Yankees minor leaguer Cody Carroll named to All-AFL Team

BALTIMORE, MD - APRIL 13: A New York Yankees glove and hat sit in the dugout before the start of the Yankees and Baltimore Orioles game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on April 13, 2015 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MD - APRIL 13: A New York Yankees glove and hat sit in the dugout before the start of the Yankees and Baltimore Orioles game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on April 13, 2015 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

Now that the 2017 Arizona Fall League is complete, let’s take a look at right-hander Cody Carroll, who just put himself on the Yankees prospect map.

Cody Carroll is a big dude that simply throws hard. Standing 6-foot-5, 210-pounds, the Yankees No. 25 prospect didn’t allow a single AFL run in 11.2 innings pitched, earning a spot on the highly vaunted All-AFL Team.

After permitting a mere two hits, while racking up 18 strikeouts and a league-leading four saves, Carroll has proven his lights-out ability since moving to the bullpen at the beginning of the 2017 season.

Mike Rosenbuam of MLB.com recently wrote that Carroll was one the top 10 players that stood out most to him during the AFL.

Carroll was consistently the first name to come up in any discussion had with evaluators about standout relievers in the Fall League. My one look at the 25-year-old righty made it easy to see why, as he sat 96-98 mph with his heater and snapped off several plus sliders, all while throwing strikes and hiding the ball well. That nastiness has enabled Carroll to rack up four saves while posting a 0.56 WHIP over 10 2/3 scoreless innings (eight appearances).More from Yankees NewsYankees chose worst possible player to ring in New Year on 2023 team calendarYankees make upside play, sign former Rangers top prospect outfielderMichael Kay’s Anthony Volpe story will get Yankees fans amped for Opening DayNo, Yankees should not acquire Trevor Bauer for 2023Yankees’ Marwin González replaces Red Sox LF in Japan in logical next step

With his big league closer-like stuff, right-handed hitters went 0-for-19 — and the league as a whole batted .056/.122/.083 against Carroll.

Pitching last season, first at High-A Tampa, and then Double-A Trenton, Carroll, the Tennessee native, began to come into his own.

In 67.1 innings on the bump, Carroll held the opposition to a .191 batting average, while compiling a 2.54 ERA, 1.129 WHIP and an 89:30 K:BB ratio.

In the realm of possibility, many baseball pundits, including MLB Pipeline’s, Jim Callis, can see Carroll contributing to the Yankees’ bullpen as soon as 2018.

Though he’ll most definitely need to shut-down hitters at Triple-A Scranton before becoming a possibility for the major league roster, Carroll continues to shine since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2011 as a senior in high school.

In his two seasons at the University of Southern Mississippi, Carroll consistently threw in the low-90s as part of the Golden Eagles’ starting rotation.

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However, since being drafted by the Yankees in the 22nd round of the 2015 amateur draft, Carroll has refined his knee-buckling slider that has the look and feel of a curveball, and his still-developing splitter, to go along with an intimidating high-90s fastball that comes out of his fluid delivery with ease.