2012 MLB Draft: Yankees Select Ty Hensley 30th Overall
With the 30th selection in the 2012 MLB Draft The New York Yankees selected right-handed pitcher Ty Hensley from Edmond Santa Fe High School, Oklahoma. With their latest pick, the Yankees continued their developing trend of drafting high school talent late in round one as 2012 marks the fifth year New York has gone the prep route with their first pick.
With the selection of Hensley the Yankees nab a developing power arm from the State of Oklahoma (home state of both Dylan Bundy and Archie Bradley) with MLB bloodlines. Hensley’s father, Michael, was a former second round choice of the St. Louis Cardinals (1988) and he spent three years in the low minors for the Redbirds. Ty will look to build upon his father’s success and carve a path for himself at the next level.
2012: 10-0 1.52 ERA and 111 K’s in 55.1 innings
The Stuff:
The 6’5 220 lb, Hensley works with a low-to-mid 90’s fastball that he throws from a high arm slot which allows him to generating lots of downward movement and keep the ball low in the strike zone. Typically Hensley sits between 91-93 mph with the offering, but has gotten it up to 97 mph recently. As of right now the fastball grades out as slightly above average with flashes of plus. Hensely’s best offering is his power curveball with a pronounced 12-to-6 break that he will throw in any count for a strike. He also has a change-up which is more of a “show-me” offering at the moment but shows signs of becoming an average offering. Hensley has shown a high aptitude for pitching and an advanced baseball IQ to go along with above average athleticism.
Curiously, Hensley is listed as a switch-hitter and he has a solid approach on both sides of the plate. His senior year he hit .447 BA with 10 HR and 41 RBI. He also played quarterback for his high school football team. Hensley will look to combine his athleticism at the plate and on the gridiron to reach his potential on the mound as a #2 starter.
The one knock against Hensley is that his mechanics may need some tweaking given that he struggles to repeat his delivery at times. He is a rather large and projectable pitcher so mechanical issues are relatively minor and related to his lower half of his body not sequencing with his upper body and arm action. These issues are common and ones that larger pitcher’s typically face in their development but they can be ironed out with repetition.
The Future:
Prior to the draft, experts had Hensley rated anywhere as high as the 19th best prospect to as low as the 36th best prospect in the 2012 draft class. Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus had him as the 19th best prospect in the draft, Baseball America had him at 23rd on their BA 500, MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo had ranked him 26th and Keith Law of ESPN.com had him 36th. The majority of these experts had the Dodgers taking Hensley 18th overall. Some of these same evaluators believe that his ultimate ceiling would be as a #2 starter, but realistically he looks like more of a middle of the rotation workhorse who can rack up the innings and strikeouts with his power fastball/curveball combo.
If he is unable to develop his change-up look for him to follow in the footsteps of other pitchers of his build and repertoire as a late game reliever. In that scenario, he could wind up in the mold of a Joba Chamberlain or Tanner Scheppers.
The Yankees have taken a more conservative approach with prospect promotion over the last few years and they will look to follow suit with Hensley. He will need to refine his command and add polish as well as develop a competent change-up (no small task). As of right now Hensley has two potentially plus offerings with the aptitude to add another and a long road ahead of him before he reaches Yankee Stadium.
Hensley himself has set a rather lofty goal in reaching the big leagues by the age of 21 and the possibility of that happening, while slim, will only exist with the development of a plus off speed offering. Regardless of the time table, the Yankees landed a great bargain at the 30 spot with Hensley.
The Conclusion:
With his projectable frame, athleticism, and professional baseball pedigree, Hensley is poised to exceed expectations and contribute to the next generation of the Yankees’ starting pitchers. I would look for him to move slowly through the Yankees system and be a part of rotation consideration as early as 2016.
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