LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – The Seattle Mariners announced today from the MLB Winter Meetings that the club has selected infielder Mike Ford from the New York-AL organization in the Major League phase of the Rule 5 Draft:

A player selected in the Major League phase of the Rule 5 Draft must be kept on the Major League 25-man roster of the drafting team for the entirety of next season, and the selected player must remain active (not on the disabled list) for a minimum of 90 days. If the player does not remain on the Major League roster, he is offered back to the team from which he was selected.

Ford, 25, split the season between AA Trenton and AAA Scranton Wilkes-Barre in the New York-AL organization. He combined to hit .270 (116×429) with 80 runs, 24 doubles, 1 triple, 20 home runs, 86 RBI, a .404 on-base percentage and a .471 slugging mark in 126 games, while walking 94 times and striking out 72 times. He was an Eastern League Mid-Season All-Star for AA Trenton and was an MiLB.com Organization All-Star this past season.

In five minor league seasons in the New York-AL organization, he has hit .272 (420×1542) with 234 runs, 85 doubles, 6 triples, 50 home runs and 257 RBI with a .380 on-base percentage. In his career, he has walked more times (267) than he has struck out (245). He was signed by New York-AL as a non-drafted free agent in July of 2013 after playing collegiately at Princeton University.

Information courtesy of The Seattle Mariners