A new year of Yankees baseball means that there’s also a new year of minor league baseball, and this season will see the continued development of some of the team’s top farmhands. Given that the season is still in its early days and some of the top Yankees prospects are thriving, this week we’ll take a look at their hot starts. There should be time to cover a wider range of prospects as the season progresses, but for this first minor league update of 2016, we’ll start near the top of most Yankees prospect lists.
Jorge Mateo– SS- Tampa (High-A)- Mateo, a near-consensus top-5 prospect and arguably the next top prospect in the Yankees organization, has continued to demonstrate the speed that stole him 82 bases in 2015, already stealing four bases to start 2016. Mateo has 12 hits (including two doubles and two triples), plus eight runs scored in just 37 at-bats thus far. Unfortunately, Mateo’s early strikeout pace is much higher than his usual numbers, as he has fallen victim to K’s 14 times already while drawing just three walks. Mateo’s defense continues to need work, as he has three errors in the field in 2016 after committing 30 last year. Assuming Mateo’s high strikeout rate is just a symptom of small sample size, he should continue to improve his fielding and plate discipline in high-A this season and maybe earn a promotion to AA by midseason.
Aaron Judge– OF- Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (AAA)– Judge, who has been commonly given the title of either the number one or number two Yankees prospect, has been tearing up AAA to start the season, batting .342 in his first 38 at-bats and hitting a home run on Friday night. The big righty slugger has totaled four extra base hits and has even stolen a base early on in the 2016 campaign. Judge’s numbers have looked solid so far, but they are buoyed by a near-.500 batting average on balls in play, which is due to regress and drag down his stellar batting average. Also somewhat disconcerting is Judge’s continued propensity to strike out, as he has struck out 12 times while only walking twice. Judge cannot continue to strike out in nearly one-third of his at-bats if he wants to earn a call-up to the big leagues this season. Granted, it’s a small sample size and the season is still young, so Judge will have plenty of time to work on his game and will, in all likelihood, be up by September at the latest.
James Kaprielian– P- Tampa (High-A)- Kaprielian, the Yankees first pick in the 2015 draft class, had a solid outing in his 2016 debut, striking out nine batters in just five innings. The start, coming against the Phillies’ affiliate, saw Kaprielian scatter three hits and allow only one run while not walking any batters. Better still; he got through those five innings in just 60 pitches, 49 of which were strikes. He followed up his stellar debut with another great appearance Saturday night, taking a no-hitter into the 6th inning before allowing one hit and no earned runs (three were unearned due to errors) in seven innings pitched. Kaprielian struck out four and walked two on 74 pitches (including 50 strikes.) The Yankees have no need to rush their top pick, but given his college experience, he may end up on the fast track to the majors. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him sometime next season, but that could move in either direction depending on his progress in the higher minors.
Dustin Fowler– OF- Trenton (AA)- The 21 year-old Fowler, commonly regarded as a top-10 prospect in the Yankees system, has shown off both his bat and his wheels to start this season. Fowler is hitting .351 through 37 at-bats and has already stolen five bases with a 100% success rate in the early going. In Saturday’s game, the young outfielder went 3-5 at the plate, driving in four runs and stealing a base. Fowler stole 30 bases last year and assuming he keeps up something resembling this pace, will match that number in 2016. The lefty has a solid 6:3 K:BB ratio, demonstrating slightly better plate discipline so far. He has yet to homer this season, but has four extra base hits and may find a way to tap into his power. He hit just five home runs in a full season in both levels of A-ball last year, and jacked nine in a half-season stint in low-A Charleston in 2014. Look for Fowler to continue his development in Trenton this year, although he’s likely a year or more away from his big league debut.
