Yankees Risk Losing Catcher Luis Torrens in Rule 5 Draft

New York Yankees prospect Luis Torrens seems like a strong candidate to be left exposed to the Rule 5 draft following the season. What are the chances the team loses him?

The New York Yankees have a number of prospects who will be eligible for the Rule 5 draft for the first time this winter, from big names like Jorge Mateo and Miguel Andujar, to potential useful role players like Kyle Higashioka and Cito Culver. Several other notable players such as Jake Cave and Dietrich Enns may be left exposed for the second consecutive winter.

One top prospect who seems all but certain to be left off the 40-man roster this season is Luis Torrens. Baseball America had Torrens in the Yankees Top 10 Prospects as recently as 2015. In March of 2015 Torrens was diagnosed with a torn labrum in his right shoulder, which caused him to miss an entire season of development, obviously hurting his stock somewhat.

Before the injury, Torrens had a nice season for the Staten Island Yankees in 2014, hitting .270/.327/.405 in 202 plate appearances as an 18-year-old playing against competition three years his senior on average.

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Even more impressive was how polished Torrens’s defensive game was for a player his age. His receiving, blocking, and throwing all drew positive reports from coaches and evaluators. He was expected to begin 2015 with Low-A Charleston, which is where he spent the majority of this season following his return.

Torrens was still young for his Sally League assignment in 2016 despite missing a year. His power still seems to be a work in progress following surgery, but he did demonstrate an advanced approach at the plate, hitting .230/.348/.317 in 164 PA for the Riverdogs, following a 12 game tuneup in which he hit .311/.360/.400 in 50 PA for Staten Island.

Leaving Torrens off the 40-man roster is completely understandable given how he looked this year, their lack of roster space, and the four other catchers they will have on major league deals if they decide to retain Higashioka.

Still, there is a reasonable chance a rebuilding team decides to take a flier on Torrens given his former prospect status. Will he be able to stick as a backup catcher for a full season in the majors at age 21?

It seems unlikely, but his strong defensive abilities mean it is not completely out of the question. Really, he just needs to be able to hit enough to meet the very low bar of being an MLB backup catcher.

Typically teams target spare parts like relievers and utility guys in the Rule 5, players that are easy to stash on the bench for a season. Catchers are very rarely selected because there is so much that goes into the job, even for a backup, at the big league level.

Next: Evaluating 2017 Rotation Options

Even if it’s a long-shot, losing a player ranked number 16 in the Yankees system by MLB Pipeline for nothing is not an exciting prospect. He feels like a guy who could take a big leap forward another year removed from surgery, and it wouldn’t be fun to see that happen with another club.