More Yankees Minor League Notes

Yesterday we had some notes on the minor leaguers via Chad Jennings, and today we’re going to continue with some notes from the Daily News’ Anthony McCarron.

McCarron caught up with Mark Newman, the Yankees vice president of baseball operations, and discussed a few of their top prospects.

First up is Jesus Montero. This guy is a prospect that should excite all Yankee fans. He is already the owner of the most powerful bat in the system and has potential to hit hard and often.

Defensively, he has been a work in progress. He went from a raw player to someone who has made some serious improvements behind the plate. He isn’t a top defensive catcher yet, but he's getting there.

There have been rumors surrounding this guy for a while that the Yankees could move him out from behind the plate. These rumors mostly persist because of his size (6-feet-4-inches, 230 lbs.), but his improvement has kept him back there.

The Yankees would like to keep him behind the plate because, with his skills with the bat, he has potential to be a top offensive catcher.

“That’s our intention and, more importantly, that’s his intention, too,” Newman told the Daily News. “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.”

McCarron also asked about Andrew Brackman. The talented first rounder from 2007 has yet to pitch a single game in the minors, but is already near the top of most prospect lists.

He still has a ways to go because of his time off rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, but because of his talent and his spot on the 40-man roster, he could be a September callup by 2010.

“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.”

Don’t expect him to make an impact though until 2011 or 2012, though. Even Newman warns, “Tall pitchers typically need a little more time to make sure all the body parts work together.”

Also a topic of discussion was the 2003 first-round pick Eric Duncan. Duncan has mostly been a letdown and is getting to the point where if he doesn’t show improvement soon, he could risk staying in the minors forever.

Apparently, the infielder has begun working out in the outfield to give the Yankees another option on how to use him.

“The more versatility he has defensively gives him a greater chance to help us,” Newman said. “He is still relatively young and has had some good, really productive stretches in his young career. He’s been close (to blossoming) and then kind of backed off. We’ll see how it goes.”

Finally, Newman’s dark horse minor league candidate to make an impact on the major league squad this season, Michael Dunn. Dunn was a halfway decent prospect as a starter who jumped a bit on people’s charts when he was moved to the bullpen and gained some velocity.

“Mike Dunn. Lefty, really good arm. Fastball up to 97 (mph), legit power slide,” Newman explained.

He has a fastball in the 94-95 MPH range and a slider that is his main out pitch and sits in the high 80s.

Some people figure Dunn will start in Double-A Trenton, where he only threw 1.2 innings last season, but he might have the stuff to jump to Triple-A. Regardless of where he starts, he is a lefty and already on the 40-man roster, so he could see some time in the bigs this season.