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FanGraphs projects Gary Sanchez as the only current Yankee prospect who will become an above-average major league baseball player.
Another day, another set of prospect rankings. FanGraphs writer Tony Blengino took a slightly different approach to the prospect ranking game, ranking systems based on how many "impact" prospects they would have. Impact prospects are ones that he sees as "likely above average major league regulars."
Not shockingly, the Yankees are in the lower half of this list. The Yankees came in 20th in FanGraphs' rankings, although only one of their prospects is listed as an impact player: Gary Sanchez. That means that Blengino only sees Sanchez, as of now, being an above-average major league starter--not the most uplifting news. He had Tyler Austin listed as a impact prospect going into 2013, but after a disappointing season, he now only projects Austin as an average/below-average MLB starter.
But everything isn't completely negative - Blengino does like the Yankees' catching depth, as he obviously is a fan of Sanchez (like everyone) and thinks John Ryan Murphy and Peter O'Brien are also decent prospects. He thinks O'Brien might have to switch positions, at some point, but he really likes his power at the plate. However, he thinks the Yankees' pitching prospects are extremely woeful, writing "there may not be a single future MLB regular starting pitcher in the system at present." Ouch. He's also not holding out a whole lot of hope for Mason Williams to be much of a major league contributor except as probably a defensively minded fourth outfielder, as he "hasn't hit a lick since undergoing shoulder surgery in 2012."
Blengino admits he would've ranked the Yankees much lower except for a lot of potentially viable major leaguers in the lower echelons of the farm system; he's especially intrigued by Thairo Estrada, Miguel Andujar, and Gosuke Katoh, and he's looking for them to take some steps forward this season. He also expects the Yankees to spend big internationally to fill out their farm system, and this could help their farm system move into the top half of the league next year.
Overall, it's just more confirmation that Gary Sanchez is seen as one of the only players close to arriving who could be an above-average player in the majors. While the system may be thin at the top, with some promising new faces in the lower levels of the system - plus others he didn't mention, like PSA favorite Greg Bird - the Yankees system should start improving in the next couple years. So there's at least some reason for optimism.
