FORT WORTH, Texas — In the draft, and maybe nowhere else, the Yankees are constantly being asked to do more with less. Their first pick hasn’t fallen in the top half of the first round since 1993.
The players they found, such as Aaron Judge, who was selected 32nd overall in 2013, were discovered after many other clubs had passed on them.
The Yankees need to find the gem that other teams are overlooking.
Their strategy Sunday seemed to be to identify inefficiencies in the market they wanted: pitchers with power and elite qualities, even if they didn’t have the control to show for it.
First, the Yankees selected Alabama pitcher Ben Hess with the 26th overall pick, then in the second round of the draft at Cowtown Coliseum, they selected another big right-handed pitcher, Vanderbilt’s Bryce Cunningham.
Both are powerful and both are projects.
The 21-year-old Illinois native struck out 106 batters in just 68 1/3 innings last season, but his control (35 walks) clearly had room for improvement, contributing to a 5.80 ERA during his junior season.
The Yankees excel at developing pitchers and tend to favor bigger, stronger pitchers.
Hess is listed at 6-foot-5, weighs 255 pounds and is poised to become the Crimson Tide’s all-time leading strikeout winner (13.34 per nine innings).
He had a 4.81 ERA in three collegiate seasons.
“Ben checks a lot of boxes for us,” Yankees vice president of domestic amateur scouting Damon Oppenheimer said in a statement. “He fits what we’re looking for in a top-tier major league starting pitcher. Specifically, he’s a big, powerful right-handed pitcher with two curveballs that can reach up to 97 mph. [mph]We look forward to Ben continuing to excel in our player development program.”
The Yankees continued their trend of acquiring stout, tall pitchers by selecting Alabama native Cunningham with the 53rd pick.
The 6-foot-5, 230-pound right-hander can reach the high 90s with his fastball and has been hailed as his best pitch.
Like Hess, Cunningham was known more for his pitching ability than his control, striking out 168 batters in 160 innings over three seasons with the Commodores, but also walking 71 and posting a 4.95 ERA.
“We like Bryce because he has the potential to be a top-tier starting pitcher and has already been tested in the SEC,” Oppenheimer said. “He’s a quality pitcher, a powerful right-handed pitcher with a fastball that can reach 99 mph. [mph]”Bryce has a strong batting average, a good changeup and an ever-improving slider. Bryce continues to improve and would like to thank his hard work, his success in the Cape Cod Baseball League and the support he has received at Vanderbilt University.”
Hess became the Yankees’ first right-handed pitcher selected in the first round since Clark Schmidt in 2017, and the selection kicked off a string of pretty solid first-round picks for the Yankees.
Since drafting Schmidt, the Yankees have developed three late first-round draft picks into major league players from the Bronx.
Schmidt, Anthony Volpe (2019) and Austin Wells (2020) have all been promoted to major league helpers, with hopes also held for Spencer Jones (2022) and George Lombard Jr. (2023).
The trade involved TJ Sikkema (2019) and Trey Sweeney (2021).
