Kevin Goldstein recently released his list of the top ten Yankees prospects in his latest Future Shock. Good, good stuff and you have to be happy with how the Yankees have restocked their farm system.
Phillip Hughes comes in at the number spot, which shouldn’t surprise anyone. Hughes roughed up both High A and Double A hitting last year and he’s going to get to show his stuff at spring training this year. It’s a long shot, but you could be looking at your fifth starter, and he won’t turn 21 until closer to the end of April.
Rightfielder Jose Tabata comes in at number two. He’s still a couple of years away, which is fine because the corner outfield spots are full. Number three is the Yankees first round draft pick in 2006, Joba Chamberlain. He’s a big kid and you should expect him to start at High A.
Number four is Humberto Sanchez, who also could compete for the fifth spot in the rotation. Sanchez was the key player in the trade that sent Gary Sheffield to the Tigers and he was having a nice season at Triple A until he got shut down. One word of warning, and that’s that Sanchez came out of nowhere in 2006 so he could be a flash in the pan.
The final prognosis is that the Yankees have some great arms, but little depth out in the field. If given the choice though, I’d rather have the pitching depth then the pitching depth since it’s a lot tougher, and more expensive to obtain.
