Yankees option top prospect Gleyber Torres to minor leagues

After the Yankees signed veteran infielder Neil Walker on Monday it pretty much confirmed that top prospect Gleyber Torres would not be on the Opening Day roster. Yesterday the Yankees optioned Torres to minor league camp with Triple-A Scranton-Wilksbarre.

The chances of Torres making the club were already slim after he really struggled at the plate over the first three weeks of spring training. He batted .160 in 25 at-bats before his demotion and was outplayed by Tyler Wade and Ronald Torreyes in his quest for the starting second base job. Torres will still get playing time with the Yankees before the spring is over but he will not be joining them when they head to Toronto to open the season.

The Yankee infield was crowded prior to the Walker signing and since then the team has cut veterans Danny Espinosa and Adam Lind in addition to sending down Torres. Walker will still have to fight off Tyler Wade for that starting job at second, but as long as he shows he’ll be ready for the opener the job should be his.

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The fact that Torres was sent down shouldn’t concern Yankee fans. This could be a blessing in disguise for the 21 year-old after he only played 55 games in the minors a season ago. He’ll get more time to develop his game at Scranton and he’ll do so under less scrutiny. He can ease his way back into things playing pressure free baseball and in the long run he’ll be more prepared for when he finally gets called up.

I’m sure a lot of people expected more from Torres this spring, but let’s not forget he hasn’t played in games since he had Tommy John surgery on his left elbow last June.

Here’s Torres on being sent down, per Bryan Hoch of MLB.com.

“It’s not easy, nine months of no games and [to] come back perfect. I’m human,” Torres said. “I’ll stay focused and go wherever they tell me, do my job and wait for another opportunity.”

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Torres definitely has the right attitude and there’s no doubt in my mind that he will be back. He’s the Yankees top prospect for a reason and his performance this spring doesn’t change the organization’s long-term plans for him. He’s to talented not to benefit from this and you can still expect him to be the second basemen of the future.