2017 end of season Yankee prospect update

[jacksonianmarch]

With the quick rebuild and the progression of Judge, Severino, Sanchez, Montgomery, and Green on the big stage and the deals of Mateo, Kaprielian, Littel, Polo, Fowler, Rutherford, and Clarkin, our top prospects have changed pretty dramatically. But that being said, we had quite possibly the best minor league season I have seen in years. And that is with us losing our top prospect halfway through the season. Either way, here is a nice little update

1. Gleyber Torres, SS- He turns 21 in December and even with his youth and the fact that he had TJS in mid June, he is still far and away our top prospect. He reached AAA at 20 and slashed a ridiculous .287/.383/.480 at both levels. He stole bases, hit homers, made good contact, walked a ton, played good defense, everything. With the recovery from TJS likely done by the time he laces them up for ST, he will be on the short list of callups during the season and should start the year where he left off, in AAA. He will likely be pressuring Headley on the big stage and would be available for Castro or Didi should they get injured. This kid is a superstar in the making.

2. Estevan Florial, CF- He was #14 on pinstripes plus before the season, but after making the BA all minors second team and making the futures game, the prospect hype is rising. He slashed .298/.372/.479 through A and A+ as a 19 year old. He hit 13HRs, 43 EBH's, stole 23 bases, walked a ton and played stellar D. His only bugaboo is his contact rate, which isn't great considering he K'd 148 times in 110 games. He should be on a similar career path to Torres and should start 2018 in AA.

3. Chance Adams, RHP- Chance turned 23 this season and hit AAA, which doesn't sound entirely impressive. When you consider he was drafted in 2015, that makes it far more interesting. Chance hit his innings cap at 150IP and should be able to handle a major league workload. His walk rate predictably rose as he progressed, but 3.58/9IP isn't too bad. His K rate was good at 8/9IP. What was really impressive was his ability to induce out. He had a .193BAA and a decent HR rate. He throws 4 pitches, all of which he can locate well enough and all of which grade out as big league average or plus. He can cut and run his FB and tops out in the mid 90s. He's got the stuff and the capability to be a top of the rotation starter and will likely be in the mix for the #5 spot in the rotation out of ST

4. Clint Frazier, COF- Most people think Frazier is an old prospect because he has been around the prospect radar so long (drafted in 2013). But he just turned 23 4 days ago. Clint showed in the minors that he can be a source of power and speed, capable of hitting 20+HR and stealing 20 bags a season. He showed good plate discipline in the minors as well, averaging a walk every 2 games. He even showed well in his callup to the majors, where he had 15 extra base hits in 28 games. He will need to take his plate discipline to the next level to be a regular. He likely ends up back in AAA next year with Judge, Hicks, and Gardner all under contract. But he will be on the short list to be called up should one of them go down. He has hand speed like I haven't seen before and he'd be quite a prospect to follow

5. Justus Sheffield, LHP- Justus turned 21 during the season and progressed well in his only taste of AA ball. He did miss time with a lower body injury and only accrued 98IP. He is going to the AFL to add more innings to the time he lost. Sheffield was steady in 2017. His ERA was 3.12 and his K rate was really strong (8.1/9IP). His BB rate was passable (3.1/9IP) but his BAA was nearly .260 and his HR rate was high (1.3/9IP). He is a lefty who throws hard (sits mid 90s) and offers two plus potential yet inconsistent offerings in a slider and change. He is still young and left handed and will definitely be groomed as a starter, yet his stuff could play up in the pen should he not progress beyond AA. He has ace ceiling, but more a floor of a mid rotation guy/high end reliever.

6. Domingo Acevedo, RHP- Nobody has a better fastball in this system aside from Chapman. Acevedo will hit and stay near 100 with some pitches topping out at 103mph. He is Betances' sized at 6'7" and has the heat to match. The interesting thing about him is that he has an advanced change up and an improving but still third breaking ball. He saw 3 levels this year and reached as high as AAA for a stint, but did the most work in AA. His season line was strong at 3.25ERA 133IP 1.20WHIP 9.6K/9IP and 2.3BB/9IP. He has impeccable command of the heater and the change, which is rare for someone so large. He turns 24 prior to the start of 2018 and should be in AAA and on the short list for a callup next season. He has ace type ceiling or could be a closer type arm if converted

7. Dillon Tate, RHP- we got Tate for Beltran, and at the time, it seemed like a reclamation project. Drafted 4th overall just a year prior, Tate had fallen on hard times in the Rangers system. He comes to the Yankee system, the Yankees put him in the pen for the last part of the year and like what they see. They make some mechanical adjustments and change his approach and voila, he is coming close to hitting his ceiling as a starter. In 83.1IP, he pitched to a 2.81ERA and a 1.14WHIP. His K rate wasn't spectacular, but he did limit walks and homeruns while really getting a ton of ground balls. He has a mid to high 90s heater with heavy sink with a plus potential breaking ball and change. He finished the year in AA and since he lost innings due to an injury at the beginning of the year, he will head to the AFL to add more to his workload

8. Miguel Andujar, 3B- what a season this 22 year old had. He slashed .315/.352/.498 between AA and AAA. His power progressed, as he slugged 16 homers. His walk rate did drop a bit, but for a power hitter, he makes an insane amount of contact. He will never walk a lot, but he only struck out 71 times in 125 games. He is very similar to Gregorius in that respect. He won't walk a lot, but he will put the ball in play. For a guy with his power potential, that is a good thing. He has the defensive ability to be a plus defender at the hot corner as well. He played well enough to earn a callup, albeit a brief one where he went 3 for 4. He will be pushing Torres for first prospect called up to the bigs in 2018.


9. Freicer Perez, RHP- Many on here may wonder why I have a 21 yr old from low A ball on here, but this guy is a monster. He is listed on milb.com as 6'8", but he is listed in other places as being up to 6'10". He is still skinny and hasn't grown into his body yet. One thing he has grown into is his fastball. When he was signed, he was low 90s, now he sits mid to high 90s and frequently reaches triple digits. He has very good command for someone so massive and has already shown a plus potential breaking ball and a workable change. He had a good statistical year in 2017 at 2.84ERA 1.14WHIP 8.6K/9IP 3.3BB/9IP. But he has the stuff and the talent to rocket through this system. They babied him for a bit this season, we shall see how far he can go once they take off the kid gloves

10. Nick Solak, 2B- Solak was the 2nd rounder for the Yankees in 2016 and since he was signed, he never stopped hitting. He rocketed through the system and finished the year in AA the year after he signed, which is an impressive feat for a 22 yr old non high 1st round prospect. He hits for average, for power and has patience. His triple slash line through A+ and AA was .297/.384/.452. He is a professional hitter who should be a good bet for double digit homers and steals on a yearly basis while playing good D, hitting for a high average, and walking a ton. His only problem in this system is that he is behind Castro and Torres for a spot and in the pecking order, being Thairo Estrada, as well, although I think Solak has more offensive potential than Estrada and hence a higher ceiling

[bkzwhitestrican]

Where'd you get this list from? I haven't seen Solak in any top 10s to date.

[jacksonianmarch]

It's my list, taking into account a few sites. Solak was a top 25 guy last year and I love his approach. He had a very impressive season. I could have gone with a number of other guys, but I like this kid

[bkzwhitestrican]

It's my list, taking into account a few sites. Solak was a top 25 guy last year and I love his approach. He had a very impressive season. I could have gone with a number of other guys, but I like this kid

I like Solak too. I guess now that I think about it he's a fringe top 10 prospect at this point. I'd maybe have Guzman ahead of him, but that's personal preference. Hopefully Schmidt and Sauer pan out and make a jump up the list as well.

[Carpin]

I love Florial, if he continues with his development he will be a top20 prospect in baseball by this time next year (probably earlier)

[jacksonianmarch]

I think Abreu and Guzman are in my top 15. I just think Solak has been so consistent at higher levels that he edges the hard throwing lower level pitchers

[jacksonianmarch]

Yankees had 6 players on the top 100 list even after the deals. They had Torres as the #1 prospect in baseball. Also on the list was Mateo, Fowler, and Rutherford. MLB didn't have Acevedo or Tate on their list, but did have Andujar. Otherwise, my top 5 is on there

[Northern Star]

Yankees had 6 players on the top 100 list even after the deals. They had Torres as the #1 prospect in baseball. Also on the list was Mateo, Fowler, and Rutherford. MLB didn't have Acevedo or Tate on their list, but did have Andujar. Otherwise, my top 5 is on there

How accurate are these lists, anyway? And we've seen plenty of blue chip Can't Misses who did.

[jacksonianmarch]

BTW, the lower levels of this system is absolutely dominated by high end velocity pitching. Impressive to say the least. I am seeing the write-ups come out now and the multitude of pitchers with high velo at young ages is insane

[bkzwhitestrican]

Jonathan Loaisiga is a pretty interesting prospect.

(He) features a potentially plus fastball-curveball combination with the ability to throw either pitch for strikes in any count. The fastball consistently hovers around 95 (t97) with late movement … expect him to start shooting up prospect lists.

He originally signed with the Giants out of Nicaragua back in 2013, but they released him a year later after some injury issues. The Yankees picked him up, he blew out his elbow and needed Tommy John surgery last year, and came back looking good this year. Loaisiga turns 23 in November, and he’s listed at 5-foot-11 and 165 lbs., plus he has an injury history, so there are some things working against him. Still, the Yankees picked him up off the scrap heap, and now he’s being written up as a breakout prospect.

[Carpin]

Jonathan Loaisiga is a pretty interesting prospect.

(He) features a potentially plus fastball-curveball combination with the ability to throw either pitch for strikes in any count. The fastball consistently hovers around 95 (t97) with late movement … expect him to start shooting up prospect lists.

He originally signed with the Giants out of Nicaragua back in 2013, but they released him a year later after some injury issues. The Yankees picked him up, he blew out his elbow and needed Tommy John surgery last year, and came back looking good this year. Loaisiga turns 23 in November, and he’s listed at 5-foot-11 and 165 lbs., plus he has an injury history, so there are some things working against him. Still, the Yankees picked him up off the scrap heap, and now he’s being written up as a breakout prospect.

Never heard of him before, worth to keep an eye on him

Exciting the number of pitchers the Yankees have in the minors, specially the ones with high ceilings

[jacksonianmarch]

Never heard of him before, worth to keep an eye on him

Exciting the number of pitchers the Yankees have in the minors, specially the ones with high ceilings

The amount of kids in the lower levels with big arms is insane. Loaisiga will be a MiLB FA after the season, so I anticipate that we will add him to the 40 man to avoid that. He had TJS and his velocity increased. Plus, he can command his pitches well.

[jacksonianmarch]

How accurate are these lists, anyway? And we've seen plenty of blue chip Can't Misses who did.

These lists are accurate for now, nobody can be certain what they are next year or after. And yes, blue chippers can miss, which is why you need to amass them. One of the pundits labeled the Yankee system as the best in the game and “it’s not close”. I believe them for the simple reason that we have 6 top 100 guys and something like 15 arms in the system not on that list who have top shelf talent. The pitching depth in this system just shot through the roof. I’ll provide the rest of my rankings with SR’s I’ve pulled from various sites when I’m not post call. When you see the 23 and under crowd who can hit 97 and have at least one plus secondary pitch, you’ll think I’m making it up. I promise you, I’m not. The signings that we’ve made plus the draft picks and the trades have been pure gold. Just a few for instances, when the Yankees traded Nova a year back, we got a struggling lefty starter named Stephen Tarpley. We convert him to relief and he’s throwing mid 90s cheddar and is dominating. We dealt James Pazos, who wasn’t going to make our pen, for Zach Littel who lit the world on fire and we turned him into Jaime Garcia. We dealt Ben Gamel to the Mariners for 2 19 yr old pitchers who made major progress this year in Orozco and De Paula, both who throw mid to High 90s. Cash is amassing arms and it’s incredible to see the scope

[jacksonianmarch]

1. Gleyber Torres, SS- He turns 21 in December and even with his youth and the fact that he had TJS in mid June, he is still far and away our top prospect. He reached AAA at 20 and slashed a ridiculous .287/.383/.480 at both levels. He stole bases, hit homers, made good contact, walked a ton, played good defense, everything. With the recovery from TJS likely done by the time he laces them up for ST, he will be on the short list of callups during the season and should start the year where he left off, in AAA. He will likely be pressuring Headley on the big stage and would be available for Castro or Didi should they get injured. This kid is a superstar in the making.

2. Estevan Florial, CF- He was #14 on pinstripes plus before the season, but after making the BA all minors second team and making the futures game, the prospect hype is rising. He slashed .298/.372/.479 through A and A+ as a 19 year old. He hit 13HRs, 43 EBH's, stole 23 bases, walked a ton and played stellar D. His only bugaboo is his contact rate, which isn't great considering he K'd 148 times in 110 games. He should be on a similar career path to Torres and should start 2018 in AA.

3. Chance Adams, RHP- Chance turned 23 this season and hit AAA, which doesn't sound entirely impressive. When you consider he was drafted in 2015, that makes it far more interesting. Chance hit his innings cap at 150IP and should be able to handle a major league workload. His walk rate predictably rose as he progressed, but 3.58/9IP isn't too bad. His K rate was good at 8/9IP. What was really impressive was his ability to induce out. He had a .193BAA and a decent HR rate. He throws 4 pitches, all of which he can locate well enough and all of which grade out as big league average or plus. He can cut and run his FB and tops out in the mid 90s. He's got the stuff and the capability to be a top of the rotation starter and will likely be in the mix for the #5 spot in the rotation out of ST

4. Clint Frazier, COF- Most people think Frazier is an old prospect because he has been around the prospect radar so long (drafted in 2013). But he just turned 23 4 days ago. Clint showed in the minors that he can be a source of power and speed, capable of hitting 20+HR and stealing 20 bags a season. He showed good plate discipline in the minors as well, averaging a walk every 2 games. He even showed well in his callup to the majors, where he had 15 extra base hits in 28 games. He will need to take his plate discipline to the next level to be a regular. He likely ends up back in AAA next year with Judge, Hicks, and Gardner all under contract. But he will be on the short list to be called up should one of them go down. He has hand speed like I haven't seen before and he'd be quite a prospect to follow

5. Justus Sheffield, LHP- Justus turned 21 during the season and progressed well in his only taste of AA ball. He did miss time with a lower body injury and only accrued 98IP. He is going to the AFL to add more innings to the time he lost. Sheffield was steady in 2017. His ERA was 3.12 and his K rate was really strong (8.1/9IP). His BB rate was passable (3.1/9IP) but his BAA was nearly .260 and his HR rate was high (1.3/9IP). He is a lefty who throws hard (sits mid 90s) and offers two plus potential yet inconsistent offerings in a slider and change. He is still young and left handed and will definitely be groomed as a starter, yet his stuff could play up in the pen should he not progress beyond AA. He has ace ceiling, but more a floor of a mid rotation guy/high end reliever.

6. Domingo Acevedo, RHP- Nobody has a better fastball in this system aside from Chapman. Acevedo will hit and stay near 100 with some pitches topping out at 103mph. He is Betances' sized at 6'7" and has the heat to match. The interesting thing about him is that he has an advanced change up and an improving but still third breaking ball. He saw 3 levels this year and reached as high as AAA for a stint, but did the most work in AA. His season line was strong at 3.25ERA 133IP 1.20WHIP 9.6K/9IP and 2.3BB/9IP. He has impeccable command of the heater and the change, which is rare for someone so large. He turns 24 prior to the start of 2018 and should be in AAA and on the short list for a callup next season. He has ace type ceiling or could be a closer type arm if converted

7. Dillon Tate, RHP- we got Tate for Beltran, and at the time, it seemed like a reclamation project. Drafted 4th overall just a year prior, Tate had fallen on hard times in the Rangers system. He comes to the Yankee system, the Yankees put him in the pen for the last part of the year and like what they see. They make some mechanical adjustments and change his approach and voila, he is coming close to hitting his ceiling as a starter. In 83.1IP, he pitched to a 2.81ERA and a 1.14WHIP. His K rate wasn't spectacular, but he did limit walks and homeruns while really getting a ton of ground balls. He has a mid to high 90s heater with heavy sink with a plus potential breaking ball and change. He finished the year in AA and since he lost innings due to an injury at the beginning of the year, he will head to the AFL to add more to his workload

8. Miguel Andujar, 3B- what a season this 22 year old had. He slashed .315/.352/.498 between AA and AAA. His power progressed, as he slugged 16 homers. His walk rate did drop a bit, but for a power hitter, he makes an insane amount of contact. He will never walk a lot, but he only struck out 71 times in 125 games. He is very similar to Gregorius in that respect. He won't walk a lot, but he will put the ball in play. For a guy with his power potential, that is a good thing. He has the defensive ability to be a plus defender at the hot corner as well. He played well enough to earn a callup, albeit a brief one where he went 3 for 4. He will be pushing Torres for first prospect called up to the bigs in 2018.


9. Freicer Perez, RHP- Many on here may wonder why I have a 21 yr old from low A ball on here, but this guy is a monster. He is listed on milb.com as 6'8", but he is listed in other places as being up to 6'10". He is still skinny and hasn't grown into his body yet. One thing he has grown into is his fastball. When he was signed, he was low 90s, now he sits mid to high 90s and frequently reaches triple digits. He has very good command for someone so massive and has already shown a plus potential breaking ball and a workable change. He had a good statistical year in 2017 at 2.84ERA 1.14WHIP 8.6K/9IP 3.3BB/9IP. But he has the stuff and the talent to rocket through this system. They babied him for a bit this season, we shall see how far he can go once they take off the kid gloves

10. Nick Solak, 2B- Solak was the 2nd rounder for the Yankees in 2016 and since he was signed, he never stopped hitting. He rocketed through the system and finished the year in AA the year after he signed, which is an impressive feat for a 22 yr old non high 1st round prospect. He hits for average, for power and has patience. His triple slash line through A+ and AA was .297/.384/.452. He is a professional hitter who should be a good bet for double digit homers and steals on a yearly basis while playing good D, hitting for a high average, and walking a ton. His only problem in this system is that he is behind Castro and Torres for a spot and in the pecking order, being Thairo Estrada, as well, although I think Solak has more offensive potential than Estrada and hence a higher ceiling

[jacksonianmarch]

21. Nick Nelson, RHP- Power armed RHP capable of running it up there to the mid 90s. Flashes a plus curve and a developing change. Still needs work on his command, but the power is there. Struck out nearly 10 per 9, but walked 4.5 per 9.

22. Rony Garcia, RHP- Big framed 19 yr old who was very successful in long season for Charleston this season. Sits low to mid 90s, plus curve and developing changeup. He limited walks in 2017 with only 17 in 75IP but wasn’t as overpowering as his stuff would command (only 56K in 75IP). He has the size to add more to his already impressive velocity. Should his change develop, he could be a mid rotation starter. Should the change develop and he add a few ticks to his velocity, he could be more than that

23. Billy McKinney, OF- Billy was a 2013 HS draftee out of the 1st round who didn’t reach his potential with the Cubs or with the A's. We got him in the Chapman deal from the Cubs and something clicked this season. He set a new career high with 16HR (previous high was 11) to go along with 7 triples and 29 doubles. He makes good contact (94K in 124G) but his walk rate suffered a bit. Regardless, with his bat rejuvenated, he has re-emerged on the prospect scene. He is likely to find work in the bigs with another club due to the long time of talent in the Yankees system, but his prospect status has been resurrected

24. Domingo German, RHP- Acquired in the Prado deal, German has quietly risen the ranks in the Yankee system. He debuted in the bigs this year and is still on the active roster. He throws mid to high 90s with a good change and distant third curveball. He was an effective starter in the minors, but I think his future in NY is as a swing man capable of giving multiple innings after a starter falters.

25. Luis Medina, RHP- High 90s fastball, plus curve. He is one year post TJS and struggled with his command. He is only 18 years old and was a headliner when signed in 2015. He has the 2 pitch combo to be a reliever, but at his age, he has time to develop his change and become a starter. He is another high upside arm, but his power at such a young age is tantalizing. Big boom potential here

26. Trevor Stephan, RHP- 3rd rounder from 2017, Stephan blew away the competition in the NYP. He struck out 43 in 32.1IP, with a WHIP of 0.80 and an ERA of 1.39. Big arm, sits mid 90s and a big frame. Developing slider, curve and change with biggest improvement in the changeup. Could be a high leverage reliever, but will start 2018 as a starter and if the secondary stuff continues to grow, he could be a 1 or a 2 in the rotation

27. Ben Heller, RHP- Ben throws hard. Acquired with Sheffield, Frazier and Feyereisen for Andrew Miller, Heller is a hard thrower who is already in the Bronx right now. He tops out around 97-98 and has a wipeout slider. He has back end of the pen potential and is already in NY for September

28. Donny Sands, C- Drafted as a 3b, he was quickly converted to C where he has made significant defensive strides and is quickly looking to be a good defensive catcher. His bat has started to carry him a bit as well as he continues to hit around the .280+ mark albeit with limited power. He has a good approach, makes good contact, takes walks when need be and is a good defender with more to learn. He profiles well as a solid backup C at the big league level. If his power develops and he doesnt drop his hit tool to get more powerful, he could be something more

29. Hoy Jun Park, SS/2B- Hoy Jun is a lefty hitting speedster with a good glove at SS who can steal some bases with his good speed. His bat took a step forward in low A, but more on the OBP side. His power is still developing and likely isnt going to be a 20HR hitter, but could definitely be a 10-15 guy when he is through.