Yankees: Profiling The Bottom Tier Of Their Top 30 Prospects

#26  Jonathan Holder  RHP

Jonathan Holder is currently competing at the Yankees Spring Training for the final spot in the bullpen.

According to Baseball Savant, Holder’s average curve in the majors last year had a spin rate of 2927 RPM. That ranked him in the 97th percentile, basically tied with Jeremy Hellickson and Lance McCullers. The average curve had a spin rate of 2462 RPM.

The Yankees, much like Adam Warren, have moved Holder back and forth as both a starter and reliever. After some internal debate about stretching him out further, they included Holder in their September call-ups and in limited work with the Yankees, he allowed five earned runs and four walks in 8.1 innings.

A 6th round draft pick by the Yankees (136th overall) in 2014, Holder has impressed with his ability to miss bats. MLB.com’s scouting report attributes this to:

"The distinctive shapes and velocities of those offerings make the combination tough to deal with. He also has a changeup from his days as a starter but rarely uses it."

Of his call-up in September, Joe Girardi told the New York Daily News:

"“I think he kind of forced the issue with the year that he had,” Joe Girardi said. “He threw so well between Double-A and Triple-A, with a lot of strikeouts, a three-pitch mix, pitching in the end of games, being a closer. He had a good year and kind of forced our hand.”"

What turned everyone’s head was his final appearance in the minors this season, Holder pitched four scoreless innings of relief, striking out 12 of the 13 batters he faced – including 11 straight to start his outing. Yikes!