Predicting the Yankees' Next Top Prospect Promotion After Spencer Jones's Call-Up

Up next?

The safe bet on who the next top prospect called up could be is Carlos Lagrange , the fireballer who came into camp blowing a 102.6 mph fastball right by the captain, Aaron Judge, in February. There are two scenarios in which the big 6'7", 248-pound fireballer can finally crack the big leagues. The first is the position that Spencer Jones found himself in.

The starting rotation has carried the New York Yankees, and the last thing they want is an injury to their biggest strength. If the worst happens, Lagrange is right there to step in. They could go with Elmer Rodríguez, but through his first two starts, it's clear that Rodríguez is a little green. They may just want to see what they have with Lagrange.

The next opportunity for Lagrange could come later in the summer. If there are no injuries, and he has been built up enough with minor league innings, he could easily step into the bullpen and replace either Ryan Yarbrough or Paul Blackburn.

Who to replace?

Blackburn, especially, has the most cause for concern. One thing about Yarbrough is that he's a soft contact king. While it is only 12 2/3 innings, he has an average exit velocity of 85.7 mph, a 2.9% barrel rate, and a 20% hard-hit rate. His 3.55 ERA doesn't tell the full story, as he has a 2.49 xERA and .186 xBA. All of these numbers are in the upper 90th percentile in MLB, according to Baseball Savant.

There isn't much about Blackburn that is particularly inspiring. His start against the Rangers is who he is. Were it not for Jasson Domínguez crashing into a wall, that game could have gotten out of hand for him in the first, because Texas was crushing everything they made contact with. Despite a 3 ERA, he has an 89.1 mph average exit velocity, a very good 4.3% barrel rate, a paltry 42.6% hard hit rate, a decent 3.57 xERA, and a bad .265 xBA.

The thing about Lagrange is that, statistically, he isn't lighting up Triple-A. He has a 4.76 ERA and 5.59 FIP in 28 1/3 innings. He does have that ability to strike batters out, though, because he has 38 strikeouts under his belt. That prolific ability to overpower batters equates to a 29.7% strikeout rate rate. Considering he can dial it up to the triple digits, that should play in the bullpen when the time comes.