Projected Yankees 2024 Mock Draft pick just showed exactly why NYY like him

He may not be a Yankees prospect just yet, but Tennessee Volunteers masher Billy Amick made a pretty strong argument for himself at this weekend's Super Regionals.

The heavily favored Vols (that's kind of how it works when you're the tournament's top overall seed) unexpectedly struggled in weekend play against unheralded Evansville, stretched to the Game 3 brink on their home turf. Once the pressure got ratcheted up, though, Amick and Co. decided to remove all doubt about their prodigious pop, running Evansville off the turf in the deciding contest to advance to the College World Series.

Amick, a righty-swinging third baseman, knocked in the eighth and ninth runs of the deciding game with this titanic tater that got the crowd buzzing. After attacking a floating 80 MPH pitch up and away, Amick watched as his drive sailed over the batters' eye in dead center, stunting slowly around the bases as he absorbed the feeling of obliterating a piece of cowhide.

This won't shock you, but even though the Yankees don't usually draft for need, MLB.com certainly saw plenty of reasons to love the fit between Amick and the Yanks this summer, projecting the two would find one another at No. 26. Given the Yankees' long-term uncertainty at third base and desire to send as many baseballs fleeing into the upper deck as possible, we see it, too.

MLB Mock Draft 2024: Yankees eyeing Tennessee slugger Billy Amick?

In previous iterations of MLB's 2024 Mock Drafts, they've had the Yankees selecting switch-pitcher Jurrangelo Cijntje out of Mississippi State, who is said to resemble Marcus Stroman from the right side. Cijntje must be on helium alert these past few weeks, as he's now projected to be selected by the Braves two picks before the Yankees first appear at 24.

Of course, the Yankees should've been picking 10 slots higher than they actually are, but were penalized for blowing past the CBT threshold. They were also penalized for acquiring struggling, expensive players for all of last season by the entire rest of the league. Shouldn't their poor record be punishment enough for misallocated funds? Sounds a little like Double Jeopardy.

MLB still contends that, if any pitching talent with a first-round grade slips to the Yankees at 26, they'll probably draft an arm instead. Current consensus is that's unlikely to happen, though, and the Yankees will gladly take the consolation prize of an SEC third baseman who vaporizes baseballs.