Yankees Prospects: Week six minor league review

The mixed results continued for the Yankees organization. Double-A Somerset won another series and continued to hold on to first place in the Eastern League’s Northeast Division. Meanwhile, both Class-A level teams struggled through the week and are looking for a bounce-back week ahead.

Triple-A Scranton-Wilkes Barre RailRiders

Record: 13-22; Tied-Ninth place in the International League (East), 10.5 GB

Past Week: 3-3 vs. Syracuse Mets

Coming Up: Away vs. Worcester Red Sox

The RailRiders earned a split on the series for the week. Hayden Wesneski has posted strong numbers on the season, but he finally earned his first win of the season in his seventh start. JP Sears is another pitcher off to a fast start in 2022. He is part of the Yankees 40-man roster and is making a case to return to The Show, as he is mowing through Triple-A batters early in the season. On the offensive side of the ball, Estevan Florial and Miguel Andújar are putting together good stretches and have been the most consistent bright spots on that side of the ball.

Players of Note:

Estevan Florial: 14 G; .347/.458/.489, HR, 4 2B

Hayden Wesneski: 7 G; 2.31 ERA, 35 IP, 21 H, 6 BB, 36 K .171 BAA

JP Sears: 5 G; 0.53 ERA, 17 IP, 11 H, 1 BB, 23 K

Miguel Andújar: 21 G; .303/.361/.500, 4 HR, 3 2B

Double-A Somerset Patriots

Record: 21-11; First place in Eastern League (Northeast), 2.5 GA

Past Week: 4-2 vs. Altoona Curve (Pirates)

Coming Up: Home vs. Reading Fightin Phils

As a team, the Patriots have relied heavily on their incredible pitching staff this season. While Randy Vasquez tossed 5.2 hitless innings and Ken Waldichuk led the other members of the pitching staff to a strong week across the board, the offense also came alive over the weekend to help the Patriots secure a series victory. The team scored 20 runs combined in their Saturday and Sunday games. A number of players stood out, but Derek Dietrich had a strong game on Saturday, and scored three more runs on Sunday as he benefitted from a big game by Chad Bell. Reports state that Dietrich has been promoted to Triple-A Scranton, and the former big leaguer has already joined that team for their next series.

Players of Note:

Ken Waldichuk: 6 G; 1.26 ERA, 28.2 IP, 16 H, 10 BB, 46 K, .158 BAA

Randy Vasquez: 5 G; 1.86 ERA, 19.1 IP, 7 H, 11 BB, 17 K, .111 BAA – Eastern League Pitcher of the Week

Blake Perkins: 24 G; .275/.385/.663, 6 HR, 2 3B, 9 2B, 8 SB

Sean Boyle: 3 G; 1.69 ERA, 16 IP, 11 H, 2 BB, 25 K

High-A Hudson Valley Renegades

Record: 11-15; Third place in the South Atlantic League (North), 9.5 GB

Past Week: 1-5 vs. Aberdeen IronBirds (Orioles)

Coming Up: Away vs. Brooklyn Cyclones (Mets)

It was a tough week for the Renegades in the results department, but there were a number of strong individual performances. Austin Wells continued his hot hitting and is now slashing .400/.500/.729 over his last 20 games. On the pitching side, Will Warren continued to be one of the biggest breakout performers in the Yankees minor league system. The eighth-round pick from last years draft is having a phenomenal start to his professional career after making his professional debut at the High-A level this season.

Players of Note:

Austin Wells: 27 G; .330/.436/.588, 6 HR, 7 2B, 9 SB

Will Warren: 6 G; 2.49 ERA, 25.1 IP, 16 H, 8 BB, 34 K,

T.J. Sikkema: 2 G; 0.00 ERA, 3.2 IP, 2 H, 1 BB, 6 K — glad to have the No. 38 overall pick from 2019 healthy again for the first time since his draft year

Edgar Barclay: 8 G; 1.48 ERA, 24.1 IP, 16 H, 6 BB, 32 K

Low-A Tampa Tarpons

Record: 14-18; Fourth place in the Florida State League (East Coast), 7 GB

Past Week: 1-5 vs. Dunedin Blue Jays

Coming Up: Home vs. St. Lucie Mets

A few weeks ago, the Tarpons were on the wrong side of a 22 strikeout performance by the Clearwater pitching staff. This week it got worse as the Dunedin Blue Jays struck out an absurd 24 Tarpons hitters in one game. On the season, the team is striking out in 33.9 percent of their at-bats, which is good for 12.4 strikeouts a game. One the offensive side, only Anthony Seigler and Anthony Garcia — who both have a 168 wRC+ — are standing out, as the team struggles to consistently make strong contact and generate runs.

Players of Note:

Anthony Seigler: 23 G; .257/.435/.471, 3 HR, 6 2B

Juan Carela: 5 G; 2.25 ERA, 24 IP, 16 H, 6 BB, 34 K

Chandler Champlain: 6 G; 2.49 ERA, 25.1 IP, 22 H, 5 BB, 29 K

Carlos Gomez: 9 G; 1.42 ERA, 19 IP, 12 H, 7 BB, 30 K – Promoted to High-A Hudson Valley