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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.

Prospect Profile: Rodney Hutchison

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(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.

Prospect Profile: Ryder Green

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Green at the 2017 East Coast Pro Showcase in Tampa. (Cliff Welch/Getty)

Ryder Green | OF

Background
Green, 18, grew up in Knoxville and attended three high schools in four years. He spent his freshman and sophomore years at Hardin Valley Academy, his junior year at Knoxville Christian School, and his senior year at Karns High School. Green made a name for himself with his batting practice displays on the summer showcase circuit, and as a senior this spring he hit .462 with double-digit home runs while playing with wood bats.

Going into the 2018 draft MLB.com and Keith Law (subs. req’d) both ranked Green as the 82nd best prospect in the draft class while Baseball America (subs. req’d) ranked him 98th. The Yankees selected him with their third round pick, the 97th overall selection, and signed him to an overslot $997,500 bonus. Slot money for the 97th pick was $576,400. Green had leverage because he was committed to Vanderbilt, a top school and baseball program.

Pro Debut
The Yankees sent Green to the rookie Gulf Coast League for his pro debut and he hit .203/.316/.392 (101 wRC+) with three home runs and three stolen bases, plus a healthy walk rate (11.6%). Green also posted astronomical strikeout (36.8%) and swing-and-miss (37.8%) rates. He struck out at least once in 19 of his 26 games this summer. Green participated in Instructional League after the season.

Scouting Report
Green is a slugger first and a hitter second. He’s not the biggest dude (6-foot-0 and 200 lbs.) but he has excellent bat speed and raw strength, and was one of the top power hitting prospects in the 2018 draft. Statcast recorded premium exit velocity numbers when Green participated in showcase events at pro parks. The bat speed and raw pop project out to 30+ home runs down the line. The power is legit.

With that power comes a lot of swing-and-misses. Green knows the strike zone but he does sell out for power, especially in hitter’s counts, and that produces less contact that you’d like. It’s a real question as to whether Green will ever make enough contact to tap into that huge power potential in games.

Green is more than a one-dimensional slugger. He’s a good athlete who runs well and can play center field right now, though chances are he’ll move to right field down the line. Green has a very strong arm — he pitched in the low-90s and showed a nifty little curveball in high school — so he projects to add value on the bases and in the field. The power and speed and defense give him All-Star potential if he ever figures out how to make consistent contact.

2019 Outlook
An 18-year-old kid with these swing-and-miss and contact issues is a very safe bet to wind up in Extended Spring Training to begin next season. Green will stay at the home base in Tampa until the short season leagues being their seasons in late June. An assignment to Rookie Pulaski or Short Season Staten Island is a safe bet. I would be really surprised if Green sees anything more than a late-season cameo with Low-A Charleston next year.

My Take
I like Green’s potential but the swing-and-miss issues are an big obstacle. The Yankees successfully turned a similar prospect in an MVP caliber producer with Aaron Judge, though that had as much to do with Judge’s hitting acumen and ability to make adjustments as it did the team’s development folks. Can Green make similar adjustments? Probably not because few can, but the Yankees deemed it worth a third round pick and close to a million bucks to find out. I am very intrigued by Green’s ability but he has a lot of work to do to become a big leaguer.

Prospect Profile: Frank German

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(Jon Monaghan/Broken Bat Media)

Frank German | RHP

Background
German, 21, was born in Queens and he grew up about a half hour north of Tampa in Spring Hills, Florida. He was not a significant pro prospect coming out of Bishop McLaughlin Catholic High School — Baseball America (subs. req’d) didn’t rank him among the top 500 prospects for the 2016 draft — so he went undrafted and followed through on his commitment to the University of North Florida.

As a freshman with the Ospreys, German split time between the rotation and bullpen, and finished the season with a 4.91 ERA and 22/13 K/BB in 33 innings. He pitched for the Madison Mallards of the wood bat Northwoods League that summer and threw 45 innings with a 2.60 ERA and 38/22 K/BB. Baseball America (subs. req’d) did not rank him among the top ten prospects in the circuit after the season.

German moved into the rotation full-time as a sophomore and was dominant, posting a 2.43 ERA with 76/26 K/BB in 81 innings. That earned him a spot on the All-Conference First Team and put him on the 2018 draft map. So did his stint with the Wareham Gateman of the Cop Cod League that summer. German struck out 17 in 12.2 relief innings, though Baseball America (subs. req’d) didn’t rank him among the league’s top 30 prospects.

As a junior this past spring German emerged as one of the best college pitchers in the country. He threw 91.1 innings with a 1.58 ERA and 108/14 K/BB, and was again named to the All-Conference First Team. German was also a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award, which is given annually to the best amateur player in the country. It’s not quite the equivalent of the Heisman Trophy (high schoolers can win it, technically), but it’s close.

Baseball America (subs. req’d) ranked German as the 157th best prospect in the 2018 draft class while MLB.com ranked him 191st. The Yankees selected him with their fourth round pick, the 127th overall selection, and signed him within a week of the draft to a below-slot $347,500 bonus. Slot money for the 127th overall pick was $430,400. German is the highest draft pitcher (and third highest drafted player overall) in North Florida history.

Pro Debut
The Yankees took it easy on German after his big college workload, plus the fact he pitched spring and summer ball the previous two years. He made one tune-up appearance in the rookie Gulf Coast League before moving up to Short Season Staten Island, where he made six starts and five relief appearances. All told, German threw 28.1 innings with a 2.22 ERA (1.44 FIP) and 38/6 K/BB for Staten Island. That works out to a 33.3% strikeout rate and a 5.3% walk rate. German did not participate in Instructional League after the season for workload reasons.

Scouting Report
The Yankees have already worked their arm strength magic with German. He saw his fastball jump into the 94-96 mph range with a few 98s in pro ball after sitting mostly 90-94 mph in college. The Yankees have a knack for getting their pitching prospects to add velocity and German is the latest example. He was 94-96 mph with Staten Island and we’ll see whether he holds it across a full season in 2019.

German’s breaking ball sat somewhere between a curveball and a slider in college and the Yankees are working with him to firm it up into a true slider. It’s a hard low-to-mid-80s offering that has flashed swing-and-miss potential throughout his career. He also has a sneaky good mid-80s changeup that tumbles down and away from left-handed batters. German has the makings of three quality pitches and he’s not shy about pitching in the strike zone.

German has good size (6-foot-2 and 195 lbs.) and good athleticism, and he repeats his delivery fairly effortlessly. Going forward, the question is whether he can develop that slurvy breaking ball into a legitimate out pitch. If he does, he has enough fastball and enough command and enough of a third pitch to start long-term. If not, German will probably settle into a relief role, and there’s nothing wrong with that nowadays.

2019 Outlook
The Yankees have a ton of good lower level pitching prospects and the numbers crunch may determine German’s ultimate 2019 assignment. Normally an Opening Day assignment to High-A Tampa would be the likely outcome for a prospect like this. Albert Abreu, Freicer Perez, and the Garcias (Deivi and Rony) may already be ticketed for Tampa though, leaving just one available rotation spot. Even if he gets pushed down to Low-A Charleston to begin the season, I don’t expect German to stay there long. My money’s on him finishing 2019 with Double-A Trenton no matter what path he takes to get there.

My Take
I like German. Probably more than I should. I like that he’s already added some velocity (again, we’ll see if it sticks) and I like that he already has a pretty good changeup. Yeah, he does have to figure out his breaking ball, but what do you expect from a fourth round bonus pool saving pick? (Some of the $82,900 the Yankees saved with German went to second rounder Josh Breaux.) You’re not getting three MLB ready pitches and command in the fourth round.

I’m not sure the numbers will tell us a whole lot about German next season. As successful as he was in the Atlantic Sun Conference the last two years (ASUN is an MLB pitcher factory), I’m not sure Low-A and High-A hitters will challenge him much. Throw enough strikes with the fastball and flash a good secondary pitch and you’ll do okay in Single-A ball. We might not learn much about German until he reaches Double-A, which of course could be as soon as next year. I don’t see a future star or anything, but I think the tools are there for German to be a useful big leaguer in the future.

Prospect Profile: Josh Breaux

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(Eric Jenks/Times Union)

Josh Breaux | C

Background
Breaux turned 21 last month and he grew up outside Houston in Tomball, Texas. He hit .485/.528/.818 as a senior at Tomball High School but wasn’t drafted in 2016. Breaux headed to McLennan Community College in Waco.

As a freshman with the Highlanders, Breaux authored a .401/.473/.773 batting line with 18 doubles and 19 homers in 59 games, and he also struck out 22 with a 4.73 ERA in 13.1 relief innings. Baseball America (subs. req’d) ranked him as the 301st best prospect in the 2017 draft class. The Astros selected Breaux in the 36th round but couldn’t get him to sign.

After the season Breaux headed to the Cape Cod League and more than held his own with wood bats against elite college pitching. He hit .271/.310/.474 with nine doubles and six homers in 35 games for the Falmouth Commodores. Despite that, Baseball America (subs. req’d) did not rank him among the top 50 Cape Cod League prospects that summer.

Breaux returned to McLennan for his sophomore year and hit .404/.532/.831 with 14 doubles and 18 homers in 56 games this past spring. He didn’t see much action on the mound, throwing only four scoreless and hitless innings with eight strikeouts. MLB.com ranked Breaux as the 71st best prospect in the 2018 draft class. Baseball America (subs. req’d) ranked him 88th.

The Yankees selected Breaux with their second round pick, the 61st overall selection, in this year’s draft. Special advisor Nick Swisher, the ultimate baseball bro, announced the Breaux pick during the MLB Network draft broadcast. Part of me thinks the Yankees did this intentionally.

As a draft-eligible sophomore slated to transfer to Arkansas, Breaux had some leverage, and he turned it into an overslot $1.5M bonus. Slot money for the 61st pick was just under $1.1M. Breaux signed about a week after the draft, so this wasn’t a prolonged negotiation.

Pro Debut
After a quick three-game tune-up in the rookie Gulf Coast League, the Yankees assigned Breaux to the short season Staten Island Yankees, where he hit .280/.295/.370 (94 wRC+) in 27 games around a minor hamstring injury. Breaux didn’t hit a home run in his pro debut, but he did bang nine doubles in those 27 games. The hamstring was a non-issue during Instructional League after the season.

Scouting Report
Built solidly at 6-foot-1 and 220 lbs., Breaux looks the part of a power-hitting catcher, and power is his calling card offensively. He projects to have well-above-average raw power from the right side and he sells out to get to it. Breaux takes a big maximum effort swing and, as a result, he’ll swing and miss quite a bit, as his 16.1% swing-and-miss rate with Staten Island shows. When he connects though, gosh, the ball tends to go a long way.

Breaux is an aggressive hacker at the plate — he walked only three times in his 27 games with Staten Island (2.9%) — who was able to keep his strikeout rate (18.4%) down during his pro debut. The approach is a long-term concern though. Breaux has to develop more plate discipline and also remain more controlled at the plate. He doesn’t have to take a max effort swing to drive the ball. Once he learns to tone it down a notch, he’ll take a step forward as a hitter.

While the power potential is exciting, Breaux’s single best tool is his throwing arm. He regularly sat in the upper-90s in one-inning stints in college and touched 100 mph on occasion. Breaux was a legitimate pro prospect as a pitcher but he prefers to catch and the Yankees will keep him behind the plate. If the plate discipline never comes around and catching doesn’t work out, getting up on the mound could be an option down the road.

Breaux’s arm is obviously a weapon behind the plate, and he’s improved in the other aspects of being a catcher since his high school days. He’s a good receiver and he moves well blocking the ball. All those young power arms the Yankees have in the lower minors will give him a good workout behind the plate going forward. Breaux is a good athlete who runs well, enough that he could move to the outfield down the line, if necessary.

“Josh Breaux is another guy with a really good makeup. He’s still young as a junior college guy, but his arm is huge and he has raw power. His ability to hit has really matured this year,” scouting director Damon Oppenheimer said after the draft. “With Breaux, we think we have an impact tools guy who’s a catcher. You’re talking about a big, strong player who shows up and people understand right away why you took him.”

2019 Outlook
I have to think Breaux is ticketed for Low-A Charleston next season, where he very well could end up sharing catching duties with first round pick Anthony Seigler a la Gary Sanchez and John Ryan Murphy back in the day. Breaux starting the season with Charleston and then moving up to High-A Tampa at midseason — allowing Seigler to catch full-time with the RiverDogs — would seem to be the ideal scenario. There’s always a chance the Yankees hold Breaux back in Extended Spring Training because catching is hard and they like to give those guys extra attention, but that would surprise me.

My Take
I am intrigued but not in love. Catchers with power are forever cool with me, especially when they have a rocket arm, but Breaux has some very real plate discipline issues to address, and that’s never easy. Hopefully things click for Breaux and he learns how to better control the strike zone, because if he does, he could become a truly elite hitter at his position. If not, upper level pitchers will pick him apart. That said, quality catchers are hard to find, and Breaux has the tools to remain behind the plate, even if his plate discipline means he becomes a Miguel Olivo clone long-term.

Prospect Profile: Anthony Seigler

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(Getty)

Anthony Seigler | C

Background
Seigler, 19, grew up outside Atlanta in Cartersville, Georgia, and his father named him after former big leaguer and longtime friend Tony Phillips. As a senior at Cartersville High School last spring, Seigler hit .421 with 13 home runs while posting a 1.90 ERA with 29 strikeouts and six walks in 25.2 innings.

Prior to the 2018 draft Keith Law (subs. req’d) ranked Seigler as the 25th best prospect in the class. Baseball America (subs. req’d) ranked him 41st and MLB.com ranked him 46th, though mock drafts consistently put Seigler in the back half of the first round. The Yankees selected Seigler with their first round pick, the 23rd overall selection. He was at the MLB Network studios for the draft broadcast.

Pretty cool. Seigler was committed to the University of Florida but there were never questions about his desire to turn pro. “There’s no doubt in my mind that I’m definitely going to sign with the Yankees. This is a no-brainer for me,” he said the night of the draft. Five days later, the Yankees signed him to a straight slot $2,815,900 bonus.

Pro Debut
Seigler played 12 games with the rookie Gulf Coast League Yankees and another 12 games with the rookie Pulaski Yankees after signing. He hit .266/.379/.342 (108 wRC+) with one home run and more walks (14) than strikeouts (12) in his 24 games. A hamstring issue sidelined him for two weeks in July and his season ended a week early after he took a foul tip to the face mask and suffered a concussion. Seigler was healthy enough to be a full participant in Instructional League after the season.

Scouting Report
Widely considered the most defensively advanced high school catcher in the 2018 draft class, Seigler is build solidly at 6-foot-0 and 200 lbs., and he’s a very good athlete who should have no trouble moving to third base or the outfield should the catching thing not work out. That said, Seigler is considered a no-doubt long-term catcher because he receives well — he caught all those big velocity low level arms the Yankees have with no trouble in his pro debut — moves well behind the plate, and has a good arm.

In fact, Seigler has two good arms. He’s an ambidextrous thrower a la Pat Venditte. Seigler pitched with both arms as an amateur. From the right side, he sits in the low-90s and features a slider. He’s a bit more crafty from the left side, working in the mid-to-upper-80s and lulling hitters to sleep with a changeup. The Yankees intend to keep Seigler behind the plate. It wouldn’t be fair to call him a novelty act on the mound — Seigler would’ve been a two-way player with the Gators — but he wasn’t much of a pro prospect as a pitcher. Catcher was always his long-term home.

Seigler is a true switch-hitter with more power from the left side — or, more accurately, he hits the ball in the air more often from the right side — but a line drive stroke with good strike zone discipline from both sides. He is expected to hit for average and get on base down the road while racking up doubles more than dingers. Then again, power is hard to project these days, so who knows. Weird home run things happen with the MLB ball. Here’s some video (here’s video of him switch-pitching):

Seigler is more of a “he does everything well but nothing exceptionally” guy rather than “wow look at that standout tool” guy. He’s well-rounded and he projects to remain at the hardest position to fill in the sport. Seigler also draws rave reviews for his makeup and work ethic — “(He’s) consistently referred to as one of the toughest players in the prep class,” said Baseball America’s pre-draft scouting report — and he even asked for a Spanish-speaking roommate this summer so he could work on learning the language. Pretty cool.

“The thing that attracts you to Seigler is that he has the tools to catch, and he’s a switch-hitter, which makes him a unique commodity,” said scouting director Damon Oppenheimer on draft night. “He’s showing power from both sides of the plate, has really great instincts for baseball, a plus arm and runs well for a catcher. On top of that, he’s proven to be versatile, with his ability to play other positions. Seigler’s got top-of-the-line makeup. We’re very happy about him.”

2019 Outlook
Catchers, especially high school catchers, tend to be moved slowly early in their careers because there’s so much to learn defensively. Over the last few years nearly every high school catcher drafted in the first three rounds started his first full professional season in Extended Spring Training before joining a short season league in June. Seigler might be one of the exceptions. He’s advanced enough offensively and defensively that the Yankees could send him right to Low-A Charleston to begin next season. We’ll see. Either way, ExST or Charleston, I don’t expect Seigler to play above Low-A in 2019. High school catchers generally aren’t the fastest risers, you know?

My Take
Switch-hitting catchers are my jam and I love Seigler. He is pretty much everything the modern front office looks for in a player. He’s athletic, he has two-way ability, high-end baseball smarts, and he’s tough as nails. I don’t know whether the Yankees would do it, but a team like the Dodgers or Rays might have Seigler play some outfield in addition to catcher, just to increase his versatility and make him more flexible in the three-man bench era.

The Yankees are very good at developing catchers (Francisco Cervelli, Kyle Higashioka, John Ryan Murphy, Austin Romine, Gary Sanchez, etc.) so Seigler is in good hands. That doesn’t mean he’s guaranteed to work out. But I feel pretty good about the chances of a kid with this skill set under this development staff turning into a big leaguer. With Justus Sheffield poised to graduate to the big leagues next season, Seigler is the early favorite to be the Yankees’ top prospect at this time next year.

Prospect Profile: Cody Carroll

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(Zachary Lucy/AP)

Cody Carroll | RHP

Background
Carroll, who turned 25 in October, grew up outside Nashville in Mount Juliet, Tennessee. He was not a significant prospect at Mount Juliet High School — Baseball America did not rank him among the top 41 prospects in the state or the top 500 prospects in the country for the 2011 draft — and Carroll’s stock dropped even further when he blew out his elbow and needed Tommy John surgery as a senior. He went undrafted out of high school.

Carroll followed through on his commitment to Southern Mississippi and took a medical redshirt as a freshman as he rehabbed from elbow reconstruction. He completed his rehab in time to pitch for the Center Moriches Battlecats, then of the Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League, during the summer. It did not go well. Carroll had a 7.39 ERA with a 34/32 K/BB in 28 innings. Ouch. Chalk that up to post-Tommy John surgery rust.

Injuries continued to hamper Carroll in 2013 and 2014. He was limited to two relief appearances as a redshirt freshman in 2013, allowing three runs on two hits and a walk in three innings. In 2014, Carroll was limited to eleven starts and 49.2 innings, during which he had a 3.99 ERA and a 39/19 K/BB. Not bad at all for a guy who hadn’t pitched all that much in the three previous years. The nature of his 2013 and 2014 injuries is unknown.

Finally healthy in 2015, Carroll broke out in his final college season, pitching to a 3.08 ERA with an 87/47 K/BB in 96.1 innings. That put him on the draft map. Baseball America ranked Carroll as the third best prospect in Mississippi and the 444th best prospect nationwide going into the 2015 draft. The Yankees selected him with their 22nd round pick (663rd overall) and signed him quickly to a $70,000 bonus, below the $100,000 allotment for picks after the 10th round.

Pro Career
The Yankees took it easy on Carroll during his pro debut after his big spring workload at Southern Miss and all his injuries from 2011-14. He worked exclusively as a reliever with the rookie level Pulaski Yankees after signing, throwing 25.2 innings with a 1.75 ERA (3.36 FIP) and a 26/14 K/BB. That works out to a 25.0% strikeout rate and a 13.5% walk rate.

Carroll spent 2016, his first full pro season, with Low-A Charleston. He made six spot starts and 20 relief appearances, and finished the season with a 3.15 ERA (3.43 FIP) in 91.1 innings. His strikeout (22.7%) and walk (10.3%) rates were a bit underwhelming. At the time, Carroll appeared to be nothing more than an organizational depth arm, which is par for the course for a 22nd round pick.

The Yankees moved Carroll to the bullpen full-time last year. He started the season with High-A Tampa and dominated (2.25 ERA, 2.16 FIP, 38.0 K%, 10.1 BB%) in 20 innings before getting bumped up to Double-A Trenton. Carroll threw another 47.1 innings with the Thunder (2.66 ERA, 3.42 FIP, 29.8 K%, 11.1 BB%). All told, he had a 2.54 ERA (3.04 FIP) with 32.1% strikeouts and 10.8% walks in 67.1 total innings during the 2017 regular season.

The move to the bullpen worked so well the Yankees had Carroll report to the Arizona Fall League after the season for a little extra work. He tossed 11.2 scoreless innings with the Scottsdale Scorpions, allowing only two hits and five walks while striking out 18. Great finish to a great season.

Scouting Report
At 6-foot-5 and 210 lbs., Carroll is built like the prototypical pitching prospect, and he is one of many pitchers who added velocity after turning pro and joining the Yankees. Carroll worked in the 90-92 mph range as a starter in college and touched 95 mph here and there. With the Yankees last season he sat 96-98 mph each time out and reached triple digits more on more than a few occasions. Obviously some of that velocity gain comes from the move to the bullpen, but not all of it.

The fastball is Carroll’s bread and butter. He throws two inconsistent secondary pitches in his slider and splitter, both of which are hard upper-80s offerings that will rate as above-average at their best. Carroll is still working to harness both — the slider is his go-to secondary pitch over the splitter — and the Yankees are letting him throw both. They haven’t taken a pitch away to make him a true two-pitch reliever. At least not yet.

Carroll repeats his delivery well, which is good, except it hasn’t helped him throw strikes (or stay healthy). He’s consistently run high walk rates and there isn’t that one glaring flaw in his delivery you can point to as an explanation for the lack of control. Throwing strikes is hard. That’s basically what it boils down to. Carroll missed a lot of time with injuries in his career, so while he is already 25, he doesn’t have a ton of experience. Maybe his control will come around as he adds more innings.

2018 Outlook
Last season’s success at Double-A Trenton would normally land Carroll in the Triple-A Scranton bullpen to begin this season, but the Yankees have a lot of bullpen arms and it is possible the numbers crunch will force him to start the season back in Trenton. Either way, he figures to be a non-roster invitee to Spring Training and spend much of the season with Scranton. Carroll will be Rule 5 Draft eligible next offseason, so he’s pitching for a 40-man spot this year. If he does well, the Yankees could add him to the 40-man early and bring him up at some point this year, though there are several 40-man roster relievers ahead of him on the depth chart.

My Take
I’m mostly indifferent about Carroll. Hard-throwing minor league relievers with good stats tend to get overrated quickly as prospects, even when they have obvious flaws. Carroll has an injury history, he needs to gain consistency with at least one of his secondary pitches, and he doesn’t throw many strikes. Guys like this are everywhere in the minors nowadays. That all said, throwing 100 mph will get you opportunity after opportunity in this game, and the Yankees have turned a 22nd round pick and a $70,000 bonus into a legitimate relief prospect. Carroll could help as soon as this year, and if he figures out how to throw strikes consistently, he could carve out a long-term big league role.