The Yankees drafted a total of 42 players over the course of the draft but most of the excitement is reserved for the players taken in the first few rounds. The Yankees had three picks in the first round and they selected Notre Dame 3rd baseman Eric Jagielo with their first pick at 26th overall and then Fresno State Outfielder Aaron Judge and High school left hander Ian Clarkin back to back at 32nd and 33rd overall.
Picking Jagielo is one that people had expected if he was available and sure enough the Yankees picked him with their first pick in the draft. He is a left handed batter who could stick at 3rd base and has the power and patience that the Yankees love, especially his power to right field. He has great command of the strike zone and hit .400/.508/.676 with eight homers with the Irish this spring. If you want more check our Mike Axisa’s profile of him here.
Aaron Judge is a pick that I absolutely love, I wanted the Yankees to take him with their first pick, but he was available just a few picks later at 32nd overall and the Yankees took him the 6-foot-7 Center fielder who according to everything can actually play center field. He is a good athlete and a quick runner so he knows what he is doing in the outfield, but he will shift to Right in pro ball because of his strong arm. His bat though is what everyone is raving about, he has awesome power but he does strike out a lot and can steal plenty of bases too. At Fresno state this year he had a batting line of .369/.461/.655 with 12 homers and 12 steals in their 56 game season and was ranked as the 17th best prospect in the draft by Keith Law.
The Yankees 3rd first round pick went to High School LHP Ian Clarkin who made waves after he was selected when a video was shown of him saying that his greatest sports memory was the Yankees losing in Game 7 of the 2001 World Series. This was embarrassing for Ian and the Yankees, but don’t expect that it will effect whether or not he signs with the Yankees. Let’s just note that first round picks Phil Hughes and Slade Heathcott were big Red Sox fans while Yankees fan Gerritt Cole decided to go to college, nobody will turn down this kind of money because they aren’t their rooting interest. That being said Clarkin does have a commitment to San Diego State and he could hope that his draft stock will rise after three years in college, something that Judge and Jagielo really cannot hope for. His stuff is really polished for a high school pitcher, good 90-94 fastball, a developing changeup and apparently a very sick power curveball that is his top out pitch. If he does sign I expect that he will go to Rookie Ball in Gulf coast league, while Jagielo and Judge can be expected to start in Staten Island as soon as they sign considering the short season leagues start next week.
The Yankees second round pick 2nd baseman Gosuke Katoh was a bit of a reach and many expect that he was a bit of a cost saving move as he was expected to go in the third round. If the money they save helps them sign all three of their first round picks then so be it. Is no scrub though he is a defensive whiz and models himself after Ichiro at the plate, but whose arm limits him from playing short or third base. He does have a commitment to UCLA but with a second round pick its expected he will sign. This kid is valuable enough defensively that I would bet he will make the majors on that alone, but his value increases exponentially if he can stick at short stop but that needs to be seen.
With their third round pick the Yankees selected Outfielder Michael O’Neil who just so happens to be the nephew of Paul O’Neil. This is the second time the Yankees drafted O’Neil as they picked him in the 42nd round of the 2010 draft but he chose to go to the University of Michigan. This one isn’t a favor pick either O’Neil is a legitimate prospect and quite frankly a bit of a steal that he was available at 103rd overall as he was rated as the 79th best prospect in the draft. Honestly you could probably flip O’Neil and Katoh so everything evens out in terms of steal and reach and in fact the Yankees had called him about taking below slot money in the second round but he declined and so they took Katoh. O’Neil is a legit centerfielder with good defense and a strong arm, he is a kid who will hit for solid power, has good tools and is an aggressive base runner, but he strikes out a lot. If he develops he could be a 15 homers 15 steals a year guy.
With their Sixth Round pick the Yankees selected Sacred Heart Short stop John Murphy who is a Nutmeger through and through as he is from Seymour, Connecticut. As a result I have a special write up about him here.
In the 37th round the Yankees selected High school RHP Joshua Pettitte the son of Yankee pitcher Andy Pettitte. Joshua was actually with the Yankees at the time as his dad was pitching 7.1 brilant innings against the Mariners. Don’t get your hopes up though he is going to Baylor and said so before the draft and when he was taken. It makes sense for him he is not much of a prospect right now and going to college can really help him in a couple years. Besides if he does nothing in college the Yankees would probably still give him a shot because he’s Andy Pettitte’s kid.
If you are interested here is a list of all the 42 players the Yankees took in the draft, most of the later guys either won’t sign or aren’t anything more than organizational depth, but remember Nik Turley was taken in the 50th round with the second to last pick and now he looks like someone who will definitely be a major league pitcher.
Also here is a list of some of my fellow Nutmegers, apart from John Murphy, who were taken in the draft.
Bring on Judge!
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