Notes:
Trade analysis links:
Jose Caballero/Camilo Doval (link)
David Bednar/Jake Bird (link)
Ryan McMahon (link)
Amed Rosario (link)
Austin Slater (link)
OF Austin Slater started his rehab stint tonight with Scranton.
The good news? The Yankees don’t have to worry about making a corresponding roster move once he is ready, as the rosters expand on Monday. That is bad news for other players who may have wanted Slater’s spot (J.C. Escarra being the most notable).
The same is true with the pitching staff. LHP Ryan Yarbrough can come up on Monday, and everything else remains untouched. I am not sure if they will keep RHP Paul Blackburn, but they can if they want to.
Scranton (77-50; 39-16 in second half) (Defeated Syracuse, 6-2. Scranton is up by five games in the second-half race.)
LF Austin Slater: 2-for-3
As for his Yankees’ role, he’ll be a backup outfielder who gets some AB against LHP. It won’t be much, given how well the outfield is playing right now.
LF Duke Ellis: 0-for-2, 2 K
3B Jorbit Vivas: 0-for-4, BB, K
CF Spencer Jones: 1-for-4, 2 R, SB (16), BB, 3 K
Jones is getting closer to a 30/30 season (he has 32 home runs and 26 stolen bases). “Who was the last Yankees minor leaguer to accomplish that?” I’m not sure, but it’s been a long time. Estevan Florial came close in 2023.
C J.C. Escarra: 3-for-4, RBI, R
1B T.J. Rumfield: 1-for-4, R, 3 K
A .228/.339/.366 August has his average down to .293.
DH Brennen Davis: 1-for-4, HR (12), 2 RBI, R, K
Davis has homered in three straight games and has five home runs in his last five games. Including his rehab time, he has hit 17 home runs in 36 games (.787 SLG)
2B Jose Rojas: 1-for-2, HR (27), 3 RBI, R, 2 BB
Rojas has four home runs in his last four games and is marching towards a 100 RBI season (93). The last player to do that in the Yankees minor league system is Brandon Laird, who drove home 102 in 2010.
RF Bryan De La Cruz: 0-for-3, BB, K
SS Braden Shewmake: 0-for-3, BB
RHP Allan Winans: (W, 11-0) 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
For Scranton: 1.18 ERA (84 IP, 62 H, 14 R, 11 ER, 2 HR, 22 BB, 90 K.
RHP Kervin Castro: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
1.33 ERA (40.2 IP, 22 H, 9 R, 6 ER, 1 HR, 18 BB, 50 K)
RHP Wilking Rodriguez: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
RHP Jake Bird: 1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, HR
Bird was solid last time out but fell back down tonight. He has a 7.56 ERA since his demotion.
RHP Ian Hamilton: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Somerset (64-60; 29-26 in second half) (Defeated Binghamton, 6-5)
Hartford lost, so Somerset increases their lead to 1.5 games in the race for a playoff berth. Hartford is playing Portland this week. Portland is 2.5 games out.
Somerset’s season ends on September 14th.
RF Brendan Jones: 1-for-4, RBI, BB, 2 K
I have mentioned that one of Jones’ attributes is his ability to play all three outfield positions. 2025 breakdown: CF: 59 games; LF: 23 games; RF: 18 games.
SS George Lombard Jr.: 2-for-4, HR (7), 2 RBI, R, SB (19), BB, K
Heading into tonight (don’t have an updated number), Lombard Jr. had a 110 wRC+ in his last 68 games at this level. That number will go up and should remind you of another fact: The Eastern League is not typically hitter-friendly. That 110 wRC+ featured a .212/.324/.376 triple slash. By the way, “last 68 games” is indeed cherry-picked. But when it comes to prospects, you are looking for upward trends and when they started.
DH Jace Avina: 0-for-4, HBP, 2 K
3B Dylan Jasso: 0-for-5, 2 K
LF Jackson Castillo: 0-for-4, R, BB, 2 K
1B Coby Morales: 1-for-2, R, BB, K
PH Tyler Hardman: 1-for-2, RBI
C Manuel Palencia: 1-for-4, R, K
CF Garrett Martin: 1-for-2, R, 2 SB (18), 2 BB
2B Duncan Pastore: 0-for-3, RBI, R, BB
RHP Ben Hess: (W, 2-1) 5.2 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 8 K
Hess cruised through five innings before running into a little trouble in the 6th. Since promotion: 3.16 ERA (25.2 IP, 15 H, 11 R, 9 ER, 1 HR, 10 BB, 32 K). Overall, Hess is up to 126 strikeouts in 92.1 innings in his debut season. I will say it again: He can be an option as early as sometime in 2026. They were lucky that Cam Schlittler ascended quickly to the big club this year, as their overall young pitching depth was lacking. That may not be the case next year.
LHP Will Brian: 0.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
RHP Baron Stuart: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
RHP Hayden Merda: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
RHP Carson Coleman: (S, 1) 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 0 K
Hudson Valley (74-47; 36-21 second half) (Defeated Brooklyn, 5-1)
Greensboro finally lost and owns a 3-game lead over Hudson Valley for the second-half title. There are only two games before their season-ending 6-game series. In other words, those games will have some meaning. We’ll see how much.
CF Dillon Lewis: 1-for-4, BB, K
SS Core Jackson: 0-for-5, 2 K
3B Juan Matheus: 0-for-4, R, SB (5), BB, 3 K
Matheus has his first career 40-stolen base campaign (previous high was 15, though he never played more than 54 games before 2025)
C Engelth Urena: 1-for-5, 2B (2)
1B Josh Moylan: 2-for-4, 2B (17), 2 R, BB
LF Luis Durango: 1-for-3, R, SB (16), 2 HBP, K
Durango has ten stolen bases in his last seven games.
2B Connor McGinnis: 1-for-4, BB, K
RF Robbie Burnett: 1-for-2, HR (1), SF, 2 RBI, R, BB, K
Burnett launches his first professional home run.
DH Joe Delossantos: 0-for-3, K
LHP Xavier Rivas: (W, 2-1) 6 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K
Since promotion: 1.50 ERA (24 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 HR, 10 BB, 34 K). Overall, between the FCL, Tampa, and Hudson Valley, Rivas has a 3.60 ERA in 80 IP with 49 hits allowed, 46 walks, and 103 strikeouts. Is he the latest mid-to-late round “find” by the Yankees?
RHP Chris Kean: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
RHP Tyrone Yulie: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
RHP Tony Rossi: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Yulie and Rossi were the main characters in the Hudson Valley meltdown the other night. Great to see them bounce back.
Tampa (59-61; 23-32 in the second half) (Defeated Bradenton, 5-4)
Tampa’s season ends on September 7th.
CF Marshall Toole: 1-for-4, CS (6), K
SS Roderick Arias: 1-for-4, R, 2 K
2B Enmanuel Tejeda: 2-for-4, HR (3), RBI, R, SB (9), K
His personal best for home runs in a season is five, set in 2023.
3B Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek: 1-for-3, SF, RBI, K
LF Richie Bonomolo Jr.: 1-for-4, R, SB (4)
RF Willy Montero: 2-for-4, HR (1), 2 RBI, R
.280/.323/.347 in 161 PA. He isn’t known for elite power, but he hit seven home runs at this level last season (120 games).
C Ediel Rivera: 0-for-3, R, HBP, 2 K
1B Hans Montero: 1-for-3, SB (22), K
DH Josue Gonzalez: 0-for-2, HBP, 2 K
RHP Jose M. Rodriguez (W, 3-1): 5.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 6 K, 2 HR
Since promotion: 5.25 ERA (24 IP, 19 H, 15 R, 14 ER, 2 HR, 19 BB, 20 K)
RHP Jack Sokol: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
3.74 ERA (43.1 IP, 45 H, 27 R, 18 ER, 3 HR, 22 BB, 37 K)
RHP Gus Hughes: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 0 K
3.89 ERA (44 IP, 38 H, 26 R, 19 ER, 4 HR, 20 BB, 40 K)
RHP Cade Austin (S, 2): 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
3.18 ERA (51 IP, 45 H, 25 R, 18 ER, 4 HR, 21 BB, 56 K). All three of tonight’s relievers could/should find themselves in the 2026 Hudson Valley bullpen. In Austin’s case, he is spending two years at this level.
FCL (28-30)
Their season is over.
DSL Yankees (24-32)
Their season is over.
DSL Bombers (31-25)
Their season is over.