BA’s 2009 Yankees Draft Report Card

Written by Greg Fertel | 22 October 2009

MJ over at WasWatching gives us the details from Baseball America:

Position Players:

Best Pure Hitter:  J.R. Murphy, C (Pendleton HS, Bradenton, Fla.)
Best Power Hitter:  Slade Heathcott, OF (Texas HS, Texarkana, Texas)
Fastest Runner:  Slade Heathcott
Best Defensive Player:  Slade Heathcott

Pitchers:

Best Fastball:  Adam Warren, RHP (University of North Carolina)
Best Secondary Pitch:  Bryan Mitchell, RHP (Rockingham County HS, Reidsville, N.C)

Odds & Ends:
Best Pro Debut:  Adam Warren
Best Athlete:  Slade Heathcott
Closest To The Majors:  Caleb Cotham, RHP (Vanderbilt University)
Best Late Round Pick:  Bryan Mitchell
One That Got Away:  Tyler Lyons, LHP (Oklahoma State University).

I'm a bit surprised to see that Bryan Mitchell comes away with the best breaking pitch, I thought that honor could have gone to Graham Stoneburner. It's good to see Mitchell getting love from BA, though.

BA didn't rank Heathcott that highly pre-draft, but most of that was due to non-existent behavior issues. It looks like they are definitely coming around on the pick now.

The Yankees were on a draft budget this season, and that is seemingly why they let Tyler Lyons and Aaron Meade get away. I always think shelling out a few extra hundred thousand dollars for these guys pays off in the end, but I guess Oppenheimer couldn't fit them into his budget this season.

Overall, this is going to be an exciting draft class to follow in 2010 and beyond, definitely an upgrade over 2009.