Thursday night marked the first night of the MLB Draft, and the Yankees made their first two picks. With the 18th and 62nd overall selections, the Yankees drafted high school outfielder Blake Rutherford and collegiate second baseman Nick Solak out of Louisville. In lieu of a Yankees minor league update this week, we here at Bronx Pinstripes will be providing a profile on the Yankees’ first two picks. So without further ado, here are profiles of the two newest Yankees.
Blake Rutherford- OF- Chaminade College Prep (CA)- ESPN’s Keith Law ranked the California high schooler 7th on his draft board, but the Yankees nabbed Rutherford at 18 because teams were concerned about his signability. Earlier in the season, he was even being floated as a top-five pick. Rutherford is committed to UCLA, but a first-round selection and a big signing bonus may enable the Yankees to reach a deal with the 19 year-old. On the field, he has demonstrated strong power potential from the left side of the plate, but Baseball America noted that he still has not taken the next step when it comes to hitting for power. One scout even compared Rutherford to Jim Edmonds as a power-hitting center fielder. Still, he could put up above-average power and hit for average as well while spraying the ball across all fields. He has decent speed and may even be able to stick in center field. As an added bonus, Rutherford was born in New Jersey and named the Yankees as his favorite team with Derek Jeter being his favorite player.
The Captain #legend pic.twitter.com/OSrSnOzJ1i
— Blake Rutherford (@BlakeRuth2) May 8, 2014
Nick Solak- 2B- Louisville- MLB.com rated Solak as the 147th best prospect in the draft, and Baseball America rated him 86th, so Solak may have been a pick to help save draft pool money. Regardless, the Louisville product still offers some upside. Recently named a collegiate All-American, Solak can hit well for contact, often hitting line drives, but offers little power, according to MLB.com’s scouting report on him. He has base stealing potential and good speed, which may help him become an offensive tablesetter some day. On defense, he did not play much second this past year, but may be able to get a shot at sticking at second base. If not, he could move to the outfield in the not-too-distant future.
