Prospects could make up next Bomber brigade
In the moments after the Yankees’ season came to a crashing end in Houston on Saturday night, one win away from the World Series, general manager Brian Cashman had a blunt assessment of where the loss in the ALCS left them.
“We’re like 28 other clubs,” Cashman said. “We’re in that pile of ‘What’s next?’ ”
And while the Yankees have plenty of pressing issues to address — from the futures of Cashman and Joe Girardi to free agency and potential trades — there’s already a preview of what could be next for the Bombers in Scottsdale, where several of their top prospects are looking to make impacts similar to the one Gleyber Torres made a year ago.
That’s when their top prospect made it clear he could challenge for a spot on the major league roster in 2017, but that hope was derailed when he suffered a left elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery.
Torres is continuing his rehab, but the Yankees still have some talent on display in the Arizona Fall League.
Estevan Florial could be at the top of the list.
The Haitian-born outfielder won’t turn 20 until next month, and after spending this past season at Class-A Tampa and Charleston, where he played well, Florial has continued to hit in Arizona. Through his first six games, the lefty-swinging center fielder is 11-for-27 with two doubles and a triple, although he has struck out 11 times.
Billy McKinney, playing first base in addition to the outfield to increase his versatility, is 5-for-20 with four of his hits going for extra bases.
And in the middle of the infield, Kyle Holder (8for-17) and Thairo Estrada (10-for-26) have impressed so far.
Although the Yankees traded their top pitching prospect, James Kaprielian, in the deal that landed Sonny Gray from Oakland, both Justus Sheffield and Albert Abreu have performed well in their first two outings.