Hype around Yankees prospect Spencer Jones creating unrealistic expectations

Since Skenes is not likely to move, and since the handful of players on that level are also unlikely to move, it probably means that Jones is going to remain with the Yankees organization.

It's a long-winded way of saying he is almost untouchable in trade talks. 

That, frankly, seems to be an absurd position for the Yankees to take, assuming it is their position. Not because Jones isn't a good prospect, but because they might be setting an unrealistic expectation for the type of player he is or can become.

He is far from a sure thing or a can't-miss prospect. 

His power is prodigious, and in 19 games since his promotion to Triple-A, he has already hit 13 home runs with a 1.407 OPS. Those numbers jump off the page at you and make him the type of player a team and front office (and fans) can dream on. It's exciting, and it's encouraging in an era where power and home runs are one of the first things teams look for with hitters. 

But there is something else in Jones' game that also jumps off the page, and it is far less encouraging.

It is the strikeouts. 

As in, he strikes out ... a lot. A concerning amount. 

For his career (entering play on Sunday), he had already struck out 469 times in 1,310 minor league at-bats. That is a strikeout rate over 35%. His Double-A strikeout rate was an even more concerning 40.22% over the past two-and-a-half seasons. It reached as high as 42% during the 2024 season. 

While that number has come down a bit since his promotion to Triple-A, it's such a small sample size of games and at-bats that it's hard to know if it's a real improvement or just a random hot streak. 

While strikeouts have become far more accepted in the major leagues in this era, especially for power hitters, there still has to be some concern and tempered expectations for a guy who misses the ball that much in the minors. The opposing arms and the quality of pitches he sees are only going to get tougher as he takes the next step into the major leagues. 

There is also the fact he is 24 years old and has only played 19 games above Double-A ball. 

Not to mention the fact the Yankees — the team that would know him better than anybody — do not seem to be in a rush to promote him to the big league club. 

If the Yankees really thought that highly of him and really believed in him being a difference-maker, he might already be an option for them. 

There are red flags here. 

This is not to say that Jones won't be good. It is also not suggesting that the Yankees should trade him for just anybody. 

It is simply saying he shouldn't be an almost untouchable trade asset for a team trying to win a World Series right now. He's an intriguing prospect with big flaws that could ultimately hold him back.