2024 Yankees Prospects: Week 10 minor league review
Roderick Arias had his Wheaties last week.
www.pinstripealley.com/2024/6/11/24175229/yankees-prospects-roderick-arias-christopher-familia-jasson-dominguez-vilorio-josue-gonzalezWelcome to the ninth edition of the 2024 weekly minor league roundup, where I review each Yankees affiliate from the week before and the prospects playing there. We’re gonna give the DSL Yankees one more week before really delving in, but I’ll highlight some standout performances in the mean time. Let’s dig in!
Triple-A Scranton-Wilkes Barre RailRiders
Record: 38-25, 0.5 GB in the International League East after going 4-2 against the Norfolk Tides (Orioles)
Run differential: +31
Coming up: Away for six games against the Rochester Red Wings (Nationals) starting Tuesday, June 11th
After a humbling series against a good Toledo squad, the RailRiders rebounded en route to a series win against a Norfolk team that has performed below expectations this season. The offense was humming in Scranton, scoring the second-most runs in the International League last week (44) and posting 10-plus runs in each of the final three matchups of the six-game series. The RailRiders’ lineup might do this more consistently moving forward, as studs Jasson Domínguez and Ben Rice were promoted from Somerset early last week. As for how the duo did, well...
Yeah, there isn’t much to break down here. Jasson Domínguez and Ben Rice are #GoodAtBaseball. It wasn’t just the new guys who produced: each of Carlos Narvaez and T.J. Rumfield had nice weeks as well. I saw some Rumfield hate in the comments last week (I see everything, y’all!), asking if he is really a prospect of note. I won’t stand for it! He’s a legitimate prospect thanks to his excellent bat-to-ball skills and quality defense at first. He doesn’t have the max exit velocities or lift ability that you’d like for a first baseman, but he consistently hits it hard enough. I also saw him hit a tank at the Spring Breakout game, so I believe there’s an intriguing skillset that could become useful as a trade chip around the deadline (the Yankees have so many C/1B types, man).
As a quick side note that I failed to mention last week, Everson Pereria was placed on the injured list during Memorial Day weekend. He still is without a timetable for his return.
On the pitching front, Will Warren reverted to good Will Warren against the Tides, leading a pitching staff that was middle of the pack last week in the International League. Warren spun 5.2 scoreless innings on Friday night, delivering nine punchouts to just one walk. Most importantly, he kept the ball on the ground. It’s that simple with Warren: keep the pitches down - aside from the four-seamer - and he’ll enter the land of milk and honey. As I’ve stated before, his offerings move so much that it can be difficult to know where to start a pitch to account for its break. It’s a double-edged sword, as he’s unhittable when he’s on but struggles when he isn’t. It was nice to see him have it last week.
Clayton Beeter has been hurt for the past month with a shoulder injury, and the Yankees have been scant as always with providing updates. Check back in future weeks for updates on the right-hander.
Hitting Prospects of Note: AAA
Name PA AVG OBP SLG wRC+ HR R RBI K% BB% SB
Caleb Durbin (IL) 215 .299 .413 .458 131 3 34 36 9.77% 13.95% 20
Everson Pereira (IL) 182 .265 .346 .512 118 10 33 27 32.42% 8.79% 5
Jorbit Vivas 60 .167 .305 .208 46 0 6 3 25.00% 15.00% 0
Ben Rice 23 .444 .565 1.111 299 3 7 9 26.09% 21.74% 1
Jasson Dominguez 20 .500 .500 .950 270 2 5 2 15.00% 0.00% 1
T.J. Rumfield 187 .284 .342 .426 97 4 25 29 20.32% 6.95% 2
Pitching Prospects of Note: AAA
Name GS IP ERA K% K-BB% BABIP
Edgar Barclay 12 56.2 6.51 20.99% 8.78% .298
Will Warren 12 54.2 7.24 25.00% 15.32% .319
Yoendrys Gomez 10 36.2 3.19 29.33% 16.00% .250
Clayton Beeter (IL) 7 32 2.53 32.84% 17.16% .235
Double-A Somerset Patriots
Record: 28-29, 3 GB in the Eastern League Northeast after going 3-3 against the Hartford Yard Goats (Rockies)
Run differential: -2
Coming up: Away for six games against the Binghamton Rumble Ponies starting Tuesday, June 11th
Even with the subtractions of Jasson Domínguez and Ben Rice, there was star power in Somerset in the form of Gerrit Cole’s rehab assignment. It’s always funny watching aces go on rehab against minor leaguers, as it never fails to put into perspective just how dominant guys like Cole are. Cole generated plenty of swords and had his entire arsenal working in both his starts against Hartford. In total, the 2023 Cy Young Award winner surrendered just one run across eight innings while striking out nine. While he didn’t walk a batter, the sole run he allowed came off a homer to Ryan Ritter. But yeah, his return to the big league rotation is imminent.
Though the final scores may not show it, the rest of the pitching staff got the job done as well, surrendering just a 3.17 ERA last week - third-best in the Eastern League. Unfortunately, the defense behind them was terrible all week and allowed nine unearned runners to cross the plate. Zach Messinger served as a piggyback to Cole in both his starts and delivered nearly nine innings of three-run ball. He was executing with location across his entire arsenal, but Hartford’s lineup is respectable for Double-A standards and they generated a couple of poor-contact hits.
Brock Selvidge had his slider working big-time and provided six shutout innings, and Bailey Dees had a nine-K effort on Thursday. After a brutal start to the season, Dees rocked a 1.98 ERA in May and looks to be rounding into form. Trystan Vrieling is showing a good process with unfortunate results. He’s in the strike zone, but he’s recently been pulling an April Zach Messinger by getting pummeled on the one or two mistake pitches he makes.
Even without Domínguez and Rice, the Patriots’ offense gave a valiant effort to make up for all its defensive woes throughout the series. The lineup scored 32 runs last week, tied for fourth in the league. Agustin Ramirez and Spencer Jones stepped up huge in the wake of Rice’s promotion, as the duo each swatted three homers (Agustin’s came in one epic game on Friday night). I can’t overstate just how special Jones looks when he’s on: he looks like a potential #1 overall prospect in the sport when he’s on, but he looks barely playable when he isn’t seeing pitches well. I’d love to see more consistency, but the monster upside remains intact for the towering center fielder.
Anthony Seigler also had three homers in this series. The former first-round pick moved off catcher over the offseason and has converted to a full-time second baseman. He has seven errors on the season and has mostly struggled, but it was a bright week showing a very minor glimmer of hope that he could turn into the next Cooper Hummel. He has arm strength from both sides and pitched in high school, so I wonder if converting to a full-time pitcher has ever been brought up in conversations between him and the organization (I imagine it has at least jokingly).
Hitting Prospects of Note: AA
Name PA AVG OBP SLG wRC+ HR R RBI K% BB% SB
Agustin Ramirez 228 .276 .368 .566 157 15 40 41 16.67% 12.28% 12
Benjamin Cowles 227 .311 .383 .505 147 4 32 31 17.62% 10.13% 9
Spencer Jones 208 .228 .308 .380 95 6 29 28 34.13% 10.10% 13
Pitching Prospects of Note: AA
Name GS IP ERA K% K-BB% BABIP
Bailey Dees 11 57.2 3.75 24.38% 16.53% .288
Brock Selvidge 11 58.2 3.07 23.17% 10.98% .265
Trystan Vrieling 11 62.2 4.88 23.95% 16.73% .303
Zach Messinger 10 64.1 3.50 27.21% 19.85% .271
Jack Neely 0 29.1 2.15 0.39669421 0.31404959 .311
Chase Hampton (IL) 0 0 - - - -
High-A Hudson Valley Renegades
Record: 29-27, 4 GB in the South Atlantic League League North after going 5-3 against the Wilmington Blue Rocks (Nationals)
Run differential: +43
Coming up: Home for six games against the Brooklyn Cyclones (Mets) starting Tuesday, June 11th
Hudson Valley made up two games that were previously postponed and they capitalized, capturing five wins in six days. Unlike in previous weeks, it was the pitching that delivered for the Renegades: they allowed just 21 runs last week, which was the second-fewest allowed in the South Atlantic League despite playing two more games than any other team. The starters were very good, with Ben Shields, Cam Schlittler, and Jackson Fristoe leading the way with varying levels of domination. I am especially happy to see Shields thrive as a starter, as he began the season as the team’s long man out of the bullpen. His kitchen sink repertoire and bulldog mentality on the mound are evident every time he goes out there. He’s not going to crack many organizational lists, but I will look to have him somewhere in the 25-30 range.
Mason Vinyard is standing out as a reliever through his first nine games as a Renegade. In 16.1 innings, the Western Kentucky product has amassed 25 punchouts to just six walks. I like his fastball/breaking ball combo.
You’ve come to expect Jared Serna to deliver, and he did last week. You know about Jesus Rodriguez, mhm. What about Rafael Flores? Flores is primarily playing first but is also a catcher. Even if he completely moves off catcher down the line, he’s hitting some NUKES from his beautiful right-handed stroke. I want to see him pull the ball more, but there are some positive developmental indicators that I’ll be keeping an eye on.
Hudson Valley is unfortunate to be playing in a division with nearly all the good teams in the SAL, but they’re the second-best unit in the organization from a win/loss perspective.
Hitting Prospects of Note: A+
Name PA AVG OBP SLG wRC+ HR R RBI K% BB% SB
Jared Serna 256 .265 .367 .498 139 11 42 44 17.58% 12.89% 7
Jesus Rodriguez 230 .328 .413 .505 157 5 35 29 13.04% 12.61% 7
Jace Avina 200 .273 .360 .448 127 5 24 26 26.50% 10.00% 4
Omar Martinez 192 .230 .385 .401 128 6 20 18 21.35% 19.27% 0
Roc Riggio 185 .213 .357 .340 106 2 31 14 17.30% 15.68% 8
Rafael Flores 177 .315 .418 .497 156 4 19 30 21.47% 14.69% 2
Pitching Prospects of Note: A+
Name GS IP ERA K% K-BB% BABIP
Cam Schlittler 10 50.1 2.15 31.55% 19.42% .194
Kyle Carr 10 41 6.80 18.09% 2.51% .362
Ben Shields 4 37.2 3.11 31.97% 27.21% .284
Brian Hendry (IL) 3 11 0.00 32.61% 19.57% .200
Cole Ayers 0 33.2 1.87 30.30% 24.24% .272
Mason Vinyard 0 16.1 2.76 37.31% 28.36% .273
Low-A Tampa Tarpons
Record: 21-36, 16 GB in the Florida State League West after going 2-4 against the Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (Twins)
Run differential: -42
Coming up: Away for six games against the Clearwater Thrashers starting Tuesday, June 11th
Sigh. Tampa’s woes continued yet again last week against a so-so Mighty Mussels team. While the team as a whole struggled, the pitching staff especially found things to be difficult. Their 40 walks allowed was highest in the FSL last week, allowing five more than the club with the second-most (St. Lucie, 35). On the bright side, Luis Serna and Cade Smith had some of their best outings of the season last week, with Smith accruing 17 strikeouts over 12 innings (he started two games). His command is still shaky, but I want to see him face off against High-A batters. There’s not much left for him to prove in the FSL, especially when you consider that he was pitching in the SEC before going pro.
Luis Serna had his changeup humming in his outing against Ft. Myers, racking up eight strikeouts. To put in perspective just how disgusting his cambio is, hitters are making contact just 53% of the time when they swing at the offering. Wow! His slider looked to be working in this outing, too, which is a nice development. He’s still in the 89-92 range with his fastball, not generating enough rise to make it work. Contrary to pitching convention, Serna leads with his changeup and mixes in his fastball when he has to. It’s a sound strategy when there’s such a disparity between the two offerings, but Serna has to get some form of fastball - be it a cutter, sinker, or two-seamer - to have success further up the minor league ladder.
It’s a shame that Tampa’s pitching staff stunk aside from Smith and Serna, as the offense showed signs of life. Roderick Arias led the way with a .346/.414/.808 slash line while clubbing two doubles, triples, and homers apiece. It’s not that Arias started making more contact last week (he struck out 11 times), but he capitalized when he did. If Arias isn’t going to start making more contact, he has to be this good on balls in play. Godspeed. Still, it was a fun week to observe, and that counts for something.
Now is when we get to talk about CHRISTOPHER FAMILIA! Gosh, I love his swing. I mean, just look at it. LOOK! AT! IT!
La Familia! He will be in Hudson Valley soon enough, but his .318/.348/.727 line perfectly encapsulates his tactically aggressive approach at the plate. He takes healthy hacks when he enters predictable counts. He isn’t much of a defender, but boy can he hit. The rest of the offense was so-so; and frankly, there isn’t much to write about aside from the guys I brought up today and in previous editions of this series.
Hitting Prospects of Note: A
Name PA AVG OBP SLG wRC+ HR R RBI K% BB% SB
Roderick Arias 250 .224 .328 .379 105 4 32 31 35.20% 12.40% 14
Dylan Jasso 237 .251 .346 .424 121 6 30 31 27.43% 11.39% 1
George Lombard Jr. 186 .208 .360 .268 97 0 20 13 23.12% 17.74% 15
Jackson Castillo 167 .271 .401 .451 146 4 25 14 19.16% 18.56% 9
Enmanuel Tejeda 108 .330 .374 .402 122 1 15 15 22.22% 6.48% 10
Christopher Familia 23 .318 .348 .727 195 2 3 5 21.74% 4.35% 0
Pitching Prospects of Note: A
Name GS IP ERA K% K-BB% BABIP
Gabriel Barbosa 10 52.1 5.33 24.23% 18.06% .347
Luis Serna 10 46 4.50 28.42% 21.05% .289
Cade Smith 10 53.2 2.85 30.63% 19.82% .278
Allen Facundo (IL) 7 30 2.40 30.16% 19.05% .243
Florida Complex League Yankees
Record: 16-10, 2 GB in the Florida Complex League North after going 2-3 last week
Run differential: -13
Oh heck yeah, a 4-0 week for the Baby Bombers! The offense was awesome, scoring 34 runs across those four games. Those other teams’ pitchers have families too! Josue Gonzalez has been the star for the FCL squad so far, and his .385/.579/.462 slash line is further solidifying him as one of the biggest breakouts in complex ball. Here is a slightly older clip of Gonzalez. His bat speed is... yeah it’s impressive.
Enmanuel Tejeda is still rehabbing with the FCL squad but looks to be at or close to full health. He had a lights-out week, as did Joel Mendez. The outfielder crushed two homers, but he’s also 21 while the competition is 18-19. I’d love to see him pushed to Tampa.
Sabier Marte and Danny Flatt continue to lead the way for the pitching staff, as both right-handers have the stuff to overpower complex-level hitters. Both have struggled with command at times, but they’re both young and have shown wicked stuff when they’re able to locate.
Hitting Prospects of Note: CPX
Name PA AVG OBP SLG wRC+ HR R RBI K% BB% SB
Josue Gonzalez 100 .263 .440 .487 153 4 14 14 19.00% 17.00% 4
Edgleen Perez 88 .262 .455 .354 137 1 12 16 15.91% 22.73% 1
Abrahan Ramirez 86 .358 .494 .537 179 2 13 14 13.95% 20.93% 3
Brian Sanchez 73 .355 .452 .629 180 2 16 12 24.66% 15.07% 7
Engelth Urena 45 .167 .311 .361 84 2 5 9 15.56% 13.33% 0
Pitching Prospects of Note: CPX
Name GS IP ERA K% K-BB% BABIP
Danny Flatt 4 19.1 2.33 27.50% 16.25% .298
Jordarlin Mendoza 2 14.1 3.14 32.43% 17.57% .400
Sabier Marte 1 22.1 2.42 21.00% 9.00% .288
Chris Kean 1 8.2 3.12 45.45% 36.36% .214
Dominican Summer League Yankees
Records: DSL NYY Yankees: 2-4, 3 GB in the DSL South | DSL NYY Bombers: 2-3, 1,5 GB in the DSL East
Run differentials: +1 | +2
I’m going to consolidate the two DSL teams into one brief section. Most pitchers either had poor command, but Edinzo Marquez impressed with 5.1 innings across two outings. The 19-year-old right-hander generated seven strikeouts while allowing one earned run off four hits and three walks. Michell Chirinos went 4.1 innings on Saturday and struck out six. He also walked three, so it wasn’t an exemplary exhibit of command. A quick side note on DSL pitchers: If you see guys who are 19 or 20, it’s because many organizations have begun signing pitchers later than position players. Look at any international free agent board and notice the near-complete dearth of arms amongst the top 20 names.
Speaking of signings, the Yankees’ big signing of the 2024 international class, Francisco Violorio, got off to a nice start with a .357/.438/.500 slash line across his four games of action. I anticipate his pulled ball percentage will be extremely high, as it seems he’s making a conscious effort to do so, even when it pays to go the other way when the ball is placed on the outer third (see the video below).
Hitting Prospects of Note: DSL
Name PA AVG OBP SLG wRC+ HR R RBI K% BB% SB
Richard Matic 16 .545 .688 .636 255 0 3 0 12.50% 31.25% 0
Christofer Reyes 13 .375 .615 .375 196 0 2 4 7.69% 38.46% 3
Queni Pineda 13 .125 .462 .500 155 1 5 2 15.38% 38.46% 0
Luis Puello 12 .375 .583 .750 232 1 2 6 8.33% 25.00% 0
Francisco Vilorio 12 .400 .500 .400 155 0 2 3 16.67% 16.67% 0
Pitching Prospects of Note: DSL
Name GS IP ERA K% K-BB% BABIP
Jorge Luna 1 5 3.60 40.91% 27.27% .222
Michell Chirinos 1 4.1 2.08 31.58% 15.79% .250
Jerson Alejandro 1 3.2 4.91 35.29% 11.76% .429
Edinzo Marquez 1 1.2 5.40 10.00% -10.00% .143
Prospect of the Week: Roderick Arias
MLB: Spring Training-New York Yankees at Detroit Tigers
Mike Watters-USA TODAY Sports
Alright, I have to give it to the young man. My concerns about his ability to make enough contact have been well-documented at this point. I’ve also developed some concerns about his ability to consistently lift the ball, and he’s already made an unfathomable 14 errors at the six. Do I think a very good week mutes these concerns? Of course not, but it’s at least encouraging to know that he’s capable of punishing the ball when he makes contact.
