New York Yankees prospects Esteven Florial, Isiah Gilliam and Wilkerman Garcia turning it on
The New York Yankees best minor league position players so far have either been MIA or underperforming. Now three of their most promising hitters—Estevan Florial, Isiah Gilliam, and Wilkerman Garcia—are rapidly raising their numbers and their profiles.
The New York Yankees top thirty prospects list is filthy with dominating pitchers; or is it the other way around?
Either way, 22 of the Yankees best farm hands are hurlers, at least according to MLB.com. The ratio is even more out of balance when you consider that 3B Miguel Andujar and 2B Gleyber Torres are still on that list. And neither looks likely to play in the minors anytime soon.
Even top remaining position prospect Estevan Florial struggled after his sterling debut in Spring Training. In fact, he might have struggled because of it.
He wasn’t the only one. And when next best major league prospect UI Thairo Estrada was shot in the off-season and forced out of action until about two weeks ago, the combination left the position players’ production far behind their pitching counterparts.
Now that’s all changed. While Dillon Tate and Justus Sheffield fight to prove which is better, command of the strike zone or overpowering stuff, more than a few of the Yankees have suddenly started to hit.
And we’ll start with a Yankees mystery currently killing it at Double-A Trenton, LF Ben Ruta.
Converting Yankees Fans, as Well
Converted from SS, Ruta has been the only consistent offensive producer at either of the Yankees top two levels. This does not include anyone already promoted to the Bronx. His hot start is not enough to warrant any serious attention, but at least enough to demand notice.
Ruta was selected in the 30th round of the 2016 draft and has made steady if unspectacular progress. At least that’s the way it appears from his numbers.
In his first full season last year, Ben outhit his short 2016 season slash (.202/.266/.279) by a country mile: .273/.323/.302. That’s an impressive jump. In context, though, those numbers are still not very impressive.
Not for a 20-year old playing in Charleston and hitting for no power (zero home runs, three doubles, one triple). So even though Ruta started this season hitting and hitting and hitting some more, it wasn’t enough to raise awareness.
Now, however, though it’s still very early, he is getting harder to ignore.
I Hope He is Doomed to Repeat This
And we have to pay attention to more than just his line: .390/.422/.492. He still doesn’t have any home runs, but his four doubles and one triple are an improvement.
No, it is also because of how consistent Ruta has been at Double-A. By the third day of the season, his average was up to .455; it has never been below .357 since. He’s raking, and he’s raking every day.
So at this point, it is at least fair to Mr. Ruta to start including his history. This comes to us from an excellent piece by Jackson Thompson writing for The College Voice.
As standout baseball player at West Windsor-Plainsboro South High School, Ben Ruta rolled through his senior year in 2012 batting .462 with 20 RBIs and 11 stolen bases. Under head coach Don Hutchinson, Ruta developed into a speedy contact hitting shortstop. Hutchinson says of Ruta, “He had that real nice sweet sing to opposite field, and he learned how to pull the ball as he got stronger…but probably his greatest asset was what he brought out of other players because of the way he conducted himself and went about his business the right way.” At the end of his senior year, Ruta decided to go to Staten Island, New York to play baseball and major in liberal arts at Wagner College. Ruta was the beneficiary of an unprecedented hitting streak that spanned over two years. He finished his career at Wagner with .333 batting average, and .939 fielding percentage.
A Surprising Rising
Ruta’s rise has even surprised his old coach:
As Coach Hutchinson explains, “I mean I knew he was a good player but to be truthful, I’m not shocked but I would not have thought that he would have climbed as fast and as high as he has already, so good for him.”
If you have time read the whole piece. Because if Ruta keeps hitting, he will soon be doing so in Scranton. For those of you who lament the passing of outfielders such as Dustin Fowler and Ben Gamel, Ruta might soon be your new favorite RailRider.
Because even with the Yankees outfield depth, factors such as trades, injury, and underperformance can open unexpected doors. Ruta still has a long ways to go in order to be big league ready, but he is worth watching now in Trenton…before we start watching him as a fill-in in the Bronx.
But if his sample of success is too small for any real predictions, then that of Wilkerman Garcia down in Charlotte is positively minuscule.
When Wilky was Sixteen
Way back in 2014, the New York Yankees made a much-ballyhooed splash in the international signing pool. One of those they signed was switch-hitting shortstop Wilkerman Garcia. Pinstriped Prospects sums him up this way.
Wilkerman Garcia signed with the New York Yankees for $1.35 million as an international free agent July 2, 2014, out of Maracay, Venezuela. He was ranked by Baseball America as the 7th top prospect in the entire 2014 international signing period. Some scouts have questioned his ability to stick at the shortstop position long-term, but the Yankees organization has not shown these concerns. Baseball America has given Garcia a 60-overall prospect grade with extreme risk, due to his young age and lack of experience in the higher levels of the minor leagues. Scouts rave about Garcia’s switch-hitting ability as he has initially shown the skill set to use the entire field from both sides of the plate. He has earned high praise for his makeup and tremendous work ethic and has an incredibly high ceiling which could allow him to develop into a five-tool player.
But his production has been anything but productive. After a more than solid debut in 2015 (.299/.414/.362), he redefined regression in 2016: .198/.255/.284. And his improvements last year were so small as to be almost of Planck length (.222/.256/.296).
Where once Wilky was a top-thirty prospect, he looked more and more like a total bust, especially as his highest level was the Penn League.
The beast in him
His Inner Kraken
But this year, as it has gone along, Garcia is giving indications of turning a big, big corner. While his overall slash is still lacking—.227/.292/.402—there are plenty of intriguing indicators. Not least of those are his four home runs, three doubles and a triple in 24 games.
That’s more than promising for a 20-year old.
In researching the young man, one note kept coming up: That Wilky was taking too laid back of an approach at the plate. Here is what minor league instructor and former Yankees infielder Luis Sojo told Brendan Kuty and NJ.com just over a year ago.
One thing that we want out of him is to be more aggressive. He takes everything too easy. He’s going to be a good player. We just want him to speed it up a bit more, be more aggressive. He’s got tools. Defensively, everybody loves the way he does things.
So, has he finally learned to unleash his hit-tool beast?
Time Will Tell
Wilky has been steadily but very slowly raising his average since the start of the season.
In his last ten, however, he has hit .293 and all four of his home runs. Again, his overall numbers still leave a lot to be desired, and he has a long way to go to rehabilitate his image. This could be nothing more than a flash in the pan.
On the other hand, it could be the start of something good. Perhaps Wilkerman has finally found his inner flame. Gary Sanchez used to take his talents somewhat for granted, after all. Maybe Wilky has had his come to Jesus moment; maybe.
However, it is only because of his pedigree and talents that his recent run merits any attention. Garcia’s ceiling is high, and the Yankees have yet to hit on anyone from that class. Maybe Wilkerman Garcia will be the one; again, maybe.
But two at Tampa have both history and a hot streak. And one of them, at least, is moving up soon.
The Book on Isiah
Prospects who go from the farm to the big city come from all directions.
Some, like the aforementioned Sanchez, are signed with great fanfare and even greater dollars. Others are drafted in the first round; Aaron Judge picked 32rd in 2013, springs to mind.
Then there are those guys who seem to come from out of nowhere. They don’t arrive in the system with a lot of fanfare or promise, so their production tends to be overlooked. Miguel Andujar had to have an extraordinary 2017 just to crack MLB’s Top 100 prospect list, and now he looks like the best young third baseman in the AL.
I doubt that will turn out to be true for Isiah Gilliam in the outfield. But although his ceiling is lower, his production over his career makes him very enticing. Especially if he has turned into the player, he now looks to be.
By the middle of last year, Isiah was hitting for power but not average, as I wrote nine months ago:
Gilliam is not hitting for a great average, slashing only .253/.334/.435. But the 20-year old is already flashing some power potential, hitting ten home runs last year and eight so far this year. That puts him in the top 25 in the South Atlantic League. It also promises more to come as he ages.
Before the season ended, however, Gilliam had grown as a hitter.
It’s not how you start.
The Grapes upon the Vine
Isiah picked up his performance significantly as last season went along. So much so that he wound up winning three Player of the Week honors in the Sally and was later covered in glory, as Eric Sutera pointed out for the Charleston RiverDogs News in two separate pieces.
Gilliam, 21, is the only player in the league this year with multiple Player of the Week honors, hauling in his third piece of hardware after going 10-for-18 (.556) with a double, triple, and homer, good for an .889 slugging percentage over his final six games before the postseason. Gilliam finishes the 2017 season leading the team in home runs (15), RBI (85), and doubles (33) while hitting .275 with a .468 slugging percentage. His 85 RBI ranks second in the SAL with 54 having come in the second-half, leading the circuit over that span.
Then, later, this:
After leading the RiverDogs with a power stroke from both sides of the plate, Charleston outfielder Isiah Gilliam has been announced as the winner of the “Top Dog” of the 2017 season as selected by the fans. Gilliam, 21, joins other greats such as Josh Hamilton, B.J. Upton, Aubrey Huff, and Jorge Mateo who have all received the award in years past.
That’s Gonna Leave a Mark
And MiLB took notice as well when it was time for awards. This from Matt Dean, again from the RiverDogs News.
Along with the RiverDogs trio from 2017, outfielder Isiah Gilliam was tabbed with an honorable mention after ranking second in the organization with his 85 RBI, all collected in a RiverDogs uniform.
Now, what Gilliam started in 2017 he seems determined to continue this season. His bat has swung consistently since the beginning, and his line currently stands at .326/.351/.472 with three home runs, four doubles, and 17 RBI in 22 games.
He looks like he is on his way to another great year, a jump in levels soon, and an eventual trip to the Arizona Fall League. And certainly to be more on the minds of the Yankees…and their fans.
But one player who has had the team and talent evaluators paying close attention for some time is Estevan Florial.
And now the cream is starting to rise.
His Ceiling is Probably Waiting in Manhattan
True centerfielder Estevan Florial is the definition of a streaky hitter. And like the best of them, such as Giancarlo Stanton, his stats are way more up than down over the course of a full season. Had the AFL lasted five more days last year, Florial would have likely finished over .300.
But conjecture is nothing compared to proof.
More than any stats, his list of accomplishments and accolades from last year speak volumes: Baseball American All-Star; Futures Game Selection; Mid-Season All-Star; MiLB.com Organization All-Star; Post-Season All-Star; Most Outstanding Major League Prospect; and, AFL All-Prospect Team.
Add that he is the Yankees second-ranked prospect behind Torres—making him for all intents and purposes the Yanks top prospect—as well as the 42nd best in all of Major League Baseball, and that spells pedigree.
Florial was already a bit of a legendary prospect before all of that, though.
General Manager Brian Cashman has repeatedly said that Estevan Florial is the only player who was ever requested in a trade before he played a game in the states. Other GM’s knew about him a long time ago.
The Cheese Stands Alone
And most people in baseball found out as the Yankees steadfastly refused to trade him last year. Instead, the organization said goodbye to other top outfield prospects such as Dustin Fowler and Blake Rutherford.
When the dealing was done, it was clear the Yankees see Florial as their true outfielder of the future. Based on his performance in Spring Training, now everyone does.
That is not what his numbers in the early days of the season reflect, though. He, like Garcia, still has work to do before his line is worthy of the man: .247/.360/.353.
But it his recent hot streak that puts the 20-year old in competition with Gilliam to see who goes to Trenton next. Over his last ten, Florial has batted .297 with eleven hits and seven walks. And he’s accounted for 14 total bases.
He’s still too young to be worried about power, especially as his swing projects for some to rise naturally. But seeing him get both hits and walks in bunches is a very good sign, for a very good player.
But Who Has What it Really Takes?
It takes a lot to become a true major league prospect. Those are still rare and can rise no matter how they started in the system.
Some who arrive with little fanfare such as Ruta and Gilliam have to prove it and keep right on proving it. Those with pedigrees less so. But consistency counts for all.
That’s why it’s hard to get excited about Garcia, and only slightly easier for Ruta. They each have some of the above elements, but not enough of any. Not yet. Florial and Gilliam, on the other hand, have plenty. Isiah has the better history, but Estevan has the much higher ceiling, as well as flashes of big league brilliance.
And tools for days.
So far all that means is they are worthy of an article or two. But soon both will be moving up to better competition, and a brighter prospect spotlight. Will they get a chance to play with Wilky before they do? Or Ruta after the move? That’s harder to predict.
Next: NY Post Writer Kevin Kernan should Sue Himself for Plagiarism
But the New York Yankees now have at least these four to watch, as well as Thairo Estrada. He should start hitting soon enough.
And that will give the Yankees a group of hitters equal to their best pitching prospects. That might be more important at the trade deadline than to the roster, but that only creates good problems to solve.
The minor league season is starting to play out. And now finally some of the best Yankees hitters are starting to rise.