Midseason Review/New Top 30 Prospects
Notes:
The Yankees signed Wake Forest infielder Blake Schaaf as a non-drafted free agent. In the Cape Cod League this season, the left-handed hitting Schaaf hit .360/.451/.465 with a 13-for-16 stolen base rate in 31 games and was named to the All-Star team. He played 12 games at second base and 16 at shortstop. There is zero doubt the Yankees jumped on him based on his performance here.
Schaaf didn’t hit for home run power during his college career, though he did steal 31 bases in 35 attempts for Georgetown in 2025. This year, in his lone season with Wake Forest, he hit .324/.431/.515 with a 9-for-10 stolen base rate.
If you check the transactions tracker, you will see that their draftees/non-drafted signees are being assigned to the FCL. That is a paper move, as they need to be assigned somewhere. We should start to see at least a few of them make their way onto full-season rosters.
Scranton (57-46; 20-9 in the second half) (Defeated Iowa, 9-5. The Railriders faced the rehabbing Edward Cabrera, who has had the lethal combination of injuries and ineffectiveness after being acquired from the Marlins in January. They touched him up for three runs over 1.2 innings)
SS George Lombard Jr.: 1-for-4, R, SB (10), 2 BB, K
Not including his rehab stint, Lombard Jr. goes 15-for-43 (.349) with ten walks in July.
C J.C. Escarra: 2-for-5, 3 RBI, R, HBP, K
2B Marco Luciano: 4-for-6, 2B (11), 3B (1), 2 RBI, 2 R, K
Luciano has four multi-hit efforts in his last five games and is hitting .299 for Scranton. He hit .358 in July.
3B Oswaldo Cabrera: 1-for-3, SF, RBI, 2 BB, K
DH Yanquiel Fernandez: 2-for-5, RBI, BB
1B Tyler Hardman: 1-for-4, R, BB, K
LF Ernesto Martinez Jr.: 2-for-4, 2 R, BB, K
LF Kenedy Corona: 0-for-0
RF Cole Gabrielson: 1-for-5, RBI, K
CF Duke Ellis: 2-for-5, RBI, R, 2 K
RHP Elmer Rodriguez: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K
Efficiency did him in, as he needed 83 pitches to record 14 outs. He owns a 2.77 ERA over 81.1 innings (65 H, 30 R, 25 ER, 5 HR, 40 BB (11.8%), 81 K (23.9%)).
RHP Zach Messinger: (W, 7-1) 1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K
RHP Brian Hendry: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Hendry’s Scranton debut.
RHP Yerry de los Santos: 0.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 0 K
RHP Danny Watson: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
RHP Carson Coleman: 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
Somerset (53-47; 16-14 in the second half) (Defeated Richmond, 9-2)
2B Connor McGinnis: 1-for-3, SF, RBI, CS (1), BB
CF Jace Avina: 0-for-2, R, 3 BB, K
He struggled with average in July (18-for-89; .202) but he has walked 18 times and 11 of his 18 hits went for extra bases.
3B Coby Morales: 1-for-4, 3B (3), 2 RBI, BB, 2 K
LF Jackson Castillo: 1-for-3, R, 2 BB
July wasn’t kind to Castillo (15-for-87; 2 doubles), but he did walk (13) more than he struck out (11).
DH Miguel Palma: 1-for-5, R, K
1B Josh Moylan: 3-for-5, HR (5), 2 RBI, 2 R
Moylan launches his 18th HR between here and Hudson Valley. He had a 4-hit effort on July 26th.
C Manuel Palencia: 2-for-4, RBI, 2 R, K
SS Kevin Verde: 1-for-4, HR (4), 2 RBI, R, K
If you asked me which prospects would hit a home run in three straight games in 2026, Verde would have been quite low on the list. But here we are. Baseball is a funny game.
RF Luis Durango: 2-for-4, 2B (1), RBI, R, 2 K
How can one not like this kid, regardless of where his career ends up? He is the type who can’t afford to strike out much, and he hasn’t (12.4%).
RHP Rory Fox: 4 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
Fox makes his Somerset debut. Getting to Double-A in your debut campaign is impressive, and I am sure many scouts were watching. Fox owned a 4.59 ERA over 82.2 innings for Hudson Valley. His rate numbers: 25.5% K, 6.5% BB, 43.1% GB. In his last six starts, he posted a 2.97 ERA, 28.5% K, and 4.2% BB.
RHP Huey Morrill: (W, 1-0) 2.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
RHP Tony Rossi: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K
At this level: 3.38 ERA (18.2 IP, 16 H, 8 R, 7 ER, 2 HR, 5 BB, 22 K)
RHP Harrison Cohen: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K
Hudson Valley (47-50; 17-16 in the second half) (Defeated Jersey Shore, 6-3)
3B Roderick Arias: 1-for-4, 2B (16), CS (10), 2 K
Last four games: 1-for-17 with 11 strikeouts.
SS Jackson Lovich: 1-for-4, R, SB (2), 3 K
Lovich is 4-for-12 to begin his Hudson Valley journey. He has struck out seven times, however.
C Eric Genther: 1-for-3, R, HBP
Genther is 24-for-67 (.358; 3 doubles, 3 HR, 16 RBI, 10 R) in July. He has also drawn ten walks and has been hit by a pitch eight times.
1B Kyle West: 1-for-4, 2B (13), RBI, R, K
2B Enmanuel Tejeda: 0-for-3, R, SB (11), BB
DH Willy Montero: 1-for-4, 2 RBI, R, 2 K
Montero earns his first Hudson Valley hit.
CF Camden Troyer: 2-for-2, HR (8), 3 RBI, R, SB (11), BB
Solid night, but I am not sure why he was pulled. Camden Troyer for Mason Miller?
RF Santiago Gomez: 0-for-1, K
LF Robbie Burnett: 0-for-4
RF-CF Gabriel Lara: 1-for-3, K
RHP Sean Paul Linan: (W, 2-8) 7.1 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, HR
Linan compiled 22 outs with only 73 pitches. This is the longest outing in his career and lowers his ERA to 5.98 over 64.2 IP (60 H, 51 R, 43 ER, 10 HR, 33 BB, 82 K). The changeup specialist was acquired from the Nationals for Jorbit Vivas. After a bad start, Vivas had a solid June (.292/.346/.438), but that’s the outlier, as he is only 7-for-43 in July (entering tonight).
RHP Brady Kirtner: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K
RHP Thomas Balboni Jr.: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
RHP Brandon Decker (S, 1): 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K
Decker’s first career save.
Tampa (59-41; 24-10 in the second half) (Knocked off Lakeland, 8-2)
SS Dax Kilby: 2-for-5, 2B (3), 3 RBI, K
Kilby had the game’s hardest hit ball (108 MPH). Since coming back from his rehab stint: 7-for-24 (3 doubles, 1 HR, 10 RBI, 2 R). Going back to his debut 2025 campaign, he is hitting .337/.440/.467 in 24 games at this level.
CF Wilberson De Pena: 1-for-4, HR (2), RBI, R
The home run was hit 422 feet at 105.8 MPH. De Pena has two home runs in three games since his promotion. Overall, he has 18 home runs and 69 RBI.
3B Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek: 1-for-4, R, SB (34), K
He owns a 7-game hitting streak (12-for-25). Before streak: .261/.372/.403. Now: .278/.387/.429.
1B Hans Montero: 1-for-3, SB (31), BB
LF Luis Puello: 0-for-3, SF, RBI, K
C David McCann: 3-for-4, 2B (6), HR (5), RBI, 2 R
.296/.386/.528 in 127 PA.
RF Brando Mayea: 1-for-4, HR (5), RBI, R, K
Mayea has an 11-game hitting streak. He has hit three home runs during the streak.
2B Christofer Reyes: 2-for-4, 2B (2), 2 R, K
DH Ediel Rivera: 2-for-3, 2B (5), RBI, R, BB
LHP Justin West: 5.1 IP, 9 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
4.96 ERA (85.1 IP, 94 H, 50 R, 47 ER, 10 HR, 27 BB, 89 K)
RHP Jordarlin Mendoza (W, 4-3): 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K
This is a glimpse of what Montero can become. He threw a 98.9 MPH 4-seamer and 98.5 MPH sinker to go along with his slider. He owns an 8.60 ERA over 30.1 innings with 32 hits allowed and a 37/23 K/BB. It will be a long process.
RHP Matthew Tippie: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
FCL Yankees (29-29)
Their season is over.
DSL Yankees (24-17)
Their game against DSL Colorado was postponed. They will try to make it up on August 5th.
DSL Bombers (19-23)
Their game against the DSL Nationals was postponed. They will try to make it up on August 5th.