Brian Cashman's declaration on Yankees' 'prospect to watch' better be accurate

The New York Yankees plummeted down franchise prospect rankings in 2024 for myriad reasons: graduations, regressions, and injuries, both nagging and catastrophic. Add in Anthony Volpe's up-and-down, BABIP-based sophomore season, and the continued disappearance of Oswald Peraza into the Springfield Mystery Spot, and you have a recipe for The Devil's Stew.

But there's reason to believe in 2025, especially on the mound. The Yankees farm system's strength has been its pitching depth for the entire Matt Blake Era, and they reloaded tremendously in the 2024 draft with a slate of high-upside options. If even two or three of those pitchers hit, from Cunningham to Ziehl, their stockpile will be viewed very differently by the time next summer ends.

Crucially, they could also potentially get a lift from the system's top power arm: Chase Hampton, who most believed would polish off his breakout with a flourish last year. A top-tier flamethrower, Hampton instead ended up laid out with a confusing sequence of injuries. If we're got the timeline correct, it was ... a flexor strain suffered in the middle of camp, though it was initially reported as a shoulder problem, followed by a "lower body issue" ... we think. Yes. Probably. All of these maladies, combined, resulted in Hampton posting a 2.41 ERA in seven outings that spanned 18 2/3 innings — essentially an extended rehab period that was still cut short.

Hampton was supposed to be the first arm called to the majors in a time of catastrophe. Instead, it was Will Warren who was added and floundered, while Drew Thorpe suffered some bruises of his own in Chicago.

Entering 2025, anything the big-league Yankees get from Hampton will be a bonus, not a birthright. Still, his continued health will be essential for their future plans -- either in the Bronx, or on the trade market, which he was held out of last winter. One year can feel like forever, but Hampton still has a chance to make an outsized impact -- and Brian Cashman claimed, declaratively, at the Winter Meetings, “One of the guys no one talks about anymore is Hampton, who was hurt last year. He’s healthy again."

Yankees top prospect Chase Hampton will (hopefully!) emerge fully healthy in 2025

Please be true.

Hampton likely won't be a big-league factor after essentially a lost development year. The 23-year-old was supposed to climb to 140-150 innings last season after posting 106 2/3 and reaching Double-A in his pro debut campaign in 2023, but his flexor tendon had other plans. Now, 2025 will be the buildup year, which will hopefully result in a triumphant big-league call in 2026.

All of those possibilities involve crossing fingers and gritting teeth, but if what Cashman claims is true, then we're finally one step closer after a year of stasis.