The arrival of the offseason means that it's time to rank stuff. Already this winter, we've sized up the 60 best free agents, both on an overall and positional basis. There's no law that prevents us from ranking minor-league players in addition to their big-league counterparts. As such, we're going to spend the winter evaluating every team's farm system.
The lack of a minor-league season makes that more of a challenge this year. It doesn't help that some teams opted against sharing video and data from their alternate-site camps with the rest of the league. As such, we've opted against overthinking this. Our rankings will essentially be the same as they were last winter with a few changes. First, we'll exclude anyone who graduated by exhausting their rookie eligibility; second, we'll replace them with draftees or other worthy prospects; and third, and lastly, we'll present the information in a new format.
In every article in this series, you'll find a team's top five prospects as well as five others we felt like including, either because of their promise or some other reason. For those top five prospects, you'll find a quick summation of their pros (their saving grace, if one will) and their cons (their fault line), as well as beefier report and our attempt to peg their "likeliest outcome."
These rankings were compiled by talking to industry folks -- scouts, analysts, and other evaluators -- and include a touch of our own evaluative biases. Remember, that this is more of an art than a science, and that the write-ups matter more than the rankings themselves.
Now, let's get on to the top five prospects in the New York Yankees system.
1. Deivi Garcia, RHP
Age (as of 4/1/2021): 21
Height/Weight: 5-foot-9, 163 pounds
Acquired: International amateur free-agent signing (Dominican Republic)
Highest level: MLB
Saving grace: Stuff
Fault line: Size
Scouting report: Garcia made his big-league debut in 2020, compiling a 4.98 ERA and a 5.50 strikeout-to-walk ratio across six regular season starts. He later became the youngest Yankees pitcher to start a postseason contest since Whitey Ford. That's a nice little beginning to a career, huh? Garcia has the stuff and the athleticism to start -- his curveball is likely to be subject to many GIFs -- but his size is going to be held against him until he's able to string together high-quality outings. Garcia is capable of delivering just that, and for the time being the Yankees seem committed to giving him the opportunity.
Likeliest outcome: No. 2 starter or end-game reliever
2. Jasson Dominguez, OF
Age (as of 4/1/2021): 18
Height/Weight: 5-foot-10, 190 pounds
Acquired: International amateur free-agent signing (Dominican Republic)
Highest level: Complex ball
Saving grace: Immense upside
Fault line: Inexperience
Scouting report: The Yankees handed Dominguez, nicknamed "The Martian" because of his uncommon physical gifts, more than $5 million to sign with them in July 2019. He hasn't yet made his official professional debut, but he has inspired several small social media frenzies whenever a video or photograph is posted of his physique. There's almost no way Dominguez is going to live up to the hype, but he deserves the chance to develop into a good player.
Likeliest outcome: Irresistible, insatiable hype machine
3. Clarke Schmidt, RHP
Age (as of 4/1/2021): 25
Height/Weight: 6-foot-1, 200 pounds
Acquired: No. 16 pick in the 2017 draft (University of South Carolina)
Highest level: MLB
Saving grace: Polish
Fault line: Injury woes
Scouting report: Schmidt, as with Garcia, also made his MLB debut in 2020, albeit to less fanfare and worse results. He appeared three times (twice in relief), posting a 7.11 ERA and walking or hitting seven of the 33 batters he faced. Woof. Schmidt is better than that small sample suggested. He's always thrown strikes and he has an above-average fastball-breaking ball combination (though his changeup lags). There's a chance Schmidt ends up in the bullpen for other reasons -- he's thrown more than 100 innings once, and that was his sophomore year in college. Schmidt should see a lot more big-league action in 2021.
Likeliest outcome: No. 4 starter or setup man
4. Luis Gil, RHP
Age (as of 4/1/2021): 22
Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 185 pounds
Acquired: Part of the Jake Cave trade (Twins)
Highest level: High-A
Saving grace: Arm talent
Fault line: Command
Scouting report: Gil has ample arm strength and he can impart good spin on his pitches. He just can't consistently locate, either over the plate or within the zone. He walked 4.4 batters per nine innings in 2019 and that ranked as the second-lowest rate of his career. Gil remains on the youngish side, but the odds are in favor of him ending up pitching in big spots out of the bullpen rather than as a No. 2 or 3 starter.
Likeliest outcome: High-leverage reliever
5. Austin Wells, C/OF
Age (as of 4/1/2021): 21
Height/Weight: 6-foot-2, 220 pounds
Acquired: No. 28 pick in the 2020 draft (Arizona)
Highest level: NCAA
Saving grace: Offensive upside
Fault line: Catcher defense
Scouting report: Wells was one of the more polarizing figures in the early portions of the draft. The expectation is that he's going to hit, and potentially hit a lot. He has a pretty left-handed swing to go along with above-average power and on-base potential. Wells' profile isn't as cut-and-dry defensively. Behind the plate, he has a below-average arm and substandard framing abilities. Wells could benefit from robot umpires, but he might have to move to another position -- possibly left field, first base, or even DH provided his bat allows for it.
Likeliest outcome: Bat-first something or another
Five others to know
- Anthony Volpe, SS
Volpe was the Yankees' first-round pick in 2019 based on his likelihood to be an above-average defender at shortstop for the long haul. The question is whether he'll hit enough to start. He's on the smaller side and it's hard to project him to grow into even average power. As a result, Volpe's ultimate role might be in a bench capacity.
- Trevor Hauver, Hitter
New York did not have a second-round pick after signing Gerrit Cole. They did have a third-round selection, and they used it on Hauver, another bat-first collegiate player from the state of Arizona. (Hauver was a Sun Devil.) He has a good eye, some feel for contact, and some raw strength. He primarily played outfield during his time in college, but he's not going to be much of a defender no matter where he ends up on the diamond.
- Miguel Yajure, RHP
Yajure had made just two Double-A appearances coming into the year. Under normal circumstances, he likely would've considered his year to be a success if he had finished up in Triple-A. Instead, he made three big-league appearances and tossed seven innings. There's enough stuff and control here -- not to mention time, given he'll turn 23 in May -- to envision him becoming a back-end starter.
- Estevan Florial, OF
Yet another Yankees prospect who debuted in 2020, Florial has seen his shine diminish because of injuries and general fatigue. The story is the same as it has been: he's a fast runner; he has a strong arm; and he has above-average power potential. He's just unlikely to live up to his star-level ceiling because of his lost development and his swing-and-miss tendencies.
- Albert Abreu, RHP
The Yankees have been trying to get more from Abreu's right arm since acquiring him from the Astros in the Brian McCann trade. He has a firm fastball and a pair of promising secondaries. He just doesn't seem to have the health, command, or consistency to make it work as a starter. If things click just a little, he could become an impact reliever.
