2019 MLB Prospect Report: New York Yankees

For years the Yankees were always the team that was handing over their top prospects for those big-ticket major leaguers in trades in order to chase those World Series titles their name has become synonymous with. The last several years however, that thought process has changed in the Bronx and Brian Cashman and company have been steadily building up a deep, and previously top-five farm system. Now the Bronx Bombers sit in the bottom third because of trading a couple of pieces away and graduating names like Aaron Judge , Luis Severino , Miguel Andujar , Gleyber Torres , and Gary Sánchez . However, as you’ll see below, it’s still a deep farm system with very intriguing pieces that could bring about the next crop of homegrown talent in Pinstripes.

Minor League Affiliates

Rankings

Top-100 Prospects – 2

Organization Rank – 23^rd

Divisional Rank – 3^rd

Top Prospects in the System

1. Estevan Florial (OF) – Florial was signed way back in March of 2015 out of Haiti for $200,000 after a slight conspiracy over his documents and different identity. That didn’t take away from his tools though as he possesses the best all-around tools list in the system and has three of them that grade as above-average to plus in his raw power (55 grade), run tool (65-grade), and arm tool (65-grade). The now 21-year-old outfielder was hoping that his 2018 season would improve upon his 2017 campaign that saw him post a combined .298/.372/.479 slash line with 13 homers, 77 runs, 57 RBI and 23 steals in 110 games between A-Ball and High-A, however it wasn’t to be as it was truncated due to a hamate bone injury that required surgery. Instead Florial hit .283/.377/.422 in 82 games (75 at High-A Tampa) with six homers, 55 runs, 35 RBI, and 16 steals last year. Despite the downtick in performance and games played, there was still growth as he had his best BB percentage of his career at 13-percent and the lowest K percentage since his first year in pro ball in 2015 at 25-percent. His aggressive style in the box needs a bit of refining to increase his contact rates and keep the walk rate improving and his left-handed swing needs to generate a bit more loft and get below the near 55-percent career ground ball rate. On the base paths, Florial gets caught too easily for a guy with near plus-plus speed. He has 64 career stolen bases in his 318 career games but has been caught 25 times which is a 28-percent caught stealing rate. Eventually Florial should develop in a 25-30 home run hitter who can swipe 30 steals in a full-season while hitting .265-.275 with an arm that can play all three outfield spots.

ETA: 2021

2. Jonathan Loaisiga (RHP) – Yankees faithful and baseball fans alike got a taste of Loaisiga in the majors last year as he filled in for the holes in the New York rotation for four starts and nine games overall. He still qualifies as a prospect because he only pitched 24.2 innings in the majors. A couple of things that stand out right off the bat, excuse the pun, about the starter is his size, or lack of it, at 5’11” and 165 lbs. while still lighting up the radar gun in the mid-to-upper-90s with the fastball and the other is how much he pounds the zone. Since The start of the 2017 season in the minors, Loaisiga has posted a 1.14 BB/9 rate and countering that with a 10.38 K/9 in those same 86.2 innings. The three-pitch mix that he utilizes are all potential plus pitches headlined by his fastball that sits 95-96 mph and touches 98 from time-to-time while showing late life. The Curveball has curveball movement combined with slider velocity and a high-spin rate. The last pitch was perhaps his most successful in the majors in his changeup that has nice fade, though it needs more consistency to keep the firmness from creeping in occasionally. All of them are out pitches for him and give him a ceiling of a number two or three starter, if he can stay healthy. There’s a caveat for everyone but especially for him with his history of shoulder and arm issues. Signed out of Nicaragua in 2013 by the Giants, he was eventually released in 2015 after missing two straight years with shoulder issues before the Yankees signed him after a workout in which he flashed 95 on the gun. After one start though he blew out his elbow and needed Tommy John keeping him off the mound through much of 2017. The most innings he’s thrown as a pro came last year with his 89 combined innings which could reduce the innings load he sees the two seasons even if he’s healthy. Loaisiga is expected to start the year in the Yankees rotation but likely won’t stay there all season.

ETA: 2019

3. Deivi Garcia (RHP) – The youngest player in the top-five of the system is Garcia at just 19-years old heading into 2019. The righty is another slight-of-frame starter who measures out at 5’10” and 163 lbs. but that hasn’t stopped him from flashing the velocity or the nasty secondary stuff. The fastball clocks in at 91-96 mph with a high-spin rate that gives it deception and riding life through the zone. The curveball is a wipeout breaking pitch that can make hitters look bad routinely, when he controls the high-spin rate on the pitch. His Changeup is behind the other ones but he improved it enough last year make to make it an average offering. The 2018 season was good for him not only because of the changeup development, but also the sheer stats he posted as he went through three levels of the system. Garcia put up an outrageous 35-percent K-rate over the 74 innings he threw as he struck out 105 of the 296 batters he faced. His 105:20 K:BB ratio didn’t hurt his value either and neither did his sub-3.00 ERA and FIP marks. In his second game at Class-A last year he took a perfect game through seven innings while striking out 12 of the 21 batters he faced and then in his final start of the year, at Double-A, he took a no-hitter through five innings. He is still very young and there’s a chance that he still fills out a bit in his frame and perhaps grows a bit more in height as well, but even if he doesn’t, Garcia has the upside as a number three starter but it wouldn’t be shocking if he winds up as a late-inning closer given durability concerns and a great two-pitch mix.

ETA: 2020

4. Clarke Schmidt (RHP) – Schmidt was a top pitcher in the SEC in college prior to the 2017 draft which vaulted him into the first-round range even with having Tommy John surgery a month before the June draft. The righty possesses a four-pitch mix that are all plus-pitches and might just be the best mix in the Yankees system. Even before his TJ surgery the delivery was a bit jerky and had founded questions about his durability and long-term ability to stay as a starter. Given his arsenal of a 92-96 MPH fastball with heavy sink, a mid-80s slider with bite, a low-80s curveball, and a tumbling, fading changeup that are all plus pitches most of the time, especially when kept down in the zone, New York has every reason to continue moving through the system as a starting option. At 6’1” and 200 lbs. he’s a decent-framed pitcher but the lack of height can hurt him in getting a downward plane and staying on top of pitches. All of that being said, his small sample size toward the end of 2018 of 23.1 innings saw Schmidt post a 3.09 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, .195 BAA, and a 30:6 K:BB ratio across two rookie leagues and Short Season Class-A. He is 23 years old at this point and a college arm meaning, once healthy, he should be a fast mover through the system and be a serious rotation option in the Bronx by the middle of next year if all goes smoothly, unlike his delivery.

ETA: 2020

5. Albert Abreu (RHP) – Abreu was acquired from the Astros in the Brian McCann trade in November of 2016 but since coming to the Yankees he’s had a bevy of injuries that have limited him to just 126 innings over the last two seasons combined. A strained shoulder, appendectomy and elbow inflammation are among the health issues in that span for a guy who, when healthy, has top of the rotation stuff that he’s flashed. At 23-years old, he’s a bit of a late bloomer after being signed in 2013 out of the Dominican Republic and then took two full seasons to break out of rookie ball before going through both A-Ball and High-A in 2016. It’s not like he had trouble putting up big numbers from the mound in the lower levels though the control was a bit of an issue with averaging nearly 4.0 BB/9 across those 114.2 innings. Overall the repertoire is anchored by a fastball that sits comfortably 94-98 mph with sink and glove-side run and can touch 101 at times. Abreu’s two secondary pitches are geared towards two different handedness of batter with the power-curve being strong against righties with it’s depth and movement of a curve but velocity of a slider in the mid-80s and the fading changeup taking out lefties at a good clip. The pitches have combined to strikeout 135 batters in his last 126 innings compared to 50 walks which is a touch below where we’d like to see a future number one or two starter in terms of ratio at less than 3:1. If he can get his control more consistent and his stuff starts playing up, there’s no reason he can’t be a number two starter in the next year or two in the Bronx.

ETA: 2020

Others To Watch In The System

Anthony Seigler (C)

• A first-round pick of the Yankees in 2018 as a switch-pitching, switch-hitting catcher out of high school with very good contact ability and defensive prowess.
• He has good command of the strike zone and a mature approach at the plate which allows him to take walks. Should hit for average with 10-15 homers per year in upper levels and majors.
• The pitching background lends itself to a quick transfer and strong arm to cutdown would-be base stealers and helps with his receiving and framing and game calling.

ETA: 2022

Antonio Cabello (OF)

• Was signed out of Venezuela as a catcher but was moved to center field given his athleticism and well-above-average speed.
• At age 18 he hit .308/.427/.522 in 46 rookie ball games with five homers, 26 runs, 21 RBI, 10 steals, nine doubles, and five triples
• More power will come as he continues to grow and mature and add more loft to his swing. With the offensive profile he may move out of center field to left field where his average arm will play better.

ETA: 2022

Michael King (RHP)

• Acquired by the Yankees in November 2017 from Miami after being a 12^th-round pick in the 2016 draft.
• In 161.1 innings across three levels (including 39 in Triple-A) in 2018, King posted a 1.79 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, .202 BAA, 152:29 K:BB ratio, and a 1.42 ground out to fly out ratio.
• Three plus-pitches and plus-plus control allows the arsenal to play up and with better secondary pitches this year his K/9 jumped up to 8.5 from 6.3 in Miami.

ETA: 2019

Luis Gil (RHP)

• 20-year-old flamethrower who can pump his fastball in to hitters at 98-101 deep into starts and miss bats with his power-curve that are both plus-plus pitches.
• Does have trouble keeping his delivery in sync and controlling his release point which causes more walks than his stuff should allow.
• Likeliest destination for Gil is to be a late-inning bullpen arm given his 68 Ks in 46 innings in 2018 and 141 career strikeouts in 111 innings for a career 11.4 K/9 rate.

ETA: 2022

Osiel Rodriguez (RHP)

• Rodriguez is 17-years old and was signed in July of 2018 after he defected from Cuba and become an eligible free agent.
• He has yet to pitch for the Yankees but when he debuts in 2019, the four plus-pitches will be on full display with a fastball at 92-95 mph with riding life through the zone, a power-curve, hard slider, and his circle changeup rounding out the repertoire.
• There is a long way to go in his projection but the upside is there for him to develop into a frontline starter in the next 4-5 seasons.

ETA: 2023