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The 2015 Draft and the Next Wave of Arms [2015 Season Review]

December 15, 2015 by Mike Leave a Comment

Coming into the season the Yankees had a very position player heavy farm system. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but their position player depth did far exceed their mound depth. You’d like more balance, ideally. Once LHP Ian Clarkin got hurt and it became obvious RHP Luis Severino would soon arrive in MLB, the farm system pitching picture looked even bleaker. The Yankees were light on arms.

The 2015 amateur draft didn’t erase that lack of pitching depth completely, but it did start to the move the team in the right direction. The Yankees selected pitchers with three of their first four picks, four of their first six picks, and 24 of their 41 total picks. Twenty-three of the 35 draft picks they signed were pitchers. Whether the emphasis on arms was intentional or just a coincidence, the Yankees added some much-needing pitching depth to the organization in the draft. Let’s review the class.

The Top Pick

The Yankees did not forfeit their first round pick to sign a free agent last offseason, so they held the 16th overall pick in the 2015 draft. They hadn’t picked that high since taking Florida HS RHP Matt Drews with the 13th pick way back in 1993. Years of good records and forfeiting high picks to sign free agents kept the Yankees away from top 16 picks for more than two decades.

“It did feel a little bit more like that,” said scouting director Damon Oppenheimer to reporters in June when asked if picking so high came with extra pressure. “It felt like you owe it to the Yankees and you owe it to the organization to get somebody with this pick who’s going to produce and be a quality Major League player. You feel like that about most of them, but when it comes to picking higher than we have since Matt Drews, before I was even here, it does feel that way. I’m not going to lie about it.”

The Yankees used that 16th overall pick to select UCLA RHP James Kaprielian, the fifth pitcher taken in the 2015 draft. Interestingly, a few reports — speculation more than factual reports, I’d say — indicated the Yankees were planning to take a high school bat with their top pick, but the guys they were targeting had already come off the board, namely Florida HS OF Kyle Tucker, George HS SS Cornelius Randolph, New York HS OF Garrett Whitley, and Texas HS OF Trent Clark.

Anyway, Kaprielian landed a slightly above-slot $2.65M bonus a few days before the signing deadline. He allowed six runs (five earned) in 11.1 regular season innings for the Rookie Gulf Coast League affiliate and Short Season Staten Island after turning pro, then he dominated in two postseason starts with the Baby Bombers: 12.1 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 10 K combined. The Yankees then sent him to Instructional League after the season.

“We do think this guy is at least a No. 3 starter and above” added Oppenheimer. “His stuff definitely is now stuff, and it’s now quality stuff. He has control to go along with mental maturity. It seems it could be (a guy who climbs the ladder quickly), but I don’t know the timetables on these guys. It’s too hard to tell. But he shouldn’t have to spend too much time at the lower levels.”

I think there’s a real chance we’ll see Kaprielian in the big leagues in the second half next season. He could follow something along the lines of Ian Kennedy’s path, meaning ten starts with High-A Tampa, eight with Double-A Trenton, six with Triple-A Scranton, then the big leagues in August and September. Obviously he has to perform and show big league stuff, but Kaprielian should move very quickly.

I normally like to be conservative with young pitchers, but Kaprielian’s an exception. There’s no reason to hold a polished college guy with command of multiple offspeed pitches back. Being ready soon is part of his appeal.

The Other Quick Moving Guy

Kaprielian has a chance to reach the show in the second half of next season and it’s entirely possible he will be only the second 2015 Yankees draftee to reach MLB. Dallas Baptist RHP Chance Adams (fifth round) reached High-A Tampa in his pro debut and had a 1.78 ERA (1.75 FIP) in 35.1 innings at three levels. He struck out 31.7% of batters faced and walked only 6.3%. Adams was overwhelming.

Obviously the numbers are great, but Adams also saw his stuff jump a notch in pro ball. He went from sitting low-to-mid-90s in college this spring to sitting mid-90s and touching as high as 99 after signing, and his already good slider gained consistency with pro instruction. Adams is a pure reliever and I think he’ll start next season with Double-A Trenton. If starts 2016 with the same stuff he had at the end of 2015, the only question about Adams’ readiness will be how soon the Yankees want to clear a 40-man roster spot for him.

The Bonus Baby Arms

In addition to Kaprielian, the Yankees signed two other pitchers to well-above-slot bonuses using the savings from the late-round draft pool manipulating picks. (They took cheaper prospects in rounds 7-10 to save pool space.) First they gave California HS RHP Drew Finley (third round) a $950,000 bonus, about 50% over slot. Then they gave Louisville LHP Josh Rogers (11th) a $485,000 bonus, nearly five times slot.

Finley was a potential late-first round pick who slipped into the third round. He allowed a shocking number of walks (12.6%) and homers (2.53 HR/9!) in his 32-inning pro debut with the new Rookie Pulaski affiliate, but he still missed bats (27.2%) and showed a bat-missing curveball. Finley’s not a hard-thrower — he was mostly 89-91 mph this summer — but he has a pretty good plan on the mound and is already making strides with his changeup.

The Yankees were able to lure Rogers, a draft-eligible sophomore, away from school following his strong showing in the Cape Cod League. He allowed six runs in 13.1 innings for Short Season Staten Island and Low-A Charleston, striking out 16 and walking three. Rogers is a three-pitch southpaw — low-90s gas, good slider, improving changeup — who can locate well, so he has a chance to remain a starter.

The Other Top Picks

The Yankees picked up a supplemental first round pick when David Robertson signed with the White Sox, and they used that pick (30th overall) on San Diego SS Kyle Holder. Holder didn’t hit in his pro debut — .213/.273/.253 (57 wRC+) around a nagging thumb injury with Short Season Staten Island — but his bat is not his calling card anyway. He’s an elite defender at shortstop, and that’s one heck of a carrying tool.

Indiana State LHP Jeff Degano was New York’s second round pick and third selection overall. He spent some time piggybacking with Kaprielian for Short Season Staten Island and allowed eleven runs in 21.1 pro innings, striking out 22 and walking nine. Degano missed the entire 2014 college season following Tommy John surgery, though he worked off the rust in the spring, and showed a low-90s heater with a sharper low-80s breaking ball. He’s not as polished as Rogers but offers more upside as a high strikeout lefty.

Late-Round Pitching Depth

In Alabama RHP Will Carter (14th) and BYU RHP Kolton Mahoney (16th), the Yankees added two promising depth arms who could follow in the footsteps of guys like Chase Whitley (15th round in 2010) and David Phelps (14th round in 2018) to give the Yankees serviceable innings. Is that exciting? No, but we’re talking about the double-digit rounds here.

Carter has maybe the best fastball the Yankees drafted this year — he sat 96-97 mph with his sinker for Short Season Staten Island. I saw him pitch a few times this summer and couldn’t believe a guy with that kind of fastball lasted until the 14th round. Carter had a 2.04 ERA (3.91 FIP) in 17.2 innings for the Baby Bombers and, not surprisingly, he generated 5.4 ground balls for every fly ball. He’s a reliever.

Mahoney has an interesting backstory. He didn’t pitch at all from 2012-13 because he was on a Mormon mission, so his arm is relatively fresh. Mahoney had a 2.29 ERA (2.99 FIP) in 55 innings for Short Season Staten Island and is a four-pitch starter: low-90s fastball plus a curveball, slider, and changeup. His command is good considering his relative inexperience and he has the stuff to stay in the rotation.

Position Player Prospects

The 2015 draft wasn’t all pitchers, just mostly pitchers. In addition to Holder, the best position player prospects the Yankees drafted this summer are Florida Southern OF Jhalan Jackson (seventh) and Florida JuCo OF Isiah Gilliam (20th). Florida JuCo OF Trey Amburgey (13th) had an incredible pro debut — he hit .335/.388/.502 (161 wRC+) in 62 games split between the GCL and Short Season Staten Island — and has tools, but is more interesting sleeper than bonafide prospect.

Jackson hit .266/.338/.452 (133 wRC+) with Short Season Staten Island and showed off both his raw power (five homers and .186 ISO) and swing-and-missability (29.8 K%). He has classic right field tools, meaning power, a strong arm, and some speed. Jackson can hit a mistake a mile but must improve against breaking balls and with pitch recognition in general to succeed at the upper levels.

The Yankees gave Gilliam a well-above slot $450,000 bonus and he showed a more advanced approach than expected in pro ball, hitting .296/.359/.415 (132 wRC+) with a 15.0% strikeout rate and a 9.8% walk rate in 42 GCL games. He hit only one homer, but power remains his calling card. Gilliam’s a switch-hitter with thump from both sides, and his athleticism allowed him to move to the outfield after being drafted as a first baseman.

Oregon State OF Jeff Hendrix (fourth), Texas JuCo IF Brandon Wagner (sixth), and Arizona HS 3B Donny Sands (eighth) are other position player draftees worth keeping an eye on. Wagner has the most power, Sands the most two-way ability, and Hendrix the highest probability. He could help as a speedy fourth outfielder down the line.

* * *

The draft is always a lot of fun and super exciting … then the novelty quickly wears off. It usually doesn’t take long for the prospects to separate themselves from the suspects. Even the lowest levels of professional baseball are hard. Almost every pro player was the best player on his college or high school team, after all.

The Yankees landed themselves a very good starter pitching prospect (Kaprielian) and a very good bullpen prospect (Adams) in the 2015 draft. They added three more solid arms (Degano, Finley, Rogers), several position players with carrying tools (Holder, Jackson, Gilliam), and a few promising late-rounders (Carter, Mahoney). There’s still plenty of time for others to emerge, but right now, six months after the draft, those guys are the keys to the 2015 draft for the Yankees.

Prospect Profile: Kyle Holder

December 2, 2015 by Mike Leave a Comment

Kyle Holder | SS

Background
Holder is a San Diego native who played both baseball and basketball at University City High School. Baseball America did not rank him among the top 500 prospects for the 2012 draft. Holder went undrafted out of high school and headed to Grossmont College, a two-year school, and originally intended to play both sports before deciding to focus full-time on baseball.

During his lone season at Grossmont, Holder hit .405/.477/.446 with eleven walks and only four strikeouts in 38 games. Baseball America (subs. req’d) didn’t rank him among the top 500 prospects for the 2013 draft — Holder was draft-eligible because he went to a junior college, though he went undrafted again — but his big spring did catch the eye of several major Division I programs.

Holder was recruited by UNLV, UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara, and UC Riverside, among other schools, but chose to stay close to home and attend the University of San Diego. He took over as the Toreros starting shortstop and hit .295/.358/.403 with three home runs, 15 walks, and 16 strikeouts in 52 games in 2014. After the season Holder played with the Cotuit Kettleers in the prestigious Cape Cod League and hit .274/.398/.301 in 20 games.

As a junior this past spring, Holder broke out offensively, hitting .348/.418/.482 with four home runs and as many walks as strikeouts (19 each) in 55 games. Baseball America ranked him as the 38th best prospect in the 2015 draft and the Yankees grabbed him with their supplemental first round pick, No. 30 overall. That was the compensation pick for losing David Robertson to free agency. Holder signed quickly for $1.8M, slightly below the $1.91M slot value.

Pro Debut
The Yankees assigned Holder to Short Season Staten Island this summer and he hit .213/.273/.253 (57 wRC+) in 56 games and 250 plate appearances while batting a nagging thumb injury that caused him to miss 20 games over the course of the season. The Yankees then had Holder take part in Instructional League in September and October.

Scouting Report
Holder is a defense-first prospect. He’s ultra-athletic at 6-foot-1 and 185 lbs., and many reports dubbed him the best defensive player at any position in the draft and best defensive college shortstop in several years. Holder has good instincts, good range, a quick first step, soft hands, and a strong arm capable of making plays deep in the hole. He’s a no-doubt shortstop long-term who is an above-average defender right now with the potential to be more in the future.

At the plate, Holder is very much a work in progress. It’s unlikely he’ll ever be an above-average hitter because he lacks power — even the most optimistic folks project him to be a single-digit homer guy — despite having a bit of an uppercut swing. The Yankees have already gone to work with Holder, getting him to stand a bit more upright and do a better job of keeping his weight back. Here’s some video:

If you’re interested, here’s video of Holder with San Diego in May. The Yankees have shortened his base a bit and straightened him up, though there is obviously still work to be done.

Offensively, Holder’s best attribute is his bat-to-ball skills from the left side of the plate. He makes contact fairly easily and knows the strike zone, so it’s a matter of improving the quality of his contact, not revamping his approach. Holder’s a good runner but doesn’t have big time speed. He’s going to be a bottom of the order hitter whose primary value comes in the field. And, for what it’s worth, Holder has drawn praise for his work ethic and leadership skills.

2016 Outlook
Although he’s a college player who spent the last two seasons at a major program, Holder has only been playing baseball full-time for three years, so he’s not really in position to shoot up the minor league ladder. The Yankees have a ton of shortstop prospects in the low minors, most notably Jorge Mateo, who will open 2016 with High-A Tampa. That likely means Holder will open next season with Low-A Charleston. The Yankees have a lot of lower level shortstop prospects and sorting out playing time will be a challenge the next year or two.

My Take
I thought the Holder pick was fine in the sense that he was a supplemental first round pick talent, but didn’t love it because he’s a pretty low upside player. His value is tied to his defense — and to be fair, by all accounts he’s a great defender at an up-the-middle position — and if some swing changes don’t take, his bat may top out in Single-A.

At the same time, Holder has a carrying tool in his defense, and that’s a big deal at a premium position. Brett Gardner was overlooked in the minors because appeared to lack offensive upside even though his center field glove gave him a chance to stick as a regular. (Then Gardner learned how to hit, so yeah.) Holder’s detractors have already dug in and he will be heavily scrutinized. I like to think I have an open mind, though there’s no doubt the development of Holder’s bat will be under the microscope going forward.

Acevedo, Jackson, Holder among Baseball America’s top 20 NY-Penn League prospects

September 25, 2015 by Mike Leave a Comment

Baseball America’s look at the top 20 prospects in each minor league continued today with the Short Season NY-Penn League. As always, the list is free but the scouting reports are not. You need a subscription for those. Red Sox OF Andrew Benintendi owns the top spot and is following by Nationals OF Victor Robles.

The Yankees have three players on the list: RHP Domingo Acevedo (No. 3), OF Jhalan Jackson (No. 10), and SS Kyle Holder (No. 18). Acevedo was slated to open the season with Low-A Charleston before a blister forced him back to Extended Spring Training for several weeks, leading to his assignment to the Staten Island Yankees. Jackson (seventh round) and Holder (supplemental first) were 2015 draft picks.

“Acevedo hit 103 mph at least once this summer and routinely worked his fastball at or around triple digits. He sits 95-96 mph early in starts but reaches back for 98-100 when he needs it,” said the write-up, which also noted Acevedo’s penchant for overthrowing. He also has a “plus changeup at 85-88 mph” and a below-average slider he can throw for strikes. The write-up likens the 6-foot-7 Acevedo to a young Dellin Betances.

Jackson claiming a spot in a top ten is surprising, though the scouting report says his “power is a legitimate plus tool.” That’s a good tool to have. “Jackson has profile right-field tools, with a plus arm and at least average speed,” added the write-up. Jackson is also said to have a raw approach at the plate and can get caught guessing at times. That’s a big obstacle to overcome, but you can’t teach this kind of power and athleticism.

As for Holder, the scouting report says “most scouts and evaluators agree that Holder is a plus defender, with some going so far to say that he is the best defensive college shortstop they’ve ever seen.” His defensive tools — body control, movement, hands, instincts, etc. — all draw big time praise. Holder’s offense is the question. “Few project him to be an impact offensive player because of his uphill swing, lack of power and substandard bat speed,” said the write-up.

Acevedo, 21, had a 1.69 ERA (2.85 FIP) with very good strikeout (27.7%) and walk (7.7%) rates in 48 innings with the Staten Island Yanks. The 22-year-old Jackson hit .266/.338/.452 (133 wRC+) with five homers and a 29.8% strikeout rate in 49 games. Holder? The 21-year-old hit .213/.273/.253 (57 wRC+) with a 13.6% strikeout rate in 56 games. Yuck. Both he and Jackson missed time with minor injuries.

In the subscriber-only chat, Michael Lananna says RHP James Kaprielian “would’ve likely ranked in the top 5” had he thrown enough innings with Staten Island to qualify for the list. “I heard nothing but positive things,” Lananna added. “I think he could be a fast riser. Some have said he could’ve pitched out of the major league bullpen this year, but obviously that’s not going to happen … He’s a polished, promising pitching prospect.”

The next list of interest to Yankees fans is the Low-A South Atlantic League. That’ll be out sometime next week. SS Jorge Mateo is a lock — he won’t get the top spot (Red Sox 2B Yoan Moncada almost certainly will) but he figures to rank high — and others like OF Dustin Fowler, SS Angel Aguilar, and RHP Jordan Foley have an outside chance to make it too. LHP Jordan Montgomery may fall just short of qualifying for the list because of his quick promotion.

Other league top 20s: Rookie Gulf Coast League, Rookie Appalachian League

2015 Draft: Yankees sign supplemental first rounder Kyle Holder

June 15, 2015 by Mike 144 Comments

Monday: Holder signed for $1.8M, reports Jonathan Mayo. So slightly below slot but not substantially so. Here is our 2015 Draft Pool Tracker.

Friday: According to his Twitter feed, shortstop Kyle Holder has officially signed with the Yankees. There’s no word on his signing bonus yet. Holder was the team’s supplemental first round pick in this week’s draft, the 30th overall selection. That’s the pick the Yankees received as compensation for losing David Robertson to free agency.

Holder, 21, was drafted out of the University of San Diego. He has been billed as a great defender — some scouting reports called him the single best defensive player in the draft, regardless of position — which a questionable bat, though the Yankees think the offense will come. Everything you need to know about Holder is right here.

“I got more text messages from scouts from within the game — cross-checkers, scouting directors — about how good a pick (Holder) was, more than any other pick we took,” said scouting director Damon Oppenheimer to Chad Jennings. “From the left side, to go along with what he does defensively, he’s going to be a fine offensive player to go along with some stellar defense at shortstop.”

The 30th overall pick comes with a $1,914,900 bonus slot and I have no reason to think Holder signed for substantially more or less than that. He probably took straight slot money, though we’ll find out soon enough. Now that he’s already signed, Holder will likely play with the Short Season Staten Island Yankees when their season begins next week.

2015 Draft: Yankees balance probability with projects on Day One

June 9, 2015 by Mike 405 Comments

Day One of the 2015 amateur draft was both surprising yet completely predictable for the Yankees. They used their first round pick on a player they’ve been connected to for weeks, and they did take three college players with their three picks. New York’s second and third selections seemed to come out of left field though. At least in the sense that we hadn’t seen them connected to those players this spring.

The Yankees went probability first, upside second on Day One this year. Getting safe players — safe by draft standards, which means not safe at all! — likely to contribute at the MLB level was the priority over getting players with impact potential. That’s nothing fans want to hear, of course, but it’s very easy to say they should take more risk when you’re not the one with your neck on the line. And besides, the Yankees haven’t had much success developing their risky picks the last few years. Let’s review Day One.

Fit The Profile
UCLA RHP James Kaprielian fit the Yankees’ profile so perfectly that I’m not sure why I ever thought they might take someone else once we knew was going to be available. Deep repertoire? Check. Command? Check. Big? He’s listed at 6-foot-4 and 200 lbs., so check there too. Southern California product? Also check. Scouting director Damon Oppenheimer loves his SoCal pitchers. He shows it year after year.

“Kaprielian is a guy we’ve scouted for a long time, and we’re really happy we were able to get him,” said Oppenheimer in a statement following the draft last night. “He has three quality pitches, throws strikes and generates a lot of swings-and-misses. On top of that, he has great make-up. He compiled a quality track record in a good league and performed well for Team USA.”

Kaprielian, who the Yankees selected with their first round pick (16th overall), was the team’s safe pick on Day One. Safe by baseball draft standards, I mean. No prospect is ever really safe. Kaprielian throws three pitches, including a fastball that jumped from 89-92 mph to 93-95 mph later in the spring, as well a very good changeup and a solid curveball. He locates all three pitches well and has even messed around with a slider/cutter at times.

Pitchers with good fastballs who can control two offspeed pitches tend to have a ton of success at the college level, which Kaprielian certainly did with the Bruins. The Yankees have had some success developing pitchers like Kaprielian, the polished college guys, though he has better command than someone like David Phelps and better stuff than someone like Adam Warren. He’s someone they can just plug into the farm system and not worry a whole lot about. Safe is boring, but safe also has value.

Carrying Tool
In the wake of Derek Jeter’s retirement, the Yankees have gone full doomsday hoarder with shortstop prospects. They signed several top shortstops as international free agents last year, traded for young Didi Gregorius in the offseason, and selected San Diego SS Kyle Holder with the 30th overall pick last night. That was the compensation pick for David Robertson.

“Holder is about as elite a defender as we’ve seen come through the college ranks. He’s got a tremendous glove. He also had a productive year offensively and does not swing and miss,” said Oppenheimer after making the pick. Holder fits the no hit/all glove mold, which is far from exciting, but that’s also Holder’s starting point. He’s not a finished product and he did hit .348/.418/.482 with as many walks and strikeouts (19) in a major college conference this spring, so it’s not as if he’s never hit.

What Holder offers more than anything is a carrying tool in his high-end defense. Quality shortstops are hard to find. There’s a reason dudes like Brendan Ryan stay in the league for a decade. The Yankees have to figure out a way to get Holder to be a passable hitter — the league average shortstop is hitting .246/.297/.356 (80 wRC+) this season, by the way — to maximize his value, which won’t be easy. Frankly the Yankees have kinda sucked at developing bats lately and there are reasons to doubt their ability to help Holder.

The Yankees took on a project with Holder and it’s fair to question his overall upside. The best case scenario seems like a solid regular, which would be a pretty great outcome for the 30th overall pick, but Holder is also extremely likely to get to the show as a defensive specialist, even as an up-and-down utility guy. Holder is starting from a pretty high base and any sort of development with his bat suddenly puts him in the everyday player conversation.

Long-Awaited Lefty
The history of the New York Yankees is littered with great left-handed starters, from Whitey Ford to Ron Guidry to Andy Pettitte to CC Sabathia. They’re the Bronx Bombers first and foremost, yes, but their historic success is also built on quality southpaws. For some reason that demographic has been largely ignored in recent years, with 2013 draftee Ian Clarkin the notable exception.

The Yankees went back to their roots with their third selection on Day One, taking Indiana State LHP Jeff Degano with their second round pick, 57th overall. “Degano is a left-hander with a low-to-mid-90s fastball and a good breaking ball. He throws a lot of strikes and has a quality athletic body,” said Oppenheimer of the 6-foot-4, 200 lb. southpaw. A power lefty? Where have guys like this been lately?

Of course, Degano is not without risk. He’s already blown out once, having Tommy John surgery back in 2013, forcing him to miss most of that season and the entire 2014 season as well. Degano started this spring a little rusty but was much better down the stretch and climbed draft boards as he started looking more like the pre-elbow injury version of himself. The Yankees are banking on that history.

More than anything, the Yankees are rolling the dice on a big southpaw with a power fastball and a quality breaking ball. Degano missed bats all spring — he struck out 126 batters (99 innings) this year, seventh most in Division I, and he did it while walking only 28 batters — and he’s a changeup away from being a no-doubt starter, the kind of lefty starter the Yankees have lacked since Sabathia’s fade started. Learning a changeup is not easy, but the guys who already have changeups go in the first round, like Kaprielian.

* * *

The Yankees had … well I’d say sort of an atypical Day One. Kaprielian is a classic Oppenheimer pick but Holder and Degano are unlike any of their recent high selections. They’ve gone for big bats (Eric Jagielo and Aaron Judge), raw and toolsy athletes (Mason Williams and Slade Heathcott), or prep hurlers (Clarkin and Ty Hensley) the last three or four years. Holder and Degano are none of those things.

This draft was more about probability. Kaprielian’s very likely to be a big league starter as long as he stays healthy. Holder’s defense at a premium position means the offensive bar is low, and Degano will get a million chances as a lefty who misses bats. Even if he doesn’t learn a changeup, he goes to the bullpen to be a poor man’s Jacob Lindgren. The Yankees went safe on Day One this year, safe but with two project players in Holder and Degano who have the potential to be big league regulars with the fall back option of being high probability useful players.

2015 Draft: Yankees select San Diego SS Kyle Holder with supplemental first round pick

June 8, 2015 by Mike 341 Comments

Once again, the Yankees turned to the college ranks for their second pick in the 2015 draft. The team selected San Diego SS Kyle Holder with the the 30th overall pick Monday night. This is the supplemental first round pick they received for losing David Robertson to free agency.

Holder, 21, hit .348/.418/.482 with 14 doubles, four homers, five steals, 19 walks, and 19 strikeouts in 55 games for the Toreros this spring. He was considered arguably the best defensive player in the entire draft class, regardless of position. Here are some scouting report tidbits.

Baseball America (38th ranked prospect):

The athletic 6-foot-1, 185-pounder doesn’t run better than average and has an uphill lefthanded swing path, which one scout compared to a cricket swing. However, Holder has shown a knack for the barrel this spring and makes consistent contact. He’s unlikely to make an impact offensively but should defensively, where scouts give him grades ranging from 55 to 70. He has an average-to-plus arm to go with excellent, instinctive actions and footwork.

MLB.com (51st ranked prospect):

Unlike many college shortstops, there are absolutely no questions about Holder’s ability to stay at the premium position long-term. He has outstanding hands, range and footwork to go along with a strong arm and the athleticism that made him a good shooting guard carries over to baseball. The questions start to come when discussing his bat. While he is performing in his junior year and rarely strikes out, he’s still learning how to take good at-bats consistently, and power is never going to be a part of his game.

Keith Law (subs. req’d) ranked Holder as the 91st best prospect in the draft in his latest rankings, but did not write up an individual scouting report. For what it’s worth, Holder was a standout basketball player growing up and he didn’t focus on baseball full-time until two years ago, so he doesn’t have the same level of experience or polish as most college players. Here’s video:

I seem to be one of the few people who has no problem with the Holder pick. I actually think there’s some upside there — he’s got the defensive part of the game figured out and now just needs to gain experience and work on his offense. Is Holder going to be a middle of the order hitter? No, of course not. But I think his chances of developing into a non-zero with the bat are better than he’s getting credit for.

Now, that said, the Yankees haven’t had much success developing bats in recent years, and I don’t think we can give them the benefit of the doubt with Holder either. Getting him to improve his offense is a tall order. Also, this pick continues the team’s weird recent trend of prioritizing defense to the point that they are willing to punt offense to get it. Not sure what sparked that but it’s kinda annoying.

Anyway, slot money for the 30th overall pick is $1,914,900 and the signing deadline is Friday, July 17th. There’s no reason to think Holder will be a tough sign, and heck, he might even sign below slot. We’ll see.