Yankees Prospects: Week 22 minor league review

Jasson Domínguez reached Triple-A to help the RailRiders prevail, and Spencer Jones made it to Double-A, where the Patriots continued to win. Hudson Valley and Tampa are still churning their rosters as their seasons wind down.

Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders

Record: 29-21 (63-61 overall) and two games back in the International League East after winning six out of seven games with the Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Phillies)

Run Differential: +27

Coming up: On the road for six games against the Rochester Red Wings (Nationals) starting Tuesday, August 29

The RailRiders’ big week jumped them ahead of Lehigh Valley and put them within shouting distance of a playoff spot with about a month left to play. With all the interesting player movement in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre it’s been easy to miss that the team has been on a roll.

The big news of the week was the debut of Jasson Domínguez in Triple-A, and he did not disappoint in the slightest (more on that below). Add in the return of Estevan Florial from the injured list, the power of former big leaguers Jake Lamb and Franchy Cordero, the consistent production of Jamie Westbrook, and the continued improvement of Austin Wells, and this could be a dangerous lineup down the stretch.

If you’re trying to make the playoffs, it really helps if you have good starting pitching, and the RailRiders had it last week. Clayton Beeter (two starts), Will Warren, Randy Vásquez, and Mitch Spence combined to strike out 35 in 27.2 innings while allowing nine earned runs. That will help your team pile up some wins if the offense is doing their job.

Players of note (stats are season totals at the level):

3B Andrés Chaparro: .793 OPS, 23 HR, 77 RBI, 19 2B, 71 R, 59 BB

OF Estevan Florial: .952 OPS, 23 HR, 65 RBI, 72 R, 61 BB, 21 SB, 124 K

OF Jasson Domínguez: 1.208 OPS, 10 RBI, 2 2B, 1 3B, 4 R (7 games)

C Austin Wells: .828 OPS, 5 HR, 20 RBI, 16 R, 10 2B (31 games)

2B Jamie Westbrook: .940 OPS, 19 HR, 56 RBI, 16 2B, 62 R

SP Will Warren: 4.82 ERA, 71.0 IP, 68 H, 36 BB, 74 K

SP Mitch Spence: 4.59 ERA, 133.1 IP, 131 H, 44 BB, 125 K

SP Randy Vásquez: 4.59 ERA, 80.1 IP, 78 H, 40 BB, 96 K

SP Clayton Beeter: 5.32 ERA, 45.2 IP, 40 H, 27 BB, 55 K

SP Edgar Barclay: 8.24 ERA, 19.2 IP, 22 H, 18 BB, 17 K

Double-A Somerset Patriots

Record: 30-21 (72-47 overall) and three games up in the Eastern League Northeast after winning five out of six games with the Hartford Yard Goats (Rockies)

Run Differential: +114

Coming up: On the road for six games against the Portland Sea Dogs (Red Sox) starting Tuesday, August 29

There had been calls for Spencer Jones to be promoted to Somerset since April, and it finally happened at the end of last week. Much like we saw last season with Jasson Domínguez, Jones will get a taste of Double-A baseball to end his year and a chance to play in a playoff series. The Patriots have three weeks left to play in the regular season, and though they locked in a playoff spot by winning their division in the first half, they are in position to sweep the season by doing the same in the second half.

Even with the losses of Domínguez, Austin Wells, and Everson Pereira to promotion and Trey Sweeney, Tyler Hardman, and T.J. Rumfield to injury, the Patriots continue to put runs on the board thanks to the scorching hot bat of Ben Rice (1.167 OPS last week), significant contributions from Agustin Ramirez (.860) and Elijah Dunham (.760), and the return of infielder Caleb Durbin from the injured list. Durbin was a productive role player for Somerset before he got hurt, getting on base, running, and scoring runs, and he got right back to it last week, scoring four times and stealing four bases.

Scoring runs is the name of the game, but Somerset pitchers are doing their part to give the Patriots their impressive run differential thus far. In particular, Drew Thorpe continues to mow down Double-A hitters deep into his first professional season. It is interesting to see how far the Yankees will push him now that he’s up to 130 total innings on the year, but he still looks strong.

Players of note:

C/1B Ben Rice: 1.063 OPS, 12 HR, 36 RBI, 7 2B, 25 R (32 games)

C Agustin Ramirez: .656 OPS, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 3 2B, 11 R (18 games)

OF Elijah Dunham: .863 OPS, 9 HR, 23 RBI, 24 R, 10 2B, 16 SB (41 games)

SP Chase Hampton: 4.37 ERA, 59.2 IP, 54 H, 68 K, 21 BB

SP Richard Fitts: 3.16 ERA, 131.0 IP, 110 H, 139 K, 34 BB

SP Yoendrys Gómez: 3.14 ERA, 48.2 IP, 34 H, 56 K, 25 BB

SP Drew Thorpe: 1.29 ERA, 21.0 IP, 9 H, 30 K, 2 BB

RP Danny Watson: 1.41 ERA, 32.0 IP, 16 H, 38 K, 16 BB

High-A Hudson Valley Renegades

Record: 27-27 (66-54 overall) and 5 games back in the South Atlantic League North after winning 3 out of 6 with the Aberdeen IronBirds (Orioles)

Run Differential: +35

Coming up: On the road for 6 games against the Wilmington Blue Rocks (Nationals) beginning Tuesday, August 29

WIth Spencer Jones and Grant Richardson promoted to Somerset and Brendan Beck and Leo Pestana landing on the injured list, the ranks of the Renegades continue to thin. There are 12 games left on their schedule before the playoffs, in which they will participate by virtue of their first-place finish in the first half of the season, but the team that will take the field on September 12 should look quite different from the one that secured the spot.

The lineup is now powered by Tampa call-ups Jesus Rodriguez, Anthony Hall, Jared Serna, and Christopher Familia, and the rotation features Brock Selvidge, Baron Stuart, and Justin Lange, but a familiar face in Hudson Valley brought back some memories from earlier in the season last week. Right-handed starter Zach Messinger, after spending some time on the injured list, struck out eight in 4.2 shutout innings where he allowed only one hit. Messinger’s had a strong season, and it’s good to see him back in the fold as the playoffs approach.

Players of note:

C Jesus Rodriguez: .934 OPS, 1 HR, 11 RBI, 5 2B, 7 R (16 games)

OF Christopher Familia: .822 OPS, 10 HR, 27 RBI, 4 2B, 29 R (39 games)

2B Jared Serna: .696 OPS, 0 HR, 5 RBI, 3 2B, 8 R, 6 SB (16 games)

OF Anthony Hall: .594 OPS, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 5 2B, 7 R (15 games)

SP Zach Messinger: 4.29 ERA, 92.1 IP, 78 H, 111 K, 48 BB

SP Brendan Beck: 1.74 ERA, 31.0 IP, 24 H, 35 K, 7 BB

SP Brock Selvidge: 3.74 ERA, 33.2 IP, 28 H, 34 K, 9 BB

RP Harrison Cohen: 3.76 ERA, 40.2 IP, 30 H, 51 K, 19 BB

Low-A Tampa Tarpons

Record: 26-28 (57-63 overall) and 10 games back in the Florida State League West after losing 4 of 6 games with the Palm Beach Cardinals

Run Differential: -28

Coming up: Series with the St. Lucie Mets begins Thursday, August 31 due to Hurricane Idalia

Yorlin Calderon has been one of the most consistent pitchers for the Tarpons all year, and on Monday he was honored as the Florida State League Pitcher of the Week. He’s been nails since moving from the bullpen into the starting rotation, and last week he spun another scoreless outing. He has a 0.84 ERA and 14 K’s over his last three starts.

With only two series left in their season, the Tarpons continue to see player movement on their roster. With the end of the rookie league season, Tampa welcomed three players from the FCL Yankees team that lost in the championship series. Dylan Jasso and Jackson Castillo, both signed as undrafted free agents, were brought up to finish the year in High-A, and, most interestingly, first-round pick George Lombard Jr. came along with them. The 18-year-old is getting a taste of full-season baseball after playing only four games in the FCL after being activated.

Players of note:

2B Roc Riggio: .651 OPS, 10 R, 0 HR, 7 RBI, 1 2B, 17 BB (13 games)

OF Coby Morales: .945 OPS, 1 HR, 10 RBI, 8 R, 7 2B (10 games)

C/1B Omar Martinez: .829 OPS, 17 HR, 69 RBI, 61 R, 16 2B, 8 SB

RP Matt Keating: 3.59 ERA, 57.2 IP, 55 H, 84 K, 31 BB

RP Yorlin Calderon: 3.07 ERA, 73.1 IP, 64 H, 91 K, 23 BB

Prospect of the week: Jasson Domínguez

Again? Again, and this time at a higher level. Domínguez was mentioned in this space last week when he was the reigning Eastern League Player of the Week, and his promotion to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre did not cause him to skip a beat. It’s a great way to introduce yourself to a new team when you can go 11-for-23, drive in ten runs, score four times, hit two doubles and a triple, walk four times and only strike out twice. The RailRiders still have a month of baseball left to play, and the presence of Domínguez in their lineup makes them a focal point of the organization.