Probability is high that Yankees will sign first-round pick Spencer Jones
Vanderbilt pitcher Spencer Jones plays during an NCAA regionals championship baseball game against New Mexico State on June 4 in Corvallis, Ore. Credit: AP/Amanda Loman
One day after the conclusion of the MLB Draft, there is optimism in the Yankees organization that they will be able to sign first-round pick Spencer Jones.
The club took the 6-7, 225-pound Vanderbilt outfielder with the 25th overall pick on Monday. When asked about the probability of signing Jones – whose stature brings inevitable comparisons to Aaron Judge – the Yankees’ vice president of domestic amateur scouting Damon Oppenheimer replied: “I don’t see any complications right now.”
While it may be unfair to compare a draft pick to the face of the Yankees franchise, Oppenheimer said the two were “eerily” similar in things they’d done leading up to the draft. He pointed out that each had played centerfield in the Cape Cod Baseball League and thrived and that both “have great make up and were really great athletes.” He added “they’re also different in who they are.”
“He’s a realistic five-tool type of guy,” Oppenheimer said of Jones. “He’s got big raw power. He’s got ability to use the whole field to hit. He can throw. He’s a plus runner. He’s a good defender and the ease and the way he does things is pretty special.”
Oppenheimer also said there were some pleasant surprises for the Yankees in the draft.
Brett Barrera, selected in the eighth round, fell into that category. The Stanford shortstop hit .351 with 34 extra-base hits and 53 RBIs in 63 games. “You can get a guy like that from Stanford . . . those guys have a tendency to make it,” Oppenheimer said.
Every one of the Yankees’ 20 picks came from the college ranks. However, Oppenheimer said this does not reflect an organizational philosophy. Much of it had to do with the club’s lack of draft bonus pool money, which came in 26th of the 30 MLB teams. After signing top picks, the Yankees’ might not have had enough cash left to coax top high school players out of college commitments.
“We were really, really close on a few high school guys,” Oppenheimer said. “We could have taken a couple of high school guys late in the draft. They would have been tough signs that we probably wouldn't have gotten done . . . (a small pool) makes it hard to get the kind of investment that most high school kids are looking for."
Roger Rubin returned to Newsday in 2018 to write about high schools, colleges and baseball following 20 years at the Daily News. A Baseball Hall of Fame voter since 2011, he has covered 13 MLB postseasons and 14 NCAA Final Fours.
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