New York Yankees: 2018 MLB Draft names to look for day one
By Damian Dydyn
The 2018 MLB Draft is almost upon us. What can we expect from The New York Yankees in the first round? Let’s dig into the options!
Monday night will mark the start of the 2018 MLB Draft. Other names for it include the Rule 4 Draft, and the MLB First Year Player Draft. But whatever you call it, it’s an exciting time for prospect hounds. Of course, if you consider yourself a prospect hound, you’ve probably got a few names in mind for who the Yankees might select in the first round. If not, this primer might give you a reason to tune in for the first night. The draft runs for three days and encompasses 40 rounds of selections.
Like most teams, the Yankees have had some successes in the first round. They’ve also had some busts, and some in-between results. From recent drafts, Blake Rutherford stands out as a good pick. He managed to crack the top 50 on Baseball America’s top 100 list last year. And he was an integral part of a trade that brought the Yankees Todd Frazier, Tommy Kahnle and David Robertson. Going back a little further, Aaron Judge was the 32nd overall pick in 2013. He’s worked out okay, I suppose. 70 grade power that plays in major league games isn’t THAT hard to find. Right? Right..?
The 2013 draft had an incredibly deep first round, actually. Kris Bryant, Clint Frazier, Austin Meadows, Colin Moran, Jon Gray, Hunter Renfroe, J.P. Crawford, Tim Anderson, Sean Manaea and Corey Knebel were all drafted in that round as well. And even with that depth, Aaron Judge may be the best of them. Only Kris Bryant has a claim to be better, and given enough time, that could change. So who else have the Yankees drafted in the first round over the years?
The New York Yankees select…
Here are some picks that turned out to be good major leaguers. Gerrit Cole was selected in 2008 but did not sign. Ian Kennedy in was the first round selection in 2006. Joba Chamberlain was called later that round as a supplemental first rounder. Phil Hughes had his named called in the first round of the 2004 draft. Mark Prior in 1998, who also didn’t sign. And if we go back to 1992, there’s some guy named Derek Jeter.
On the other end of the spectrum are names like Andrew Brackman, Ty Hensley, Cito Culver and Eric Duncan. In fact, that 2013 draft I referenced is the exception, not the rule. It’s actually really hard to hit on a first round pick, even when you’re picking high in the round. So when you are perpetually in the back half of the draft order, even moderate success on your picks is coming out ahead of the curve. The Yankees have done pretty well for themselves over the years. So what can we expect with pick number 23 on Monday?
Well, to start, Benjamin Chase has been running Mock Drafts for a while and you can find them here:
- There is Mock MLB Draft, Version 1.0.
- Then we have Mock MLB Draft, Version 2.0.
- That was followed by Mock MLB Draft, Version 3.0.
- Which brought us to Mock MLB Draft, Version 4.0.
- And finally Mock MLB Draft, Version 5.1.