He has a sinking fastball in the low 90s that helped him post a 2.03 GO/AO last year in the Appy League. He also has a promising curveball, and the combination of the two pitches throttled left-handed hitters to a .188 mark for Bluefield. His K/IP and H/IP ratios were quite good, but he also walked too many guys, elevating his ERA. I am intrigued with this one; if Martin can sharpen his command even slightly, he could break out in 2011. Grade C, but a sleeper.

ADDITIONAL COMMENT: Good size and some arm strength here, plus I like the combination of strikeouts and ground balls. As stated, he needs to get the walks down, but any progress in that department could take him a long way. Sources who follow the Orioles closely are quite intrigued with him.

Needless to say, considering what the Dodgers just gave up, getting a prospect with any semblance of upside is solid.

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In 2011, Tyler Henson hit .247/.313/.321/.634 in AAA and he seems likely to repeat the level going into his age 24 season.

Orioles Nation had this to say about him:

Was heavily recruited as a football player coming out of high school. Versatile player who can play SS, 3B, 1B, 2B, RF, and LF. Fits best at 3B or LF. Above-average arm strength, but inaccurate. Above-average speed. Has the ability to hit for both average and power, but needs to refine his approach at the plate. Has power to all fields. Projects as a super utility type.

So basically AAA depth, but that’s still fine.

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Ned Colletti did well here because he got two baseball players who are still alive for Dana Eveland.