Brackman Signs With Cincy

Yanks Don't Pick Up Brackman's Option

From Marc Carig:

The Yankees severed ties today with former No. 1 draft pick Andrew Brackman, releasing the pitcher instead of picking up the option on his contract. General manager Brian Cashman announced the move, which comes after Brackman regressed badly in the minor leagues.

The 6-foot-11 right-hander entered spring training with a chance to impress coaches, only to be slowed by a groin injury. Brackman, 25, struggled so badly with his command that the Yankees moved him into the bullpen, where he finished the season as a late-season call-up.

Once a highly touted prospect, Brackman made just three appearances for the Yankees, allowing no runs in 2 1/3 innings.

When asked if the Yankees could bring back the right-hander, Cashman said it was "possible", but I wouldn't hold my breath.

Hughes May Not Start Today

From Bryan Hoch:

Yankees right-hander Phil Hughes continues to feel the effects of back spasms and is considered questionable to make a start in Wednesday's doubleheader against the Rays.

After consulting with head athletic trainer Gene Monahan, Yankees manager Joe Girardi said that he was unsure if Hughes would start the first game of a day-night twin bill as originally announced.

"I'm not sure if he can make his start [Wednesday]," Girardi said. "That's the report. I'm still going to have a little hope that he can. We'll see how he feels in the morning and then we'll go from there."

...

"We're just going to wait," Girardi said. "If [Hughes] can't start the first game, he can't start. We're going to figure it out."

Hoch also said that if Hughes can't go it could mean that we get to see the MLB debut of either Andrew Brackman or Dellin Betances.

Brackman on His Up and Down Year

From the NY Daily News:

Andrew Brackman, the Yanks' 2007 first-round pick and the former hoops player at N.C.State, was among the five players called up Tuesday from Triple-A Scranton. The 6-foot-10 righty struggled mightily with his control for much of this season and admitted he considered walking away from the game after an embarrassing start at Durham in July.

"That was definitely the lowest point in the season for me. It was tough to get on the bus. Very hard," the 25-year-old Brackman said. "I had some conversations with my dad, talking about what to do after baseball....But we didn't come up with any Plan B's. He yelled at me and told me to get on the bus.

"And I decided I'm not going to just hang it up. I'm going to go to the end and see what happens. I just stuck with it. I told myself I had to get better, and found a way to do it."

With a 2-6 record and an unsightly 8.10 ERA in 13 Triple-A starts, Brackman was shifted to the bullpen following another rough outing - a nine-walk disaster in Buffalo on July 29. But he made a mechanical adjustment with the positioning of his hands at the start of his delivery, and allowed just three earned runs over 20-1/3 innings in nine relief appearances thereafter.

"It was a rough season, but I've been throwing the ball well lately," Brackman said. "I was at a point in the season where something had to change and I had to do something to get better....It's a funny game, something so small can help you out so much. I'm just glad to be feeling the way I do now."

There might even be a chance that he gets in a few games. Later in the article there's a quote from Cashman saying that if an opportunity presents itself for the new call-ups to pitch, they'll pitch. He also mentioned that he wants to save the regular bullpen guys as much as possible down the stretch.

More Call-Ups

The only change from yesterday's post is that Brackman, and not Dellin Betances, was called up.

Brackman Sidelined with Groin Injury

As per Marc Carig:

Andrew Brackman, the Yankees pitching prospect whose improvement has created a buzz at camp, has been shut down until early next week with tightness and discomfort in his groin.

As a result, Brackman will not pitch in any of the team's first few Grapefruit League games, even though he has worked his way into the mix for one of two open spots in the Yankees rotation.

The 6-foot-10 righty won't throw again until Tuesday in a side bullpen session.

"It's not going to hurt me," said Brackman, who said the Yankees are simply taking the proper precautions. "But it couldn't be a worse time."

Brackman, who bounced back last season after a pro career marred by injuries, has been throwing since arriving for early workouts at the team's minor league complex before spring training.

He began feeling discomfort in his groin during those workouts but kept it to himself until yesterday. Still, the groin stiffness didn't stop Brackman, 25, from impressing coaches and executives with his improved command and smoother delivery.

This appears to be nothing more than a bump in the road, but it's newsworthy nonetheless. Here's hoping for a speedy recovery.

Newman on Montero, Romine, Laird, and some Triple-A Starters

This all comes from Chad Jennings...First, here what Newman had to say about the catching situation (logjam) at Triple-A:

Now that Russell Martin is on the roster, it’s likely both Jesus Montero and Austin Romine will open the season the minor leagues. In theory, each should each be in Triple-A, but that’s a logjam the Yankees don’t want.

“They need to catch, so that’s something we’ll deal with if we get there,” vice president of baseball operations Mark Newman said. “I wouldn’t want them to split right now.”

Montero and Romine split catching duties in the lower levels, but at this point, both need to get used to catching every day. They also need repetition behind the plate so that they improve defensively.

Obviously the Yankees won’t set anything in stone right now, but the arrival of Martin could force Romine back to Trenton, where last season he hit .268 with a second half that was worse than his first. I’m sure he’d rather move forward, but repeating the level might not be a waste of time.

Was signing Russell Martin really worth setting back Montero and Romine back this much?

Here's what Newman had to say about Brandon Laird:

So far so good with Brandon Laird’s work in the outfield. Newman said the Yankees are convinced he can play the corners. Left field at Yankee Stadium might be a little spacious for him, but they think he could play right field in the Bronx, and he could play left in most parks. “He’s going to do well enough out there that he’s going to be an option,” Newman said. The Yankees still think Laird is better defensively at first and third, but he could be a legitimate four-corners option as soon as 2011.

It'll be interesting to see how Laird does in Triple-A to start the season. After his promotion, he hit just .246/.268/.344 with 2 HR and 12 RBI in 127 plate appearances with SWB last year. If he can put up numbers like he did in Double-A last year (.291/.355/.523, 23 HR, 90 RBI) he may be an interesting midseason callup.

And some of those big name prospects who should be in Scranton to start the year (I suspect he's referring to Andrew Brackman, David Phelps, Hector Noesi, and D.J. Mitchell):

If the Yankees feel the need to move one of their prospect starting pitchers into the Major League bullpen next season, they can make that adjustment quickly. There’s no need to make that switch out of spring training. “When they get to Triple-A, they don’t need a full year doing that,” Newman said. “They need a month or two of adjustment. They still need innings. You don’t want to limit innings by putting them prematurely in the bullpen.”

The talented pitchers in the Yankees system are the only thing making this offseason hurt less, and the four pitchers expected to start at SWB are just the tip of the iceberg. Besides Brackman, Phelps, Mitchell, and Brackman, the Yankees also have the other two Killer-B's (Banuelos & Betances) and Adam Warren. Wilkins Arias, who is already a reliever, has had a very good winter in the Dominican and could open some eyes this year as well.

With all those arms in the top two levels of the pen (and I left out a few others) I would not be surprised at all to see at least a couple of them make some sort of impact, whether it's as a starter or reliever.

Cash Gives Girardi Green Light to use Brackman

From Mark Feinsand:

Cashman said he gave Girardi the green light to use Brackman. Innings are not an issue with him.

That's pretty interesting. I hope he can actually get into a game.

(Update: 4:55 p.m.) Here's another update via Marc Carig:

Cashman says to expect Brackman to get some work.

I guess he will get into a game.

Better Know a Prospect: Andrew Brackman

Andrew Brackman
Born: 4 December 1985 in Cincinnati, Ohio
Bats/Throws: Right/Right
Height/Weight: 6'10"/240 pounds
Signed: 2007, 1st Round MLB Amateur Draft

2010 Stats
Tampa - 60.0 IP, 67 H, 9 BB, 56 K, 5.10 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 3.12 FIP
Trenton - 80.2 IP, 77 H, 30 BB, 70 K, 2.90 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, 3.32 FIP

It would not be terribly hyperbolic to suggest that Andrew Brackman may be the definitive high-risk, high-reward selection in the history of the amateur draft. In the weeks leading into the draft, few questioned his fantastic stuff and potential for dominance. Brackman's college arsenal consisted of a high-90s fastball with two-seamer action and a knee-buckling breaking ball in the mid-70s. His tremendous height allows him to throw on a downward plane, and his sheer size and extension is capable of baffling batters. At the same time, however, Brackman had had injury problems in high school and at NC State, and his size does lend to the possibility of bone, tendon, and ligament issues. Further, many feared that lingering elbow issues would lead to surgery in the near future. As a result of the latter, the Yankees snatched Brackman with the 30th pick of the draft ... and he went under the knife shortly thereafter, with Dr. Andrews performing Tommy John Surgery.

Brackman's 2009 season was nothing short of horrific. 6.41 BB/9, a 5.91 ERA, a 4.66 FIP, and sloppy, inconsistent mechanics left Brackman tumbling down the Yankees ladder in the minds of many. His previously dynamic fastball sat in the mid to high-80s, his breaking ball had little to no bite, and there wasn't much of a change-up to speak of. However, a silver lining did exist, in that most pitchers take until year two post-TJS to recover their stuff (see: Liriano, Francisco). It was also worth noting that he maintained a roughly 1.5 G/F ratio and almost a strikeout per inning ... but the results remained poor, at best.

As any reliable optimist would have expected, Brackman rebounded tremendously in 2010. Brackman's ERA at Tampa is sort of ugly, but his peripherals indicated a fairly dominant showing - 8.4 K/9, 6.22 K/BB, 3.12 FIP, and 54% GB are very good, at the very least. His promotion to Trenton was handled with gusto, as well. While his numbers did regress a bit, the jump from High-A to Double-A is oftentimes the most difficult within the minors, and Brackman handled it quite well - while his strikeouts and walks went the wrong way, both remained solid, and his 51% GB is quite good, to boot. Most importantly, Brackman's stuff appeared to be all the way back. His fastball sat between 93 and 96 with good command, his curveball was showcased as a swing-and-miss pitch with excellent movement (and solid control), and his change-up is en route to being an average offering, sitting around 86 with a decent delivery.

The important lesson to take away from Brackman's 2010 is that visions of a quality starting pitcher are no longer a pipe dream. Brackman's progress is simply undeniable, and his arsenal is the stuff that hitter's nightmares are made of, to be a bit cliché. While I would not by into the Randy Johnson comparisons, as there's no real foundation beyond their respective heights, I do think that Brackman's ceiling is considerable ... and his floor is much higher than anyone previously expected.

Brackman & Betances Are Bronx Bound, But Not To Pitch

There have been reports floating around since yesterday that Andrew Brackman was going to be called up, well here's the deal from Josh Norris:

Andrew Brackman and Dellin Betances are headed to NY to get a taste of life in the show, not to pitch at all.

So there you have it.

Piliere's Scouting Reports on Banuelos, Betances, & Brackman

Frankie Piliere wrote up these three scouting reports, one on Manuel Banuelos, another on Dellin Betances, and a third on Andrew Brackman. As you know by now, Banuelos and Betances are already headed to Double-A, and Brackman is already there.

I'll post the summaries of each report here, but I suggest you go read each report in full, you won't be disappointed. There's a lot of good stuff in each.

Banuelos:

Look around the big leagues and find the left-handed starting pitchers that average 93 mph or better with their fastball. It's a very short list. Throw in the fact that Banuelos is a consistent strike-throwing machine with two above-average secondary pitches and you have a very rare commodity.

If you're looking for any negatives with Banuelos, it's his lack of size. But given the ease of his delivery, plus stuff and greatly advanced pitching aptitude, this is a particular talent that goes against the stereotype. If he can remain healthy and keep his shorter frame in check, he is a true front-of-the-rotation type pitcher.

Betances:

Given some real similarities in their deliveries, as well as having highly similar arsenals and approaches, the best modern-day comparison for Dellin Betances is Josh Beckett. Obviously, Beckett may not still be that dominant pitcher, so this comparison goes more for the Beckett of old. Betances obviously is taller than Beckett, but other than that they are comparable in just about every other way, including the powerful mid-90s fastball, their deliveries, and the hard 12-6 hooks.

But since he was drafted, there's never been much doubt that Betances had potentially all-world type stuff. Thankfully, his elbow surgery has not robbed him of that. It may have, in fact, given him more time to develop his changeup and refine his delivery. Those two categories have both gone from potential weaknesses to strengths.

The bottom line here is this: keep Dellin Betances on the mound and healthy and his talent is as good as anyone at the minor league level. Health is the only thing that can hold him back.

Brackman:

Over the past year I've been primarily negative on Brackman. He had yet to show me anything resembling the stuff he had in college and his command and mechanics were a mess to say the least. As of now, he still has a lot to learn about pitching, about how to read the bat, when to be more aggressive, among other things. Taken on its own you'd think he has a very long, difficult road ahead learning to be more consistent.

But given the progress I've seen from last year to spring training to now, I'd have to say that the righty has shown the ability to improve rapidly. He now shows solid command in the strike zone, a smooth and rather effortless over-the-top delivery, and the dynamic arsenal of a top-of-the-rotation starter. If given the time and patience to develop, he now has all the ingredients needed to make an elite big league starter. Again, there is much work to be done, but Brackman now is much more than just a guy you can dream on, and instead is a pitcher making outstanding progress.

The future is bright, folks.

Brackman Gets a Promotion

Josh Norris is reporting that RHP Andrew Brackman has been promoted from High-A Tampa to Double-A Trenton. In 12 starts for Tampa this year he went 5-4, with a 5.10 ERA, but has posted a 2.84 ERA over his last eight starts.

For more on Brackman, check out this post that Domenic wrote last week.

When Prospects Strike Brack

Andrew Brackman's tenure in the Yankees organization has been frustrating to say the least. The 6'10" right-hander had Tommy John surgery shortly after being drafted 30th overall in the 2007 Amateur Draft, missing the entirety of the 2007 and 2008 seasons as a result - something that the Yankees were expecting when selecting Brackman at the end of the first round. As a result, Brackman has also come to embody the phrase "high-risk, high-reward" - his stuff has never been doubted (high-90s fastball with movement and a plus-plus knuckle-curve), but his precarious injury history cannot be overstated.

Brackman's 2009 debut left a great deal to be desired, at best. In 106.2 IP, Brackman walked 76 batters (6.4 BB/9) and tossed 26 wild pitches, both of which contributed greatly to his 2-12 record and 5.91 ERA. His fastball was also a bit slow (low-90s) and his knuckle-curve was all but uncontrollable. A deeper look at the numbers, however, did show some positive signs - 8.7 K/9 and only 0.7 HR/9, as well as a solid groundball to flyball ratio.

Heading into 2010, there seemed to be a notion that this was a make or break season for Brackman. The Yankees rewarded the righty with a $3.55 million signing bonus (broken up over six years) in 2007, yet had not seen the flashes of brilliance that many had hoped for. Through his first few starts, Brackman was eminently hittable, but his stuff and control appeared to be improving markedly. A few weeks ago, Brackman put it all together - over his last five starts, he's allowed only six runs while striking out 34 in 29 IP.

While Brackman's ERA (4.75) and WHIP (1.26) don't scream "elite," his peripherals do just that. 8.3 K/9, 1.1 BB/9, 7.29 K/BB, and a 2.35 FIP are stellar numbers that speak for themselves. Granted, Brackman is a bit old for Tampa - but he's also not terribly experienced, which should be considered. Additionally, Kevin Levine-Flandrup tweeted that Brackman's fastball is now sitting around 93 MPH (reaching as high as 96 regularly) and that the knuckle-curve has been replaced by a devastating 87 MPH slider (a la Joba Chamberlain circa 2007). Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus also points to Brackman's improved velocity, as well as his two distinct breaking balls (the new slider and a fledgling curve) and an improving change-up.

Here's hoping things continue to look up for Mr. Brackman.

Brackman Hoping For A Turnaround Season

Ben Shpigel of the NY Times wrote a nice article on Yankees prospect Andrew Brackman and how he's looking to bounce back after a rough few years. Brackman describes what those struggles were doing to his psyche:

“When you’re not being successful, you take a step back and look at things and wonder why,” Brackman said. “Sometimes you panic and things start moving faster and faster, and I think that’s what happened to me. Everything just rolled into a big ball."

He also says he "used to want the season to end as soon as possible.” “Then", when he started to taste some success as a reliever, he "didn’t want it to end at all.”

He's battled through injuries and mechanical issues, all of which were expected by the Yanks when they drafted the 6'10" pitcher out of NC State:

“We weren’t surprised that he had these growing pains,” said Mark Newman, the Yankees’ senior vice president for baseball operations. “We knew that going in. Where we draft, we don’t get opportunities for guys like Andrew, who’s a heck of an athlete and has an incredible arm. That’s what’s so attractive about him.”

The most significant move, Brackman said, was when the Yankees shifted him to the bullpen. He pitched fewer innings, but more often. He focused on only two pitches — fastball and curve — and showed an aggressiveness that the Yankees had not seen for some time.

In 10 relief appearances, Brackman held hitters to a .218 average. He closed the season by not allowing a walk over 10 scoreless innings.

“He knew the game wasn’t going to rest on his shoulders,” Ware said. “Almost immediately, his velocity went back up into the mid-90s, and he started throwing strikes.”

Brackman will be back in the starting rotation this season, likely in Single-A Charleston, but the good habits he picked up last year should stick with him. His confidence is clearly back to where it needs to be:

“I feel normal again,” Brackman said. “The mound doesn’t feel like I’m in outer space anymore. It feels like I can stay there and be comfortable, and it’s been a while since I could say that.”

The Yankees have high hopes for Brackman, and his early struggles remind a lot of people of another basketball-sized pitcher, Randy Johnson, who went through the same sort of mechanical issues early in his career. The stuff is there, it's just about getting everything else in order and staying healthy, if he can do all that he should fulfill the Yankees expectations.

Checking In On Prospects: The Bad

Over the next few days I'm going to be making a few posts on the status of some of the Yankees most interesting and well regarded prospects. Here's some of the biggest dissapointments from this half year.

Andrew Brackman:

Where else could we start but here? Brackman fell to the Yankees in the draft two years ago and they jumped on the top ten talent. Their were only two problems. First of all, he got a huge ML deal. The more worrying problem was the fact that he needed Tommy John surgery immediately after signing. He missed all of last season, so this year is his first in the pros. Its has been anything but good. His control is nonexistent and his overall numbers are horrible he has the highest BB total in the South Atlantic League, second highest ERA, second highest BB/9, and the third highest FIP. Its not to late for Brackman to still be a good pitcher. After all, as his supporters often argue, he's recovering from Tommy John surgery and tall pitchers usually need more time to develop. However, theirs no arguing that he has been terrible this year and is older than most of the hitters he's facing. His last start, he gave up no BB's but it wasn't really all that great of a start. It'll take a major second half surge for this season to look like anything other than a lost year for Brackman.

Dellin Bettances:

For some reason, him and Brackman are linked together in my mind. Maybe its because they're both tall righties with a world of potential but no current results. Bettances caught fire at the end of last year. Thus earning himself a promotion and exciting Yankees fans into thinking that maybe he'd figured things out. What he's done this first half has pretty much erased that hope though. His biggest problem is that he can't throw strikes. His BB/9 isn't quite in Brackman territory but he's close at 5.48, 4th highest in the league among guys with 40 IP. He strikes guys out but only enough for a K/BB of 1.63. In addition, his ERA is well over five. I know a few Yankees fans who've given up on him completely already. Even with his struggles though its way to early for that. Like Brackman, he's a tall guy who will need more time to develop and he's only 21. Besides that, his FIP is encouraging at 3.76. It wouldn't surprise me if Bettances turned things around in the second half and brough his numbers back to a respectable level and, regardless, its way to early to give up on him.

Carmen Angelini:

Angelini was drafted a couple years ago with a ton of hype behind him. He was supposedly a steal in the late rounds that fell due to signability and the next great Yankees SS. Right now it doesn't look like people could have been any more wrong. First of all, we have the disaster that was 2008 for him. They started him out in A ball and he just was overwhelmed. He hit .236/.302/.295. Yes, that's an OPS of .597. Still people hoped he could bounce back this year and eventually make the majors one day. He's been even more awful this year though. He's continued his non production with the bat, even getting worse (try an OPS of .513), but has new found troubles out in the field. He's stacking up error totals that would rival the minor league days of Derek Jeter and at one point had a seemingly never ending streak of games with an error. I wasn't sure whether he belong here or not as his stock had really fallen precipitously after last year. However, most people still held out hope for him. After he got demoted to extended spring training earlier this year I think most people gave up on this guy.

Honorable Mentions:

• Ian Kennedy
• Humberto Sanchez
• J.B. Cox

I'm planning to make one more post on the guys that have been promoted this year. As with before, let me know what you think and if I missed anybody in the comments section.

Some High Priase For Brackman

I know everyone is sick of the A-Rod thing, so how about a little info on the 2007 no. 1 draft pick, Andrew Brackman?

Here's what Mark Teixeira had to say after watching Brackman throw yesterday:

Andrew Brackman also threw, facing several minor- leaguers, including well-regarded catching prospect Jesus Montero. "Brackman is going to be great," said Teixeira, who had watched the 6-foot-10 right-hander. "His delivery is very smooth, and he's right on top of you."

Peter Abraham added this:

Brackman was fun to watch, especially when he faced Jesus Montero. Now keep in mind that the hitters aren’t really doing much hitting in live BP. They’re tracking the ball and letting the pitchers work on whatever they’re trying to do. But Montero did take a couple of cuts and made solid contact a few times.

Brackman has a lot fewer moving parts in his delivery than I expected. He sort of brings the ball from behind his ear and has a nice downward plane to his delivery. But I can’t see him in the majors before the end of the 2010 season. The Yankees will keep him in Tampa and there’s a chance he sees Trenton this year. He has so little experience and probably knows next to nothing about holding runners, fielding his position and setting hitters up.

Then there was this earlier in the week from George King:

Right-hander Andrew Brackman, the club's No. 1 pick in 2007 draft, threw in the bullpen and impressed manager Joe Girardi, who caught him in a bullpen session late last season in St. Petersburg, Fla.

"I saw a big difference. He was impressive, throwing downhill and strikes," Girardi said. "He was only throwing fastballs and split change-ups.

Also, according to Kat O'Brien, Brackman has lost 40 LBS since last February, going from 270 to 230.

The kid has tremendous raw talent, and he's still very young. With proper coaching he could be a dominating force in a year or two.

To take a look at his college stats click here.

More Minor League Notes: Montero and Brackman

Yesterday I posted these minor league notes from Chad Jennings. Tonight, over on Mark Feinsand's Blogging The Bombers, Anthony McCarron posted this article that was supposed to be in Sunday's paper. A-Rod's steroid story quickly ended that from happening. The article had this to say about Yankees catching prospect Jesus Montero:

Montero, perhaps the Yanks’ best position-player prospect, could one day be Posada’s replacement behind the plate. Though there’s been speculation that Montero, a burly, 6-3, 230-pound Venezuelan, might have to switch positions, the Yankees say they are committed to him as a receiver.

“That’s our intention and, more importantly, that’s his intention, too,” said Mark Newman, the Yankees’ vice president of baseball operations. “Right now, he hasn’t shown us anything that tells us he can’t do it. He improved his throw-out percentage last year. He’s a big boy, so he’s got to maintain lower body flexibility, but he’s got very good arm strength and he’s very bright, so he’ll run a game very well.”

“The conventional wisdom might be that he’s too big. But our attitude is that he can do it and we expect him to do it. He’s a catcher and he’s nothing beyond that, at this time.”

And Newman also had this to say about Andrew Brackman:

“In Hawaii, he had mediocre games and very good games,” Newman said. “It was the first time he had pitched in quite a while and it was a good challenge for him. His velocity was 94-97 (miles per hour) and he has top of the rotation type stuff.”

However, Newman cautioned, “Tall pitchers typically need a little more time to make sure all the body parts work together.”

He will be just 19 this season so it will take some time before Montero is ready for the big leagues. Last year in 132 games with Charleston he hit .326/.376/.491 with 17 HR and 87 RBI, and in 2007 he hit .280/.366/.421 with 3 HR and 19 RBI in 33 games for the Gulf Coast League Yankees.

Keith Law's Top 100 Prospects

Yesterday we had Law's farm system rankings, today we have his top 100 prospect list. Only the first 25 are free, to see the other 75 you will need an ESPN Insider account.

Three Yankees made the list, Austin Jackson at no. 46, Jesus Montero at no. 83, and Andrew Brackman ranked 95th. Dellin Betances just missed the top 100.

The top five prospects on the list were Orioles catcher Matt Wieters, Rays pitcher David Price, Braves right fielder Jason Heyward, Rangers pitcher Neftali Feliz, and Blue Jays outfielder Travis Snider.

Great Yankee Prospect Breakdown

Today looks like it's going to be a slow one so if you're bored go check out this great breakdown of the Yankees top five prospects over at Baseball-Intellect. The top five players are 1) Jesus Montero, 2) Dellin Betances, 3) Austin Jackson, 4) Andrew Brackman, and 5) Mark Melancon. Eventually they will post a breakdown of the rest of their top 15.

It's definitely worth the read, so go check it out.

A Scout's Look at Some of the Yanks' Top Prospects

A lot of good stuff here from SNY.tv's Michael Salfino. He spoke with Baseball America's John Manuel, who is a National League scout who also covers the American League, to discuss some of the Yankees top prospects. (hat tip to Steve Lombardi from WasWatching.com)

Keep in mind that you're getting two different points of view; one from John Manuel, and another from SNY's scout, whoever that is.

Here's what he said about Phil Hughes:

"Fastball velocity and command will be the key for Hughes," says Manuel, busy putting the finishing touches on Baseball America's fine Prospect Handbook (slated to be released Dec. 19 and available at BaseballAmerica.com)."If he's 89-92, as he was most of the AFL, he's got to have better command. If he's 90-93, it can be just control, not necessarily command. It sounds to me like the scouting consensus is more mid-rotation than ace these days. The obvious first step is to just stay healthy; he's done that exactly once in his career, 2006."

But it's that disappointing injury history that gives our scout hope that Hughes can beat current market projections of a No. 3 starter.

"Hughes is sliding unfairly because he hasn't been healthy. When you're always rehabbing from injury, your velocity will suffer. What we have here is the expectation game. Calling him a No. 1-level ace was never fair. But to me he still looks like he can be a No. 2 guy to me on a championship-caliber team.

"If he is going to be stuck at 91, then he's a No. 3 guy," the scout continues. "But I think he'll get back to being a tick higher, 92-to-94 mph. That's the key to what he becomes. Again, a lot of this is expectations. We get silly published reports that guys like Hughes throw 95 or 97 when maybe they've done it a few times on someone's gun. People expect that and then keep asking, 'Where's the 97-mph fastball?'

Austin Jackson:

Our scout says Jackson is the Yanks' No. 1 prospect, a view shared by Manuel.

"The whole with Jackson is greater than the sum of the parts," says Manuel, Baseball America's editor. " And the parts are fine. His poor AFL performance shows he's not ready for 2009. But he will be a very solid everyday player down the line. I give him a good chance to be an above-average big league center fielder. Better than Bernie Williams on defense, not quite that good offensively at his peak."

The scout's comp is outfielder Reggie Sanders, who played with the Reds and then bounced around.

"Nice athlete. Nice bat speed. Similar to Mets outfielder Fernando Martinez in that he hasn't had that big Minor League year. Like Sanders, contact rate/plate recognition is his problem. He gets himself out. Prospect-wise, he's solid, not spectacular -- not untouchable by any means. I'd trade him as a main piece for a No. 2 pitcher without thinking twice."

Andrew Brackman:

"He had the best arm in Hawaii Winter Baseball," says Manuel, who rated him that league's No. 2 prospect. "He's inconsistent, showing lots of rust coming back from Tommy John surgery. But he hit 97 mph and consistently sat at 91-96. He has an inconsistent curveball, but a surprising, firm mid-80s changeup."

Our scout didn't seem as impressed.

"He needs one of his too curveballs -- a knuckle-curve that's harder and a loopy one that probably should be scrapped. He can't change speeds well because he's so tall and thus has trouble repeating his motion. And he's already 23. He's high risk, high reward and can't afford another injury."

Ian Kennedy:

On Ian Kennedy, or scout says, "His stuff is marginal but he's tough when everything is clicking. He'll have some good stretches in the majors as a starter, I'm convinced. The Yankees seemingly have turned the page because they put Hughes in the AFL, which is developmental, while Kennedy was awarded to the tougher Puerto Rico league because I think they're trying to establish some trade value -- hoping he'll pitch well against better competition [than there is in the AFL]."

Says Manuel about Kennedy: "He has to have premium command to be a four-pitch, four average pitches guy. His best pitch, the slider, was a 55 (on the 80 scouting scale). He is supposed to be a pitchability/command guy. But does he have the guts to throw his pitch?"

They also discuss infielder Kevin Russo, first baseman Juan Miranda, starting pitcher Jeremy Bleich, who Manuel called the best left-hander in the Hawaiian Winter league, catcher Austin Romine, and relief pitcher Jonathan Albaladejo. Check out the rest of the article here.