Yankees Prospect Profile: C Austin Romine

Background

Austin  Romine,  22, is a catcher listed at 6’1″ and 195 lbs. Born in Lake Forest,  California, he was drafted in the second round of the 2007 amateur draft  out of El Toro High School.

Romine was named the Florida State  League Player of the Year in 2009 and participated in the All-Star  Futures Game in 2010. Entering the 2010 season Baseball America ranked  Romine as the second best prospect in the Yankees system and 86th in the  league overall.

Pro Career

Romine signed with the Yankees on August  15, 2007. Because he signed so late he got to play in just one game in  the Gulf Coast League that season. Romine then went to instructs before  reporting to spring training in January of 2008. That impressed the  Yankees enough to get him an invite to the big league camp in his very  first spring training.

He started his first full professional  season at Low-A Charleston where he split time behind the plate with  fellow catching prospect Jesus  Montero.  In 104 games at that level he hit .300 with a .781 OPS. His 10 home  runs that year were slightly disappointing, but they all came in the  second half that year so it left room for optimism that he might have  just gotten off to a slow start. Following the season he played in the  Hawiian Winter League.

It was another January start for Romine  in 2009 and another go around in the big league camp as well. He broke  camp that year with the High-A Tampa Yankees where he again split time  with Montero behind the plate. This time it was only for half the season  though as Montero was promoted to Double-A Trenton after just 48 games  in Tampa.

Montero got the promotion because he was  absolutely raking, but Romine’s numbers weren’t improving. Overall in  2009 his batting average and OPS both dropped to .276 and .763  respectively. Still, the FSL is a tough league and his numbers earned  him Player of the Year honors. More than anything it appeared that  catching everyday wore on him as he hit just .235 in August that year  and .265 in the second half that year.

Romine went to the Arizona Fall League after 2009, but left early due to an injured finger.

In  2010 Romine once again got a taste of big league camp, but this time  showed up with more bulk than ever before. The reasoning was so he could  fight off some of the fatigue that he experienced the year before when  he became the primary catcher for the first time. 2010 would be an even  bigger test though as he would report to Double-A Trenton for the first  time and was without Montero for the entire season.

Romine started out very well in Trenton  hitting .325 in April and May. He earned a trip to the Futures Games and  was named to the Eastern League All-Star team as well. But a full year  behind the plate wore on him and he slumped through a lot of the second  half of the season. By the end his average dropped to .268 with a .726  OPS.

Scouting Report

Romine has potential to be a .300 hitter  with 15-25 home run power. Certainly not at Montero’s level, but still  very strong for a catcher. He is aggressive without being overly  aggressive (swinging at everything) at the plate, but it does keep him  from getting a lot of walks.

He has pretty good speed for a catcher,  swiping 11 bags in 2009, but he’s young and a catcher so there is no  reason to think that he won’t slow down a bit as time goes on. He stole  just two bases in 2010.

The best thing about Romine is not just  that he can hit, but that he is an excellent fielder too. He has  excellent arm strength and a strong receiver. Over the past year he has  focused primarily on calling a better game.

2011 Outlook

2011 is a big year for Romine. Still  just 22-years-old, it isn’t a make or break year for him or anything,  but he his average and OPS have dropped each year he’s been in the  organization and he has lost his spot as the no. 2 prospect in the  organization. In order to remain a top prospect he has to show that he  can play at a high level for an entire year.

At this point it is hard to say where he  starts the year, Double-A, Triple-A, or even the big leagues. It seemed  like he was a lock to start the year in Triple-A, but then the Yankees  added Russell  Martin.  Now it appears likely that he’ll start the year in Double-A with a  chance of a promotion once Montero reaches the majors probably in late  May.

Stats

Yankees Prospect Profile: RHP Hector Noesi

Background

Hector  Noesi,  24-years-old in 10 days, is listed at 6-2 and 175-pounds. He was born  in Esperanza, Dominican Republic and signed with the Yankees as an  international free agent in 2004.

Pro Career

Noesi started where most Dominican  players start, in the Dominican Summer League where he went 5-3 with a  1.60 ERA. He made his debut in America in 2006 in the Gulf Coast League  where he had a 1.29 ERA in seven innings over five games.

That offseason he was suspended for  using PED’s and was forced to serve a 50-game suspension. When he came  back from suspension he was assigned to the Low-A Charleston Riverdogs.  He only threw 20 innings there, where he put up a 4.50 ERA, before he  needed Tommy John Surgery thanks to an elbow injury.

He came back in the second half of 2008  and pitched for both the GCL Yankees and the Shortseason-A Staten Island  Yankees. At those two levels he combined for a 3.33 ERA over 48.2  innings and 14 games.

2009 was his first full season as a pro  and it was an impressive one. He started at Low-A Charleston where he  put up a 2.38 ERA, a 9.3 K/9, and a 1.3 BB/9. Those impressive numbers  got him called up to High-A Tampa where he started in just nine games  over 41.1 innings. His ERA in Tampa was 3.92, but his strikeout and walk  ratios remained impressive at 8.7 and 0.9 respectively.

In 2010 Noesi started the season in  High-A Tampa. His numbers were impressive there so he was moved up to  Double-A Trenton before too long. His ERA jumped from 2.72 to 3.10 there  and for the first time his K/9 dropped below 8.0 (it was 7.8).

By the end of the season, mostly out of  necessity because of injury, he was promoted to Triple-A Scranton. There  he struggled a bit, but it was just over three starts and 18.2 innings.  There his ERA was 4.82, his K/9 fell to 6.8, and his BB/9, while still  impressive, was the highest it had been since he was in Staten Island at  1.9.

Noesi also played in the All-Star Futures game in 2010.

Scouting Report

I got a chance to see Noesi pitch while  he was with the Staten Island Yankees and he never really stood out to  me. He was good, but he didn’t exactly light up the radar gun as he sits  in the 90-93 mph range and only occasionally hits 95-96. He also didn’t  have a plus pitch that really stood out.

That’s pretty much where he is now. He  sits 91-94 topping out at 96 at the highest. He also throws a fastball,  curveball, and changeup. None of them have amazing break or anything.  What Noesi does is he pitches with amazing command. His career BB/9 is  1.6 which is amazing for a young starter. His 8.9 K/9 without a very  good plus pitch also speaks to his pitchablity. This guy knows how to  pitch without Dellin  Betances‘ curveball or Manuel  Banuelos‘ changeup.

2011 Outlook

Noesi struggled a little more each time  he jumped a level last season so he’s not quite ready for the majors  yet. His innings also jumped from 117 in 2009 to 160 in 2010. If he was  in the majors that would earn him a spot on Tom Verducci’s Year After  Effect list, meaning the Yankees have to take it easy with this pitcher  who has already had one Tommy John Surgery.

That said, if the Yankees need a  pitcher, he’ll be on the short list as one of the first ones they would  call up. It does depend on how quickly he adjusts to Triple-A. His  struggles last season could have had more to do with how many innings he  had thrown at the time rather than struggling to adjust to tougher  hitters. If that turns out to be the case and he pitches well in  Triple-A, the Yankees could call upon him sooner rather than later.

He is currently on the 40-man roster which makes it easier for the Yankees to call him up.

Stats

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Yankees Prospect Profile: OF Slade Heathcott

Background

Zachary Slade  Heathcott,  20, is a left handed centerfielder listed at 6-1 and 190-pounds. He was  born in Texarkana, Arkansas on September 28, 1990. He was drafted in  the first round, 29th overall, in the 2009 amateur draft.

At the time he was drafted there were  whispers about character issues, but those appear to have been overblown  and didn’t even involve him. Instead it was some issues surrounding his  parents and their relationship problems. Since being drafted, Heathcott  has been a model citizen and nothing at all has been reported on him  being troublesome.

Pro Career

Heathcott signed late and was recovering  from surgery he had in November of his senior year of high school, but  he still managed to get into three games in the Gulf Coast League in  2009. He managed to go just 1-for-10 in those games, but between that  and instructs he impressed many scouts and those within the Yankees.

His tools were all there, but the  Yankees still held him back in extended spring training in 2010 probably  due to his young age, 19, than anything else. The Yankees also believed  he was still quite raw to start the season in a full season league. He  did eventually get promoted to Low-A Charleston in the beginning of  June.

Things didn’t exactly go great for  Heathcott in Charleston, but considering his raw talent and age they  could have gone worse. Things did pick up in July as he hit .282 with a  .749 OPS that month. Over the full course of the season he hit .258 with  a .712 OPS and 21 extra base hits over 298 at bats.

After the season ended Heathcott had  labrum shoulder surgery. It was from an injury that he had played  through during the season. He should be ready by spring training in  2011.

Scouting Report

The reason why Heathcott ranks so highly  on prospect lists is not because of the underwhelming numbers he’s put  up during his short time in the minors. It’s because he is a guy who has  four tools, with the ability to develop some power, who looks sure to  stick in center field.

His has plus bat speed and swing  mechanics. This gives scouts reason to believe he could be a .300 hitter  eventually and is the reason they think he could develop power even  though he as displayed little to this point.

He’s also a good defender who is said to  have a strong first step. Couple that with a strong arm and he is  expected to be a plus defensive outfielder who will have no problem  sticking in center field.

He’s fast too. Not Brett  Gardner fast, but he could be a guy who swipes 30 or more bags a year.

2011 Outlook

Heathcott will be in Single-A again in  2011 it’s just a question of whether he will be in Low-A Charleston or  High-A Tampa. He’s still raw and he’s recovering from shoulder surgery  still, but the Yankees have a few center field prospects behind him in Mason  Williams and Angelo  Gumbs that could push him into High-A Tampa, but that is still to be seen.

Just 20-years-old Heathcott is probably  at least three years from the majors at best so 2011 is certainly not a  make or break year for him. It will be interesting to see how big an  impact, if any, his shoulder had on him last year.

His potential seems to be a .300 hitting  outfielder, who has 20 home run power, a 30-40 stolen base threat, all  with great defense at a prime position. Again, he’s probably three years  away from the majors at best though so he’s one to watch.

Stats

Yankees Prospect Profile: 2B David Adams

Background

David  Adams,  23, is a second baseman listed at 6-2 and 190-pounds. He was born in  Margate, Florida and went to college at the University of Virginia.  Adams was drafted by the Tigers in the 21st round of the 2005 draft by  the Tigers. He entered the draft again and was taken in the 3rd round by  the Yankees.

Adams had a great bat in high school and  expected to get selected high in the draft, but signability issues kept  teams from drafting him until the 21st round. When the Tigers wouldn’t  pay him what he wanted, he instead elected to go to college. In college  he started playing second base and had a great first year. His second  year he improved even more hitting .372 with a .976 OPS. Finally in his  junior year he struggled bit time, but that may have helped the Yankees  in a way as they were able to buy low on him in the 3rd round. His  signing bonus was $333,000.

Pro Career

Adams went right to the Short Season  A-Ball Staten Island Yankees after signing in 2008. Adams played 67  games there where he hit .257 with a .743 OPS. His defense there was  rough, but because of his hustle there was room for improvement. Adams  was very patient at the plate drawing 32 walks in just 297 plate  appearances.

His season in Staten Island was not  tremendously impressive, but it was solid and it earned him a promotion  to Low-A Charleston. In 67 games in Charleston he showed a nice  improvement as he hit .290 with a .779 OPS. That earned him a promotion  to High-A Tampa where he continued his improvement. In 65 games with  Tampa Adams hit .281, but showed a lot more power which raised his OPS  to .858.

In 2010 Adams continued his improvement.  In his first 39 games he hit .309 with a .900 OPS. Unfortunately his  season was cut short though with what they thought was a ankle sprain,  but what turned out to be a broken ankle ending his season. That doesn’t  change the fact that he had an amazing start to that season and that  did not go unrecognized. Despite the injury the Seattle Mariners  insisted that Adams be included in any deal for pitcher Cliff  Lee. Eventually the Mariners panicked and at the last minute backed out of the deal.

Scouting Report

In most scouting reports Adams is  praised for having extremely good fundamentals at the plate and for his  ability to take a walk if he doesn’t get the pitches he wants. He  doesn’t seem to have home run power, but could be a 40-doubles hitter.

He is an average runner and certainly  not a huge stolen base threat, but he is extremely smart base runner and  very aggressive too. Adams has improved his defense since becoming a  pro. He is prone to botching some plays defensively, but has quick hands  and can turn the double-play well. His arm strength is solid as well.

2011 Outlook

He’ll likely start the season in  Double-A, but because of the success he  had there last year and the  fact that he’ll be 24-years-old in May  could mean that a promotion  won’t take long. Of course a lot of that has  to do with how well he  plays and if there is a need at the higher  levels.

Adams seems destined to make the majors  at this point, but his role is uncertain. Between his solid defense the  possibility that he could become a .300 hitter makes him pretty special,  but he still has a lot to prove. The problem of position could come up  because he’s blocked at second base because of Robinson  Cano.  He doesn’t have enough power for a corner outfield spot and not enough  range for shortstop. Third base could be a possibility because he does  have the arm to do it.

This makes me wonder if the Yankees will  try him out at third base at all this year. It probably won’t happen at  first. First they’ll just let him get comfortable and establish that he  is past his ankle injury. The closer he gets to the majors the more  likely they’ll consider a position switch. He could be like Brandon  Laird where the Yankees try a position switch with him after the season in the Arizona Fall League.

Stats

Yankees Prospect Profiles: RHP David Phelps

Background

David  Phelps,  24, is a right handed pitcher listed at 6-3 and 190-pounds. He was born  in St. Louis, Missouri and attended Hazelwood West High School and  later went to the University of Notre Dame. He was drafted by the  Yankees in the 14th round of the amateur draft and signed for a signing  bonus of $150,000.

In his first year at Notre Dame, Phelps  was primarily a reliever and had a 7.09 ERA. It was his sophomore year  that turned out to be very big for him. In 15 starts that year he had a  1.88 ERA and 102 strikeouts in 110 innings. His junior year was a pretty  big let down though as his strikeout rate dropped and his ERA ballooned  to 4.65.

Phelps expected to get drafted much  earlier in the draft and was disappointed to fall to the 14th round. It  was likely his poor junior season that caused him to fall that low, but  the Yankees were lucky enough to realize his potential after his  sophomore year.

Pro Career

After signing with the Yankees Phelps  started his career with the Short Season A-Ball Staten Island Yankees in  2008. He wasn’t exactly overpowering, but steadily became the ace of  the Staten Island staff with a 2.72 ERA and just 18 walks over 72.2  innings(2.2 BB/9).

His solid season earned him a promotion  to Low-A Charleston in 2009. There he pitched 112.2 innings over 19  games putting up an impressive 2.80 ERA. His walk ratio improved to 2.0.  He was very impressive in Low-A so he got a late season promotion to  High-A Tampa where he pitched better than at any other point in his  career. Over just seven games he had a 1.17 ERA with a 1.4 BB/9.

It was just a small sample size in  High-A, but he pitched so well that he started 2010 in Double-A. In  Trenton he continued his hot ways putting up a 2.04 ERA over 88.1  innings and 14 games. For the first time his WHIP dropped below 1.00 to  0.974 even though his walk rate was the highest of his career at 2.3.

By the end of the year the Yankees  promoted him to Triple-A where he pitched in 12 games over 70.1 innings.  His ERA was a bit on the high side relative to the other levels at  3.07, but he was promoted fairly quickly and dealing with the toughest  competition he had faced yet.

Scouting Report

Phelps has a fastball that sits in the  93-95 mph range that he shows excellent command with. He also throws a  two-seam fastball occasionally that comes in at 90 mph. Phelps used 2009  to improve his slider into a good pitch and learned a curveball in 2010  that has real potential to be a good pitch. He also throw a changeup.

Phelps works fast and works in the zone.  None of his pitches are really of the plus-plus variety, but he has put  up great numbers by constantly throwing strikes. His stuff has improved  in each of the past two seasons so there is reason to believe that he  can still improve.

At this point he seems like he has good  middle of the rotation capability even in the AL East, but could easily  become a key member of the Yankees bullpen at some point as well.

2011 Outlook

Phelps will almost definitely start the  2011 season in Triple-A, but with the Yankees rotation in flux it is not  impossible that he could get called up to the Bronx rather quickly.  He’s been healthy and pitched at least 150 innings each of the past  three years including college so if he continues to improve his stuff he  has nothing more to prove.

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