Yankees might've stolen another big leaguer from the same place they found JC Escarra

When New York Yankees backup catcher JC Escarra played in Gastonia, they were called the Honey Hunters. These days, perhaps in an attempt to shake off the stink of losing to Lancaster in the 2023 League Championship Series, they're known as the Ghost Peppers (actually, the Honey Hunters were terminated for unpaid debts and resurfaced as an angry pepper and a "different franchise," which is actually way funnier).

Regardless, it seems lightning may have struck twice for the Yankees' scouting department in this entirely unexpected location.

After years spent with the Orioles — as a semi-floundering first baseman rather than a catcher — Escarra latched on in Gastonia and hit .348 with 15 homers and a 1.131 OPS in 41 games that summer. He paired that with a stint in the Mexican League and a shuffle through several Winter Leagues before landing with the Yankees and making an immediate mark, earning a 40-man roster spot and, eventually, an MLB chance he never saw coming.

Slugging infielder Jake Gatewood is now in a similar spot, taking advantage of Stage 2 of Escarra's big-league timeline. After being drafted high by the Brewers (and starring in a high school Home Run Derby during Citi Field's All-Star weekend, as pictured above), he eventually latched on with the Angels' Triple-A club, but didn't play affiliated ball between 2022 and the present day.

Then he slammed 33 homers in 118 games with Gastonia, catching the eyes of Yankees scouts who didn't forget the value they'd found the summer before. Prior to that year, he'd received nothing but afterthought offers. Now? He's at Triple-A Scranton, one step away from the big leagues for a team that could really use a few more viable infield solutions.

Yankees might have another Indy Ball steal from Gastonia in Jacob Gatewood

Well ... not quite one step away. Gatewood would still need to show consistency at the highest level of the minors for several months more before the Yankees would consider giving away that coveted 40-man roster spot he'd need for an MLB cameo (his first). Pablo Reyes currently has a loosening grip on one of those, with DJ LeMahieu's return looming. Oswald Peraza's hold on the roster was tenuous to begin with (but, again, if he's demoted, he's more than likely gone). It will be difficult for Gatewood to wedge his way into the plan.

But ... as it's always been, all the way back to high school, his power is rather undeniable, and he appears to be tapping into it successfully so far in his return to affiliated ball.

Don't count your Honey Hunters (Ghost Peppers?) before they hatch. But, combine the Yankees' search through North Carolina's Indy Ball circuit with their ability to fly blind during a pandemic into Ben Rice at Dartmouth, and it seems like additional praise is due for their recent unconventional wins.