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DotF: Prospects head home as winter ball seasons wrap up

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The 2018 winter ball regular season is over. The various Caribbean leagues wrapped up their regular seasons over the weekend and the postseason is now getting underway. For us, this will be the final DotF post until the 2019 minor league regular season begins in a few months. The minor league season begins April 4th, one week after the Major League season begins. DotF will return then. Here are some notes before we get to the final performance update until the regular season:

  • OF Clint Frazier (post-concussion migraines) is expected to be cleared for on-field activity by Spring Training, Brian Cashman told Bryan Hoch. “I’ve been slowly hitting, throwing, working out. For the most part, I’m ramping up to start doing some overhand BP, just trying to get the timing right, get the facility work out. I’m pretty much full tilt whenever I’m ready to go,” said Frazier during a recent YES Network interview (video link).
  • Baseball America (subs. req’d) named ten players who could have a breakout 2019 season if they stay healthy. OF Estevan Florial is among them. “The strikeouts and pitch recognition issues are red flags for Florial, but he also broke the hamate bone in his right wrist in May—a possible mitigating factor in Florial’s season, especially given the lack of game power despite above-average raw power. Being a year removed from that injury and facing Double-A pitching for the first time will make 2019 a pivotal year for Florial,” says the write-up.
  • The MLB.com crew listed one breakout prospect for each team in 2019. RHP Albert Abreu got the nod for the Yankees. “If healthy in ’19, Abreu has three pitches — a fastball, breaking ball and changeup — that all grade out as plus and could help him quickly climb through the Yankees’ system,” says the write-up.
  • Jonathan Mayo ranked the top 15 prospects traded this offseason. LHP Justus Sheffield (No. 1), RHP Erik Swanson (No. 4), OF Dom Thompson-Williams (No. 7) all made the list. The Yankees sent those three to the Mariners in the James Paxton trade.

Arizona Fall League

  • IF Thairo Estrada: 19 G, 19-for-80 (.238), 9 R, 2 2B, 7 RBI, 4 BB, 15 K, 1 CS, 1 HBP (.238/.282/.263)
  • OF Estevan Florial: 21 G, 13-for-73 (.178), 10 R, 2 2B, 2 3B, 8 RBI, 12 BB, 29 K, 2 SB, 1 CS (.178/.294/.260)
  • 1B Steven Sensley: 21 G, 15-for-76 (.197), 4 R, 3 2B, 1 3B, 9 RBI, 4 BB, 26 K, 1 CS, 2 HBP (.197/.256/.263)
  • RHP Jordan Foley: 7 G, 7 GS, 19.2 IP, 20 H, 20 R, 20 ER, 19 BB, 20 K, 2 HR, 1 HB, 2 WP (9.15 ERA and 1.98 WHIP) — the Yankees traded him to the Rockies soon after the AzFL season ended
  • RHP Hobie Harris: 9 G, 15 IP, 14 H, 8 R, 7 ER, 7 BB, 16 K, 1 HR, 2 WP (4.20 ERA and 1.40 WHIP)
  • RHP Matt Wivinis: 11 G, 12 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 6 BB, 14 K, 1 HB, 1 WP (1.50 ERA and 1.00 WHIP)
  • RHP Kyle Zurak: 9 G, 9.1 IP, 16 H, 15 R, 12 ER, 10 BB, 3 K, 3 HR, 3 WP (11.57 ERA and 2.79 WHIP)

[Read more…]

Prospect Profile: Tanner Myatt

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(Robert M Pimpsner/Pinstriped Prospects)

Tanner Myatt | RHP

Background
Myatt, 20, grew up in Spring Lake, North Carolina, near Fayetteville and Fort Bragg. He attended Overhills High School and pitched to a 2.75 ERA with 63 strikeouts and 18 walks in 43.1 innings as a senior, and also hit .312/.365/.395 in 52 plate appearances. Baseball America (subs. req’d) did not rank Myatt as one of the top 500 prospects for the 2016 draft and he went unselected out of high school.

After going undrafted Myatt headed to Florence-Darling Technical College in South Carolina. He put up a 3.76 ERA with 34 strikeouts and 16 walks in 26.1 innings as a freshman. Myatt again went undrafted in 2017 — he wasn’t among Baseball America’s (subs. req’d) top 500 draft prospects — and, as a sophomore, he threw 30 innings with a 1.89 ERA and 39 strikeouts against 20 walks. He made four starts and ten relief appearances.

Baseball America (subs. req’d) did not rank Myatt among their top 500 prospects for the 2018 draft, though they did rank him the 16th best prospect in South Carolina (subs. req’d). The Yankees selected Myatt with their 11th round pick (337th overall) last summer, making him the highest draft pick in Florence-Darling history. Myatt leveraged a transfer commitment to the College of Charleston into a $147,500 bonus. Every dollar over $125,000 given to a player taken after the tenth round counts against the draft pool, so Myatt counted as $22,500 against the pool.

“We were extremely excited to be able to select Tanner in the 11th round,” said scouting director Damon Oppenheimer after the draft. “He has a big arm and is an extremely uncomfortable at-bat for right-handed batters. We believe he has a high ceiling and look forward to having our player development staff help him reach it.”

Pro Debut
After signing Myatt was assigned to the rookie Gulf Coast League, where he had a 6.06 ERA (5.07 FIP) with 22 strikeouts and nine walks in 18.1 innings. That works out to 30.8% strikeout rate and a 10.8% walk rate. He made five starts and four relief appearances. Myatt closed out his regular season with one appearance for Short Season Staten Island, striking out two and walking two in two scoreless innings. He then participated in Instructional League after the season.

Scouting Report
Myatt is certainly a pitching prospect you can dream on. The kid stands 6-foot-7 and 220 lbs. and he came out of college with a fastball that averages 96-99 mph and touches 101 mph. According to Shaun Savarese, Myatt started training at a local pitching biomechanics lab (N.C. Biomechanical) during the summer between his sophomore and junior years of high school. I reckon that helped him develop his premium arm strength.

In addition to the velocity, Myatt’s fastball has explosive life through the strike zone, so it plays even better than the radar gun reading. Add in the fact he’s releasing the ball that much closer to the plate thanks to his height, and Myatt’s heater is a truly elite offering. He pairs it with a promising curveball and changeup, the former of which has flashed out-pitch potential. Myatt also threw a cutter in college but it seems it is no longer part of his repertoire.

Myatt has already made strides gaining consistency with his delivery since the draft, but he is young and incredibly tall, and it typically takes tall pitchers some time to develop solid mechanics and master control of those long limbs. The Yankees have plenty of experience with tall pitching prospects (Dellin Betances, Domingo Acevedo, Andrew Brackman, Freicer Perez, etc.), but everyone is different, and Myatt will develop at his own pace.

Because he’s so big and his delivery can fall out of whack, Myatt does have trouble throwing strikes, and that is his primary development goal going forward. That and improve his curveball and changeup. Firm up the delivery and learn how to get the ball over the plate consistently. Given the quality of his fastball and overall stuff, Myatt does not need to develop above-average command (it would be cool if he did). He’ll get swings and misses and weak contact simply by being around the strike zone.

2019 Outlook
I expect Myatt to begin this coming season in Extended Spring Training for three reasons. One, he’s a big dude who needs mechanical refinement, and ExST is the best place to do that. Two, Myatt doesn’t have much pitching experience. From 2015-18, he threw 153.2 total innings between high school, college, and pro ball (plus a handful more in Instructs). His career high is the 48.1 innings he threw between college and his pro debut last year. I can’t see the Yankees throwing him right into full season ball. And three, Myatt’s still pretty young. He doesn’t turn 21 until May. Given all that, ExST to start with an assignment to one of the short season leagues in June makes the most sense for Myatt in 2019.

My Take
I knew nothing about Myatt when he was drafted and I’ve very quickly fallen in love after doing some research. I’m a sucker for big power pitching prospects and he is right out of central casting. Myatt has a long way to go between where he is now and the big leagues, but the raw tools are very impressive, and you can’t teach his size and arm strength. I’m not sure Myatt will ever develop good enough control and command to start. In short relief bursts though? He could be a monster. Myatt’s is a classic high risk, high reward type with significant upside. I’m not sure you could do much better than this with an 11th round pick and a $147,500 bonus.

Prospect Profile: Mike King

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(Jason Farmer/Scranton Times-Tribune)

Mike King | RHP

Background
King, 23, grew up outside Providence in Warwick, Rhode Island. He had a decorated career at Bishop Hendricken High School, one that included two state championships and a Rhode Island Gatorade High School Player of the Year Award. King pitched to a 0.69 ERA as a junior and a 0.30 ERA as a senior, and threw two no-hitters. He was also a member of various All-Academic teams.

Despite his high school success Baseball America (subs. req’d) did not rank King among the top 500 prospects for the 2014 draft, and he went undrafted out of high school. He followed through on his commitment to Boston College and pitched primary out of the bullpen as a freshman, posting a 2.93 ERA with a 35/12 K/BB in 43 innings. He made three starts and 13 relief appearances.

As a sophomore, King emerged as a valuable swingman, pitching to a 3.03 ERA with a 52/12 K/BB in 62 innings spread across eight starts and six relief appearances. King spent the summer with the Hyannis Harbor Hawks of the Cape Cod League, throwing 22 innings with a 3.27 ERA and a 19/5 K/BB. Baseball America did not rank him as one of the top 30 prospects in the league, however.

King took over as the staff ace as a junior and set Boston College single-season records with 16 starts and 104 innings. He managed a 3.29 ERA and a 61/31 K/BB in those 104 innings. His career 3.14 ERA is second best in school history behind former big leaguer Chris Lambert (2.84 ERA). King also ranks tenth on the career innings list with 209.1. He is one of the most successful pitchers in Eagles history.

Baseball America (subs. req’d) ranked King as the 449th best prospect for the 2016 draft. The Marlins selected him in the 12th round (353rd overall) and signed him to a $100,000 bonus. That is $25,000 under slot for all picks after the tenth round. The Yankees acquired King, along with some international bonus money, from the Marlins last offseason for Garrett Cooper and Caleb Smith.

Pro Career
After such a big workload as a college junior, the Marlins took it easy on King following the 2016 draft, and had him throw only 30.2 innings in his pro debut. He posted a 4.11 ERA (2.76 FIP) with 24.4% strikeouts and 4.7% walks while pitching mostly in the short season NY-Penn League. The Marlins had King spend the entire 2017 season with their Low-A affiliate. He had a 3.14 ERA (3.97 FIP) with 17.8% strikeouts and 3.5% walks in 149 innings.

The Yankees moved King much more aggressively in 2018. He started the season with High-A Tampa and finished it with Triple-A Scranton. Here are his numbers at each level this past season:

G IP ERA FIP K% BB% GB% HR/9 Whiff%
High-A Tampa 7 40.1 1.79 2.46 27.4% 6.1% 59.8% 0.22 13.5%
Double-A Trenton 12 82 2.09 2.70 23.9% 4.1% 45.2% 0.44 9.9%
Triple-A Scranton 6 39 1.15 3.20 21.8% 4.2% 53.8% 0.69 7.7%
Total 25 161.1 1.79 2.76 24.4% 4.7% 50.8% 0.45 10.3%

King ranked sixth in the minors in innings pitched this past season and, among the 510 pitchers to throw at least 100 innings in the minors, he ranked second in ERA and 11th in FIP. His strikeout (97th), ground ball (74th), and swing-and-miss (112th) rates were much further down the rankings, however.

Scouting Report
King has the prototypical pitcher’s build at 6-foot-3 and 210 lbs., and while he’s a stats over scouting report prospect, the scouting report is quite good. He gets most of his outs with a sinking two-seam fastball that sits 91-93 mph and will occasionally touch 95 mph. King commands the pitch exceptionally well. He uses it to pound the bottom of the zone and he can throw it to both sides of the plate. He’s quite adept at throwing that two-seamer inside to lefties for the comeback called strike, like so:

King has three quality secondary pitches but none rate as a legitimate out pitch at the moment. His changeup has good fade and is probably his most reliable offspeed pitch. King also throws a slider that shows promise, and the Yankees helped him add an upper-80s cutter late in the season with Triple-A Scranton. It could be that he’ll wind up a two-seamer/changeup pitcher with several variations of a cutter/slider breaking ball to keep hitters honest.

Nothing King throws is straight and I’m looking forward to him reaching the big leagues so we can get some Statcast data. He strikes me as someone who could be a weak contact type that consistently outperforms his peripherals, similar to the current version of CC Sabathia. King has a good repeatable delivery and he can put the ball where he wants it, especially with the two-seamer. That command helps everything play up.

2019 Outlook
After the season he just had, climbing from High-A to Triple-A, King is a lock to be invited to big league Spring Training as a non-roster invitee next year. There’s a good chance he’ll make his MLB debut at some point next summer. King will be Rule 5 Draft eligible next offseason but I would be shocked if he’s not added to the 40-man roster and brought at some point next summer first. In all likelihood, King will go up and down a few times next season, presumably as a spot starter/emergency long man type.

My Take
There seem to be a very wide range of opinions on King and I lean toward “serviceable big leaguer” more than “impact starter.” I wish he had a putaway secondary pitch — I don’t think it’s a coincidence his swing-and-miss rate dropped considerably each time he was promoted this past season — but, if you’re only going to have one good pitch, a sinking two-seamer is a good one good pitch to have. King is about as safe a bet to have a big league career as you’ll find. I just think he’ll be more of a fifth starter/swingman type than a bona fide mid-rotation stalwart, and hey, teams need fifth starters and swingmen. It’s better to grow your own than pay a couple million for one in free agency.

Prospect Profile: Nick Nelson

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(@MiLB)

Nick Nelson | RHP

Background
Nelson grew up on Florida’s panhandle in Panama City. The just turned 23-year-old starred at Rutherford High School and the Giants selected him in the 31st round (928th overall) of the 2014 draft, though Baseball America (subs. req’d) did not rank him among the top 500 players in the draft class. Nelson did not sign with San Francisco and instead headed to Gulf Coast State College, a two-year school, in his hometown.

As a freshman with the Commodores Nelson made six starts and one relief appearance, throwing 24.1 innings with a 2.96 ERA and a 22/11 K/BB. He also hit .339/.369/.540 with seven homers in 207 plate appearances as the team’s regular first baseman. Despite his two-way success, Baseball America (subs. req’d) did not rank Nelson among the top 500 prospects for the 2015 draft following his freshman year, and he went undrafted.

Nelson was a workhorse on both sides of the ball as a sophomore, leading the team in innings (by 19.1) and falling one short of the team lead in plate appearances. He had a 4.48 ERA with a 99/38 K/BB in 90.1 innings and hit .295/.337/.504 with a team-leading 12 homers in 246 plate appearances. Nelson was committed to the University of Florida for his junior season. He would’ve remained a two-way player with the Gators.

Baseball America (subs. req’d) ranked Nelson as the 325th best prospect in the 2016 draft class and the Yankees selected him in the fourth round, with the 128th overall pick. Despite that commitment to Florida, the Yankees were able to sign Nelson to a below-slot $350,000 bonus. Slot money for the 128th selection was $455,400. The bonus pool savings were redirected to first rounder Blake Rutherford.

Pro Career
Nelson was sent directly to the rookie Pulaski Yankees after signing, where he had a 3.38 ERA (5.82 FIP) with more walks (22) than strikeouts (19) in 21.1 innings. Because he faced exactly 100 batters, it works out to a neat 22.0% walk rate and a 19.0% strikeout rate. Nelson spent the entire 2017 season with Low-A Charleston. He threw 100.2 innings with a 4.56 ERA (3.82 FIP) to go with a good strikeout rate (24.3%) and a not-so-good walk rate (11.1%).

The Yankees held Nelson back in Charleston to begin the 2018 season and he had a 3.65 ERA (2.25 FIP) with 34.7% strikeouts and 6.9% walks in five starts and 24.2 innings before being bumped up to High-A Tampa. With Tampa, Nelson threw 88.1 innings with a 3.36 ERA (3.12 FIP) and a 26.3% strikeout rate and a 12.5% walk rate. He also made three spot starts with Double-A Trenton (six runs in 8.2 innings). All told, Nelson had a 3.55 ERA (3.12 FIP) with 27.5% strikeouts and 12.1% walks in 121.2 innings in 2018. He also participated in Instructional League after the season.

Scouting Report
Nelson is not the biggest guy on the mound (6-foot-1 and 195 lbs.) and, at Gulf Coast State, he was mostly 90-92 mph with his fastball. Now that he’s spent two years pitching full-time and working with the Yankees’ velocity gurus, he sits 94-96 mph and tops out at 98 mph. His fastball has some sink on it too, though his 46.9% ground ball rate this past season is nothing to write home about it.

Nelson’s bread-and-butter is a hammer low-80s curveball that is his primary source of swings and misses. He’s still working to develop a changeup — at times it’ll look like a true swing-and-miss pitch — and this past season the Yankees had him tinker with a slider, which is still rudimentary. For all intents and purposes, Nelson is a fastball/curveball guy who is trying to develop a reliable third pitch.

Despite a fairly simple delivery he repeats well enough, Nelson does struggle to throw strikes. He has below-average control and well-below-average command. Nelson started throughout college and he’s been a starter his entire pro career thus far, though it’s tough to see him remaining in that role given his lack of a reliable third pitch and his inconsistent strike-throwing ability. Add in a no nonsense bulldog mentality and Nelson sure seems destined for the bullpen at some point.

2019 Outlook
It seems to me Nelson is ticketed for Double-A Trenton to begin next year. He had a successful stint with High-A Tampa this past season and the Yankees have more starters than rotation spots for High-A Tampa, so the numbers crunch plays a role here as well. Nelson will be Rule 5 Draft eligible next offseason and my guess is the Yankees will give him at least one more year as a starter, maybe two, to see whether he figures out a third pitch and/or how to throw the ball over the plate consistently. There’s still an entire season to play out, but, right now, I expect the Yankees to add Nelson to the 40-man roster next winter to remove him from the Rule 5 Draft eligibility pool.

My Take
I’m a Nick Nelson fan. I don’t think there’s much hope for him to remain a starter long-term — that’ll take a big and sudden improvement in his changeup and/or control and how often does that happen? — but the fastball/curveball combination is legit and I think he’ll be able to out-stuff hitters as a one-inning air-it-out reliever. Give him another season to start because things might click. If the Yankees move Nelson into the bullpen though, he could become a big league option in a hurry.

Tuesday Links: MLB-Cuba Deal, Streaming Rights, Prospects

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Aroldis Chapman, Orlando Hernandez, and Cuban catcher Jorge Saez. (@YankeesPR)

The holidays have arrived and hot stove news has come to a crawl, so here are some miscellaneous — but not insignificant — links and bits of news to check out.

MLB announces agreement to bring Cuban players to MLB

Last week MLB and the MLBPA announced an agreement with the Cuban Baseball Federation that “will provide Cuban baseball players with a safe and legal path to sign with a Major League Club.” Here’s the press release. Many players, including Yasiel Puig and Jose Abreu, defected from Cuba by being smuggled off the island by criminals, and were later threatened and shaken down for money. This new agreement helps prevent that.

“Establishing a safe, legal process for entry to our system is the most important step we can take to ending the exploitation and endangerment of Cuban players who pursue careers in Major League Baseball,” said MLBPA chief Tony Clark in a statement. “The safety and well-being of these young men remains our primary concern.”

Under the MLB-CBF agreement, players who are at least 25 years old and have played six years in Cuba must be made available to MLB teams. CBF clubs can also choose to make younger players available. When a player signs with an MLB team, the MLB team must pay his former club in Cuba a release fee that follows the same formula as Japanese players (explained here). This is, truly, great and historic news for baseball. There is now a safe and proper channel for bringing Cuban talent to MLB.

MLB may transfer in-market streaming rights to teams

This is potentially huge. According to Josh Kosman, MLB “favors a plan” in which in-market streaming rights would be transferred from the league to individual teams. The Yankees and several other teams have been pushing hard for this for years. This means that, if you live in the Yankees’ home market, you would no longer have to be a cable subscriber to watch the YES Network. You could cut the cord and subscribe to the team’s streaming service instead.

The catch here is that when MLB transfers in-market streaming rights to teams — “when” is more appropriate than “if” here because this does feel inevitable, if not now then down the road — the teams will probably turn around and sell those streaming rights to the highest bidder (Amazon, Google, Netflix, etc.). Amazon is reportedly making a big push to secure regional sports streaming rights and I’m sure they’d love to get their hands on the Yankees. So, rather than buy an in-market streaming subscription straight from the Yankees or MLB, you’d have to sign up for Amazon’s video service. We’ll see. None of this has happened yet but things are heading in this direction.

Three Yankees make top GCL prospects list

I missed this a few weeks ago. Baseball America (subs. req’d) wrapped up their annual look at the top 20 prospects in each minor league with the rookie Gulf Coast League. Three Yankees made the list: OF Antonio Cabello (No. 7), OF Anthony Garcia (No. 12), and RHP Yoendrys Gomez (No. 14). Baseball America posted Cabello’s full scouting report on Twitter, so check that out. He ranked one spot ahead of Orioles RHP Grayson Rodriguez, the 11th overall pick in the 2018 draft, on the GCL list.

The 6-foot-5 and 204 lb. (and 18-year-old) Garcia led the GCL with ten homers in 53 games this year. He also struck out 40.6% of his plate appearances. The Baseball America scouting report gives him 70 power on the 20-80 scouting scale and, in the chat (subs. req’d), Ben Badler compared him to Domingo Santana. That’d be a nice outcome for a $500,000 international signee. Here’s part of the scouting report on Gomez:

Gomez ran his fastball up to 96 mph this season in the GCL, parking in the low-to-mid-90s. He throws with downhill angle and locates his fastball well to both sides of the plate for his age. Gomez had 10 strikeouts per nine innings in the GCL thanks in part to a tight, sharp curveball in the mid-to-upper 70s with good depth that flashes above-average to freeze hitters or gets them to chase. He showed feel for a mid-80s changeup that he’s willing to throw to both lefties and righties.

The Yankees signed the 18-year-old Gomez for a mere $50,000 two years ago and now he’s showing three pitches with good velocity and a potential swing-and-miss curveball. The Yankees seem to turn two or three of these small bonus kids into legitimate prospects each year. Domingo Acevedo ($7,500), Freicer Perez ($10,000) and Jonathan Loaisiga (not sure he even got a bonus) all fit in this group.

2019 Draft top prospects list released

With the college and high school seasons only a few weeks away, MLB.com released their first top 50 draft prospects list for 2019. Oregon State C Adley Rutschman is the consensus No. 1 player in the draft class and he’s probably the most locked in No. 1 pick this far out from the draft since Gerrit Cole in 2011. That doesn’t mean Rutschman is a lock to go first overall to the Orioles. It just means he’s the most clear cut No. 1 guy in quite some time.

The Yankees hold the 30th overall selection next year and they’ll keep that pick even if they sign a qualified free agent like Bryce Harper. Baseball America (subs. req’d) put together a super early 2019 mock draft recently and they have Rutschman going to the O’s with the top pick. Here’s who they have for the Yankees and that 30th overall selection:

3B Brett Baty (Lake Travis HS, Austin)
Why It Makes Sense: Baty will get talked about for both his prodigious strength in the lefthanded batter’s box and also the that he will be 19 and a half years old on draft day. This might not bother the Yankees as much as other teams, as New York just took high school catcher Anthony Seigler in the first round last year, who was also old for his class.

One, “Brett Baty” is an outstanding baseball name. And two, a 19-and-a-half-year-old high schooler in the first round? I can’t imagine that’s happened often. And geez, Seigler didn’t turn 19 until after the draft last year. He wasn’t that old for his class. Anyway, at this point in the draft season (i.e. it hasn’t started yet), any mock draft is almost certainly speculation more than hard “this team is on that guy” reporting. Lots can and will change between now and the draft.

As long as Damon Oppenheimer is the Yankees scouting director, the best place to start with potential draft targets is Southern California. He has an affinity for prospects who play where he grew up. One name to watch: California HS 1B/LHP Spencer Jones. Go check out the (free) MLB.com scouting report and tell me that kid doesn’t scream “future Yankees prospect.”

Four Minor League Relievers that Could Help in 2019

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Phillip Diehl. (Mark LoMoglio/Tampa Tarpons)

Have we mentioned before that the Yankees are hoping to snag two relievers to fill the voids left by Zach Britton and David Robertson? I imagine so, but you can never be too sure.

As of this writing, several of the higher-end bullpen options have signed – Jeurys Familia with the Mets, Joe Kelly with the Dodgers, Andrew Miller with the Cardinals, and Joakim Soria with the A’s – but there are still plenty of intriguing options out there (including the aforementioned Britton and Robertson). It’s way too early to worry about the Yankees missing out on a top reliever or two, but it’s never to soon to peruse the system and see what sort of help they may have waiting in the wings. So let’s take a look at four relievers that aren’t too far from the show.

Phillip Diehl, LHP

2018 Stats (High-A & Double-A) – 75.1 IP, 36.2 K%, 7.7 BB%, 2.87 ERA

The 24-year-old Diehl was drafted in the 27th round back in 2016, and he has been nothing but terrific since making his professional debut. He has a 2.78 ERA in 194.1 professional innings, and is equally effective against righties and lefties, which is a great sign (even at such low levels). Here’s a peak at his approach:

Diehl is a two-pitch reliever, working with a low-90s four-seamer and a low-80s slider, which he throws at about a 60/40 split. The slider, when it’s on, has excellent movement, and is a true swing and miss offering. As you can see from the video he throws from a three-quarters slot with a bit of crossfire, so he hides the ball fairly well, which makes the velocity play up a bit more. And it helps against righties, too. It’s not elite stuff, but he’s far from a junkballer.

There’s a non-zero chance that Diehl could add some weight and some velocity, given that he’s 6’2″ and relatively slim, but it’s far from a guarantee. And, in the Yankees organization, that uptick in velocity tends to come sooner rather than later. With more velocity, he could be an serious asset in the bullpen. As-is, I think of him more as a middle reliever than a late innings type – and that’s just fine.

Raynel Espinal, RHP

(Tampa Tarpons/Twitter)

2018 Stats (Triple-A) – 67.0 IP, 33.1 K%, 9.1 BB%, 3.09 ERA

Espinal is the old man on this list, having turned 27 a couple of months ago. He has been in the Yankees organization since signing out of the Dominican Republic in 2013, posting a 3.04 ERA, 29.2 K%, and 6.8 BB% in five full seasons. The Yankees tried him out as a starter in 2016, but the results were ugly (4.63 ERA), and the experiment was scrapped thereafter.

In terms of stuff, Espinal has the classic reliever profile with his low-to-mid 90s fastball and big-breaking mid-80s slider. Both pitches have big-time movement, and his 14.5% swinging strike rate was among the best at Triple-A last year. There are reports out there indicating that Espinal’s pure stuff is legitimately above-average, which would suggest that his ceiling may be a bit higher than the other arms on this list. However, his delivery is somewhat open, which removes any semblance of deception … which makes him the opposite of the aforementioned Diehl, in a way.

Espinal is probably the most MLB-ready reliever that the Yankees have and, as he was invited to Spring Training last year, he might just have an inside track to the show in 2019.

Joe Harvey, RHP

(YouTube)

2018 Stats (Double-A & Triple-A) – 59.1 IP, 29.1 K%, 10.7 BB%, 1.67 ERA

Mike wrote about Harvey a bit over a month ago, when he was somewhat surprisingly added to the 40-man roster in advance of the Rule 5 draft. The important stuff, for our purposes:

Harvey, 26, was the Yankees’ 19th round pick in 2014. He was a trusted late-inning reliever for Triple-A Scranton this past season, throwing 54.1 innings with a 1.66 ERA (2.49 FIP) with a very good strikeout rate (28.5%) and an okay walk rate (9.8%). He’s a mid-90s fastball guy with a curveball and something resembling a changeup. Classic reliever profile.

Harvey is one of those minor leaguers that leaves fans wondering when he’ll get the call to the show. He has amassed 144 IP in parts of five seasons, with an excellent 1.75 ERA, and has only once finished a year with an ERA above 2.00. Of course, minor league numbers don’t mean nearly as much as the process that yielded the results – but the Yankees likely love the process, too:

Harvey probably isn’t an elite reliever, either, but he’s knocking on the door to the majors, and the Yankees clearly like him. If I had to pick one of these guys to spend most of the season in the Bronx, it’d certainly be him.

Matt Wivinis, RHP

(MiLB.com)

2018 Stats (High-A & Double-A) – 56.0 IP, 34.5 K%, 6.7 BB%, 2.41 ERA

The 25-year-old Wivinis was signed as a non-drafted free agent in October of 2016, after posting an excellent 1.59 ERA in 39.2 IP in the independent Frontier League. He was dominant in 2017 (0.88 ERA and 46 strikeouts in 30.2 IP) between Rookie Ball and Single-A, and that brilliance continued in 2018. He was quite good at this year’s Arizona Fall League, as well, posting a 1.50 ERA in 12 IP. It’s a short track record of success, to be sure – but his results have been outstanding.

Wivinis is more of a pitchability reliever than the other guys on this list, however, working with a low-90s fastball, a mid-80s change-up, and a low-80s slider:

It’s not overwhelming stuff. However, it is worth noting that he’s another spin rate guy, with all of his pitches purportedly boasting above-average rates. With solid control and three pitches that move, it’s not too hard to see him being successful in a middle relief role. He might not be a stud, but there’s more here than meets the eye.

Prospect Profile: Rodney Hutchison

by

(Robert Pimpsner/Pinstriped Prospects)

Rodney Hutchison | RHP

Background
Hutchison, 22, grew up outside Cincinnati in Mason, Ohio, and he played pretty much everything at Mason High School. Four years of baseball, four years of basketball, two years of football, and one year of hockey. He was All-State in baseball. Despite that, Baseball America (subs. req’d) did not rank Hutchison among the top 500 prospects for the 2015 draft and he went unselected out of high school.

Hutchison followed through on his commitment to North Carolina and didn’t see much action as a freshman on the perpetually stacked Tar Heels pitching staff. He allowed 15 runs in 17 mostly mop-up innings his first year with UNC, then he headed to the Coastal Plains League for additional innings during the summer. Hutchison made ten starts and threw 49.2 innings with a 3.44 ERA and more walks (31) than strikeouts (26) for the Holly Springs Salamanders.

As a sophomore Hutchison emerged as an important multi-inning reliever with the Tar Heels, pitching to a 4.14 ERA with 43 strikeouts and 17 walks in 58.2 innings. Thirteen times in 30 relief appearances he went at least two innings. Hutchison spent that summer in the Cape Cod League, where he allowed two runs in 25.1 innings for the Chatham Anglers. Baseball America (subs. req’d) did not rank him among the top 30 prospects in the league, however.

This past spring Hutchison worked as a jack of all trades pitcher for UNC. He made ten starts and 13 relief appearances, threw 59 innings, and pitched to a 4.55 ERA with 56 strikeouts and 16 walks. Baseball America (subs. req’d) ranked Hutchison as the 462nd best prospect in the 2018 draft class and the Yankees selected him with their sixth round pick, the 187th overall selection. He signed quickly for a below-slot $197,500 (slot was $247,600).

Pro Debut
The Yankees sent Hutchison directly to Short Season Staten Island after signing and he posted a 1.97 ERA (3.02 FIP) with very good strikeout (24.4%), walk (4.7%), and ground ball (64.4%) rates in 32 innings. He made six starts and three relief appearances. Hutchison participated in Instructional League after the season despite throwing a career high 91 innings between college and pro ball this season.

Scouting Report
First things first: Hutchison is Yankees-sized at 6-foot-5 and 225 pounds. The Yankees love big pitchers and Hutchison is a big dude. He spent the 2016-17 seasons throwing 90-92 mph at UNC before living in the 93-95 mph range this spring, even touching 96-98 mph at times. Hutchison slings the ball from a low arm slot, almost sidearm, and that gives his fastball quite a bit of movement back in on righties.

At UNC, Hutchison’s best secondary pitch was a diving mid-80s changeup that helps him to neutralize lefties. His mid-80s slider improved this spring and again in pro ball this summer, so, at his very best, he goes to the mound with a fastball that runs all over the place and two putaway secondaries in his changeup and slider. Also, Hutchison likes to change up his tempo and delivery to mess with hitters. Here’s a good clip. He can’t be a comfortable at-bat for right-handed hitters.

The downside with Hutchison is that his command is not great and his control can come and go even though his walk rate with Staten Island this summer didn’t show it. Hutchison’s strike-throwing inconsistencies are at least partly to blame on his arm slot and various deliveries. It’s hard to throw strikes from that arm slot and his mechanics are unrefined because he’s always changing them. The Yankees didn’t let Hutchison vary his delivery (much) this summer and I don’t know whether that’s temporary or permanent.

Anyway, Hutchison is a big guy and he’s athletic, plus he’s drawn praise for being coachable and low maintenance. He works quickly on the mound and just plows ahead, going about his business. A coach’s and broadcaster’s dream. Hutchison’s raw stuff is quite good. Developing some consistent strike-throwing ability is the top priority going forward.

2019 Outlook
After three years at a major college program, Hutchison is more than ready for full season ball next year. The Yankees are loaded with lower level pitching prospects and there are only so many rotation spots to go around, so my guess is Hutchison will open next year as a swingman/multi-inning reliever with either Low-A Charleston or High-A Tampa. I expect him to pitch in Tampa at some point next year, even if he opens the season in Charleston. Working on a set schedule in that multi-inning relief role should stretch him out to 120-130 innings next season.

My Take
I’m a big Rodney Hutchison fan. I am pro-fun and he seems like a fun pitcher with the arm slot and the funky deliveries and all that. The fact he throws a moving fastball and has a chance for two very good secondary pitches is icing on the cake. I’m not sure Hutchison can start long-term with that arm slot — how many righty starters do you see releasing the ball from that far down? — but turning a below slot signing bonus in the sixth round into a big league righty reliever would be a very nice outcome. I’m a fan. Hutchison’s a neat little prospect.