Yankees 2006 draft...wow

tmacdaman1 — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 19:30:04 -0000

The previous post on Mark Melancon provoked me to post this, looking back at that 2006 draft for the Yankees. This is a list of the pitchers drafted and signed by the Yankees that year:

1st round - Ian Kennedy - He rolled through all 3 levels of the minors in 5 months last season and found himself in the majors by September where he actually succeeded. This season he flopped and got hurt after making the opening day rotation, but he still should end up as a back of the rotation type guy with good command and pitchability.

Stats in AAA: 51.1 innings, 35 hits, 14 BBs, 43 Ks, 2.10 ERA. I don't think he is a AAAA pitcher as some say because most guys in his situation would be in AA/AAA and not having that type of success.

Supplemental 1st rd - Joba Chamberlain - You all know the story, dominated the minors, made reliever, dominated as a setup man, converted back to starter, already the most dominant pitcher the Yankees have had since the 90s and profiles as a true big game pitching ace.

Stats as a starter: 65.1 inning, 60 hits, 25 BBs, 74 Ks, 2.76 ERA

3rd rd - Zach McAllister - Without a doubt the breakout prospect in the Yankees system, and one around all of baseball. Only 20 years old (turns 21 in December) but has been completely lights out in both low A and high A, and will spend next season as a 21 year old in AA and maybe even a late season call up to AAA if all goes well. Very young for his leagues and is now a top 10 Yankees prospect, maybe even top 5 in some opinions. Has just incredible control, the best in the Yankees system since Hughes was in A and AA.

Stats in Low A: 62.1 innings, 59 hits, 8 BBs, 53 Ks, 2.45 ERA

Stats in High A: 83.2 innings, 71 hits, 12 BBs, 53 Ks, 1.94 ERA. Not incredible K rates, but with that type of command and his great GO/AO ratio, he should be ok and should improve. He has added mph to his fastball since the day he was drafted.

5th rd - George Kontos - Has been very solid as a starter in the minors. A lot of people feel that with his fastball/slider combo and great K rate, he may profile as a reliever down the road. But as usual that will be a last resort.

Stats in AA: 133.1 innings, 115 hits, 53 BBs, 133 Ks, 3.78 ERA

8th rd - Dellin Betances - Was a 1st rd talent but was committed to JuCo and before the draft stated that he would only sign with the Yankees, so the Yanks waited until round 8 to risk their chances and gave him a $1 million bonus to win him over. Some very minor injuries have prevented him from finding consistency with his delivery, as he is 6'9''. Throws in the mid-upper 90s with ease and has a very good change and decent curve to go with it. With command, this kid is an ace. Without it, he is Daniel Cabrera. He has recently found some consistency and people are beginning to get hyped about him.

Stats in Low A: 104.1 innings, 74 hits, 58 BBs, 126 Ks, .198 BAA. Pretty incredible H/9 and K/9 rates, but those BBs are disgusting. But there has been improvement...

Last 6 starts: 35.2 innings, 25 hits, 13 BBs, 44 Ks, 2.01 ERA. If he finds this consistency, he will be recognized around baseball.

9th rd - Mark Melancon - Was drafted knowing he probably need TJ surgery, got it and missed all of 2007. In 2008 he has completely dominated A, AA, and now AAA. He should be helping the Yankee bullpen as soon as the rosters expand on September 1st and should be playing a huge role as soon as next season.

Stats on all 3 levels: 86.2 innings, 64 hits, 21 BBs, 78 Ks, 2.18 ERA, .206 BAA

13 rd - Daniel McCutchen - Solid prospect as a back of the rotation guy or perhaps the bullpen, and his value was shown by what he brought back in Nady and Marte at the trade deadline. Was having a solid season between AA and AAA and would've been the next in line for a start with the Yankees with all of their injuries.

Stats in AA and AAA: 153.1 innings, 147 hits, 36 BBs, 130 Ks, 3.52 ERA

17th rd - David Robertson - Flew through the minors posting pretty ridiculous K rates, but he struggled with his control. He has now been helping the major league club and has been pitching well for the most part aside from one or two disastrous appearances that have inflated his ERA. Should become a key part of the Yankees pen for a while.

Stats in the minors: 51.2 innings, 26 hits, 22 BBs, 74 Ks, 1.39 ERA

Majors: 21.1 innings, 18 hits, 11 BBs, 25 Ks, 5.48 ERA. Pretty good peripherals but the BBs can be lowered, but he is a rookie. Like I said his ERA is inflated by one 5 run appearance where he only retired 1 batter last month.

So all in all, a pretty incredible haul by the Yankees on the pitching front. Two of the guys are already key members of the major league team (Joba and Robertson), one started the year in the rotation but has been injured and underachieving (Kennedy), one brought back excellent value in a trade (McCutchen), one is knocking on the door and a future closer (Melancon) and of course McAllister is rising up the ranks very quickly and another top prospect in Betances.

What do you guys think of this type of success in just one draft and can you think of anything similar for other teams? Most teams struggled to find that type of talent over 5 drafts none the less one. The Yanks could literally have their ace, their closer, plus two or three more key starters.

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Yankees 2006 draft...wow