Scouting the Yankees in the Arizona Fall League

Yanks Go Yard takes a look at what scouts and coaches are saying about the New York Yankees players participating in the 2016 Arizona Fall League.

Although the Scottsdale Scorpions have gotten off to a rough start this Arizona Fall League season at 2-4 and last place in the East Division, the New York Yankees players on the roster have turned in strong performances in the early going.

The 2016 AFL season is even more important than normal for the Yankees, with two of their most important young players attempting to return from season long injuries, and three key youngsters acquired at the August 1st trade deadline attempting to make a name for themselves in the organization.

This is often the first chance many prominent scouts get to see some of the big names from other team’s farm systems, so it is always interesting to see what kind of evaluations start kicking around during the AFL season.

Most of the reports I’ve read so far have been encouraging about the Yankees who have been playing down in the Bronx, although there have been a few notable exceptions to that.

Let’s take a look at how each of the Yankees players in the Arizona Fall League have fared during their first week, and what scouts, coaches, and teammates have had to say about their performances.

Greg Bird

Probably the most exciting development for Yankees fans in the Arizona Fall League has been the immediate success of projected 2017 first baseman Greg Bird, who missed all of the 2016 regular season following shoulder surgery. In four games during the first week, Bird has gone 5-for-17 with four doubles, two runs scored, and two RBI. He has one walk and three strikeouts.

For the moment Bird has not been cleared to throw, so he has been working exclusively as a DH in the early days of the AFL, but his results at the plate have been impressive enough that fans shouldn’t be too worried. Bird apparently feels the same way, recently telling Randy Miller of NJ Advance Media, “I’m all about quality at-bats … seeing the ball good and staying healthy.”

While many analysts have expressed concern over Bird’s ability to return to form by next spring, the 23-year-old has already flashed impressive pop considering how much time he’s missed, with four extra base hits in four games. While he admits he’s not 100%, Bird sounds pleased with the progress he’s making, telling Miller:

I feel it less and less. Sometimes I get maybe sore in one spot or feel something in another spot, but in general it feels pretty smooth.

Gleyber Torres

In his first week as the AFL’s youngest player, Torres has gone 3-for-12 with three runs scored. He’s had two of the Scottsdale Scorpions biggest hits to date, the first an opposite field homer in the team’s first game of the season Tuesday, and the second a walk-off RBI single in Friday’s 8-7 nail-biter victory over the Glendale Desert Dogs.

Scottsdale manager Tom Goodwin praised his 19-year-old shortstop’s maturity and makeup following the win:

Big spots don’t faze him. He seems to be that type of player. He doesn’t tense him up or anything. He just kind of stays within himself and does his thing.

Goodwin compared Torres to another Yankee legend, former second baseman Robinson Cano, calling him “a natural.” He also noted that, “the ball sticks in the glove and it comes out quick. That’s two pretty good attributes for a shortstop and a second baseman.

One new development for Torres is he is seeing some time at the keystone for the first time as a professional. He recently told reporters, “I’m excited to play some second. I feel really comfortable.” With so many shortstops in the Yankees system, it’s important that the team begin to increase their flexibility.

Tyler Wade

The 22-year-old Wade hasn’t seen as much game action yet as some of his teammates, going 0-for-8 with a walk, a run scored, and four strikeouts, but he’s likely to pick it up in the coming weeks. Wade hit .259/.352/.349 in 583 plate appearances with the Double-A Trenton Thunder this year, earning praise for his middle infield defense and stealing 27 bases in 35 attempts.

Probably the most notable aspect of Wade’s time in the AFL thus far is his first professional game action in the outfield. As with Torres, the Yankees are trying to increase Wade’s flexibility to give them more options as their stockpile of talented shortstops climb the minor league ladder and begin to compete for big league playing time.

Wade sounded game for the change, telling reporters recently:

I think there are plenty good examples in the big leagues right now of guys switching from middle infield to the outfield. Whatever gets you to the big leagues quicker and helps the team win. We’ve got all this talent, so it’s an exciting time.

Although the results haven’t been there yet, Wade’s manager with the Scorpions, former big league outfielder Tom Goodwin, likes his offensive game.

It looks like Wade has a really good swing. His bat path is nice and level. He doesn’t have too much uppercut. A guy like that, if he hits the gaps, he’s going to have a lot of triples.

James Kaprielian

You wouldn’t know Kaprielian hadn’t seen game action in almost six months watching his first Arizona Fall League start. The Yankees 2015 first rounder was sitting 95-97 and mixing in all of his pitches effectively. He struck out six opposing batters over three scoreless innings of work, allowing just one hit an no free passes.

When told about his starter’s velocity, Scottsdale manager Tom Goodwin responded, “It looked like it was getting up there really good. You could tell his fastball had a little extra giddy-up. The Yankees have got a body there!” Goodwin went on to compare Kap’s arsenal to Mets starter Jacob deGrom.

Giants top catching prospect Aramis Garcia also praised Kaprielian’s stuff after working with him for the first time. “He was throwing everything really well … his curveball, his slider. He threw a changeup a few times. He was down in the zone. And when he spots up with that fastball, it’s tough to hit … especially with the little late action that he has,” Garcia told reporters after the game.

Three scouts from 2080 Baseball were on hand to watch Kaprielian’s start. Here’s an excerpt from their write up:

Kaprielian is an athletic, strong bodied righty with slightly rolled shoulders and a very strong lower half. He has power stuff and looks to have at least two plus pitches between his fastball and slider, and on Wednesday night showed the makings of an average changeup as well. He is 94-to-97 mph with the fastball and has some heavy sink middle to arm side with ride up in the zone. He gets good angle, and does a good job working to both sides of the plate. He has some feel to add and subtract with the slider – backing off a bit at 84-to-86 mph range early in the count and dialing up ¾ break with late bite at 88-to-91 mph for put-away. The changeup is 86-to-88 mph with some gradual circle fade that plays up slightly due to the effort and the arm speed.

They go onto compare him to one of the most dominant pitchers of the 90’s, Kevin Brown (hopefully they mean in his pre-Yankees days). However, they do express concern about Kaprielian’s durability because of his high-effort delivery.

Dillon Tate

The good news is that the Yankees have been successful in restoring Tate’s velocity. He’s been working in the mid-90’s during his first two Arizona Fall League appearances. The bad news is that Tate has gotten hammered in the early going, allowing four earned runs on five hits (including two home runs) in his three innings of work. He does have four Ks and hasn’t issued a free pass yet.

New York still has Tate pitching out of the bullpen in the AFL. Since coming over at the August 1st trade deadline, he’s worked exclusively as a reliever. When asked about the change, Tate didn’t seem to care about his role either way, telling Randy Miller of NJ Advance Media, “Pitching is pitching to me. Whatever I can do to help the team win.”

While he’s making progress with the fastball, Tate’s secondary pitches have also been a concern. He was candid when asked about the status of his arsenal following his most recent appearance, telling reporters:

At this point in time I’d probably say the slider needs more work. I’ve worked on the changeup and it’s better, but it can still use more work. Both of the pitches really.

One MLB scout speaking on the condition of anonymity recently had some harsh things to say about Tate to MIller, claiming “He doesn’t know how to pitch” and expressing doubts about his ability to stick as a starter long-term. The scout blamed the 22-year-old preparation on his struggles this year.

He works hard,” the scout went on. It’s not his work ethic. It’s how he works. It’s what he does and his stubbornness in it. If he doesn’t change that, he won’t succeed.

The Yankees acquired Tate as the centerpiece of the Carlos Beltran trade back at the deadline. He was the fourth overall pick in the 2015 draft, but some serious questions about his future have emerged during his first full professional season.

J.P. Feyereisen

Another new Yankees pitcher has gotten mixed results in the early going of the Arizona Fall League as well. 23-year-old righthander J.P. Feyereisen, acquired this summer from the Cleveland Indians in the Andrew Miller trade, has allowed two earned runs in his two innings of work for the Scorpions, walking three and striking out two.

Scottsdale has been using Feyereisen as their closer in the early going. He picked up the save in his first outing, but blew his second opportunity (although he did pick up the win after the Scorpions came back with a ninth inning rally).

One of his pitching coaches in the Arizona Fall League, former big leaguer Steve Schrenk, who works with the Double-A Reading Phillies, offered this assessment of Feyereisen:

He’s got a good fastball, but needs to work on his off-speed pitches. He needs to throw that breaking ball for strike one.

Scorpions manager Tom Goodwin praised Feyereisen’s mental toughness, noting that he has, “good presence out there. He wants the ball in any situation and those guys don’t grow on trees.” Feyereisen recently discussed his aggressive approach with Randy Miller of NJ Advance Media:

I don’t give hitters credit. I think I’m better than whomever is in the box no matter who it is. I like to throw my fastball and I like to challenge guys and see how good they are.

Next: These Yankees are Primed for Breakouts in 2017

Feyereisen seems like a true bulldog who goes right after opposing batters. He’s worked hard to increase his velocity into the 94-96 range over the past year, and that is really paying off with his results.