Which Yankees Prospects will Wear Pinstripes in April?

Yankees spring training is loaded with potential. But what makes it more intriguing is that, with the Big Club solidly in transition, any of the prospects could play his way onto the team.

The spring is about halfway through, and it’s time to see who is leaving camp with a job in the Bronx.

Yankees training camp is more exciting this year because of one former all-time MLB great: Pete Rose. Most young Yankees fans know Rose as the player banned for betting on the game. But, before that, he was a legend. And that legend started in his first spring training camp.

2^nd baseman Pete Rose signed with the Cincinnati Reds right out of High School in 1960. In 1963, still just 21 years old, he made his first spring training. He had played well his previous season in the minors, hitting .330, and had earned the trip.

But the Reds were not looking for a new 2^nd baseman. Don Blasingame was already manning the position and playing well. He was a big reason they got to the 1961 World Series, although he may have been a big reason they lost. And the following year—1962—he hit .281 with an OBP of .364.

I was going to make some hilarious comparisons to Yankees Jacoby Ellsbury and Brett Gardner along with a wish either of them would have those numbers this year. But looking it at their 2016 statistics made me so depressed I had to stop. Suffice to say neither of them matched Blasingame’s average or OBP last year.

Is this still about the Yankees?

Back to the Reds. There was no question that Blasingame was going to play second base for the Reds in 1963. But, in true Wally Pip-style, he suffered an injury and so Pete took over. And I mean that in the literal sense. He took over the position and never relinquished it. For those who don’t know, Pete was known as Charlie Hustle—meant at first in the pejorative sense—because he ran his hardest on every play. Even walks. He made that his whole career.

So, by the end of camp, Rose had run himself into a starting job and Blasingame out of town; he was traded to the Senators on July 1^st, where he returned to being a full-time player.

The point of the story? If Pete could take Blasingame’s job, and his numbers were better in 1962 than most Yankees in 2016, then almost every position on the Yankees is up for grabs. If a prospect comes into camp and plays at a high enough level, he can leave Florida with the big league club.

Now, with camp just about half way over, is a good time to see who has and has not earned a job that requires wearing pinstripes.

Gleyber Torres and Jorge Mateo

It might be unfair even to include two players who have never played above Single-A. But Gleyber Torres is a top-five prospect, and Jorge Mateo has top-five talent. If anyone could pull off a long-shot, Rose-style position theft, it is one of these two. There was a scenario in which Torres displayed the overwhelming talent that forced the Yankees hand. And if anyone could run his way into a job, the uber-speedy Mateo is wearing the shoes to do it with.

Bronx Bound

Sadly, neither player will leave with the Yankees.

Not Ready Yet

Torres has made a strong impression. He’s batting .412 with four runs and 3 RBI’s. And he is carrying an impressive 1.127 OPS. What is equally impressive is his fielding and stoic attitude. He can clearly handle the position and do so under any bright lights. His errors ensure he will start at Double-A, but he will see the Yankees again sooner rather than later.

Mateo, on the other hand, is becoming the forgotten man faster than Rob Refsnyder. I am not sure what is worse: that his average is .133 or that his OBP is the same. Working walks to be a big part of any base-stealers repertoire, but Mateo can’t wait to swing. And I mean he cannot wait, which is why he has a .133 average.

But worse for the Yankees is that Mateo just cannot get his attitude together. He belted a deep fly ball to left field the other day that he thought was a home run. And while Ole Pete would have been running out of the box, Mateo decided to show off. He took the time to flip the bat and trot to first…until he saw that the ball stayed in the yard. Jose Bautista can do that because he has already made the Blue Jays; Mateo cannot because he is still trying to make the Trenton Thunder roster.

Gleyber Torres will play for the Yankees soon. I start to wonder if Chicago would still take Mateo in a package for Jose Quintana.

Greg Bird and Chris Carter

The Yankees have seen the first base position become less productive over the last few years. And, now that Mark Teixeira has moved on, this spot is completely up for grabs. Both candidates came into camp with power potential, but both candidates also entered into camp with serious question marks.

Greg Bird had been moving through the Yankees system and their prospect rankings for a couple of years. And he fulfilled the promise when he debuted in 2015, slashing .261/.343/.529 with eleven home runs in 46 games. The only question at the end of 2015 was whether he would push Teixeira off the first-base bag in 2016.

It never came to that. Bird hurt his wing (I know but I am too young to have covered Larry Bird, and this word play is just too good to wait for another avian) and missed all of 2016. That year off could have eroded his skills. And he did not exactly reassure the Yankees in the Arizona Fall League, hitting just .215. He had to come into camp and show he was some semblance of the player the Yankees saw in 2015.

Second choice at First Base

Chris Carter does one thing well: hit home runs. He led the National League in HR’s in 2016 (41); if you are only going to do one thing well, there are worse things than hitting homers. The problem for Chris is that one thing is the only thing he does well in baseball.

He’s a defensive liability at any position, and no one knows if he can DH. But, when your starting first baseman retires and the heir apparent might need time to find his swing in Pennsylvania, there are worse options than signing a power hitting insurance policy.

Bronx Bound

They might both be, but Bird definitely is. Readers of this column already knew it was likely to go down this way from an article we published some time ago, but Bird has done a lot more than show his shoulder is doing fine. In fact, he looks better than he did in 2015.

Yankees fans, prepare yourself. I am about to give his numbers and I want you to try not to fan-gasm: it is still just spring training. His AVG/OBP/OPS slash line is impressive enough at .389/.476/1.476. But it is the damage; he has done in only 18 at-bats that jumps off the stats sheet. He has seven hits, three home runs, two doubles, four runs scored and 5 RBI’s. The Bird will soar in the Bronx (sorry but I just cannot waste literary gold like that).

So, with all that said, it probably never mattered what Chris Carter did. This competition was over the day Greg Bird was born. That does not mean, however, that Carter will not wear pinstripes in a couple of weeks. His power gives him value and the Yankees are thinking they might want him against some of the toughest lefty pitchers this side of the Pecos.

It seems likely that Carter will be on the Yankees in the Spring. But, if Bird shows he can hit those self-same lefties as I suspect he will, Carter will wear a different uniform by Summer.

The Starting Pitchers

The Yankees started camp looking to fill two spots. And the hope was that one of their five candidates—Luis Cessa, Chad Green, Adam Warren, Bryan Mitchell and Luis Severino—would emerge as a dominant starter. All five have had some experience, and success, at the big league level. Yankees hoped that at least one of them would be ready to take the next step and become a consistent 2 or 3. If all things remained equal, then Mitchell and Severino would be at the top of the list.

More from Yanks Go Yard

• Surprising stat could breed Yankees-Reds deal at 2023 trade deadline
• Is anybody going to sign Aroldis Chapman away from Yankees?
• Diamondbacks outfielder’s comment on Carlos Rodón’s IG raises eyebrows
• Reflecting on the 2013 New York Yankees’ top 10 prospects
• Did Andrew Benintendi contract help Yankees with Ian Happ trade?

The first round of starts was positively promising as no team scored a run against any of them. But that all changed in the second round as ERA’s ballooned. There is still plenty of time for one or more of these players to take command of the competition, but right now it still looks like Mitchell and Sevvy are at the top of the depth chart.

Bronx Bound

Jose Quintana! The Yankees have seen enough to know that, if they want to break camp with a consistent top of the order pitcher, they will have to find that player outside of the organization. Time to trade prospects. Obviously, the Yankees are not going to trade any blue-chippers, and they won’t have to. The Chicago White Sox seem desperate to sell and willing to take some chances. If the headliner of the deal is Jorge Mateo, then bring on Monte Hall.

Adam Warren also seems destined for the Bronx, although he might not like the innings he will pitch. Unless Warren can distance himself from the others, he is going to be a key figure in the bullpen; sorry, Adam.

But whether Severino and Mitchell? One is likely to be included in the Quintana deal, and the other will wear pinstripes in April. My hope is that Mitchell is traded. He has been better than Severino as a starter for the Yankees, but Severino’s upside is so much higher. Even if he ultimately fails as a starter, he still looks like an overpowering closer.

Not Ready Yet

Luis Cessa and Chad Green both will serve as protection, and we will see them both pitch for the Yankees this year. Organizational depth is key to season-long success, and those two will do a great job providing it.

Aaron Judge Batting Fourth Makes Yankees a Most Intimidating Team

But Judge can be special in a way few can. Yankees need to surround him with their other great hitters to force pitchers to throw him meatier pitches.

There is still a lot of Yankees camp to go. Some futures are clear—Bird and Judge—while others still need to be decided (starting pitching). What is clear is that the Yankees look to be a lot better offensively this year with even more exciting position players poised to make an impact down the road. If the 2017 Yankees can at least match their pitching from 2016, an eminently achievable goal, then there is real hope this team can have a winning season and maybe make the playoffs. And hope is what spring training is all about.

If the 2017 Yankees can at least match their pitching from 2016, an eminently achievable goal, then there is genuine hope this team can have a winning season and maybe make the playoffs. And hope is what spring training is all about.