Scouting the Yankees in the Arizona Fall League

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."