MLB Draft 2024: Grading the Yankees’ Nos. 6-10 picks

After 10 rounds in the 2024 MLB Draft, one thing we learned is that the Yankees felt they needed to bolster their farm system’s pitching depth. As with any professional draft, only time will tell with the picks, but this parade of pitchers provides insight into how the Yankees view their organizational farm system. The Yankees’ first seven picks in the draft were college arms (and 8 out of 10), with six from the SEC. As a fan, the nice thing about following this Yankees’ draft class, with the proliferation of coverage of college baseball, is that these prospects are less of a mystery compared to high-school picks. So let’s look at how the second half of the top 10 shook out for the Yankees.

In the sixth round, pick 181, the Yankees went back to the SEC well with sophomore left-handed pitcher Griffin Herring from Louisiana State University. Herring is comfortable in relief, only starting one game this season, throwing 1.2 innings as an opener. He posted a 1.14 ERA this season in SEC regular-season games over 11 appearances and 31.2 innings. Against the conference, he had 45 strikeouts and seven walks. He uses a fastball and slider combination, with a fastball speed from mid-to-low 90s and his slider in the mid-80s. Consistent with his draft pick, Baseball America ranked him 172nd on their board. They summarized his stuff by saying, “in general he shows solid pitchability and competes with both his fastball and slider.”

To keep the pitching party going, the Yankees selected Virginia Tech’s Wyatt Parliament as their seventh-round selection, 211th overall. Going with the theme of the early rounds, the Yankees seem to be betting on the tools here. He had a 7.63 ERA over 10 starts and five relief appearances. Over his college career—with his first two seasons with Rutgers—he has a 5.49 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, and 9.9 k/9 rate. As you would imagine, his stuff, in the scouting world, tracks better than his numbers. Baseball America says that his fastball ranges from 92-94 mph with BA noting that it “plays above its velocity thanks to solid riding life, a low release point and a flat approach angle.” At just 20 years old, they must see someone they can mold with their development program.

The Yankees first position player taken came in round eight, with the Bombers taking first baseman Tyler Wilson from Grand Canyon University. Wilson was the WAC Player of the Year as a senior this year. Unlike some earlier draft picks, he put up some big numbers, with a .378/.403/.691 slash line with 17 home runs and 18 doubles in 58 games in 2024. He is a switch-hitter who played left field for GCU, but is listed in the draft as a first baseman.

Following a brief divergence, the Yankees returned to picking SEC pitchers in the ninth round, selecting Auburn’s Tanner Bauman with the 272nd pick. Primarily coming out in relief for the Tigers, Bauman had a 4.57 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, and 10.2 SO/9 over 41.1 innings in 2024. The 6-foot-5, 225-pound left-hander “throws from a low three-quarters arm slot and has above-average feel to spin the ball,” according to Baseball America, which placed him 290th on their board.

To end the day, the Yankees tenth-round pick was outfielder Joe Delossantos from The College of William & Mary. The right-handed bat hit .330/.431/.584 with 14 home runs in his senior season this year. Wilson also brings speed, stealing 24 out of 27 attempts. The 23-year-old shows promise as a power bat, having exit velocity numbers that were among the best in Division I baseball, per Jacob Edelman of Baseball Prospectus.

What do we think of the picks from the sixth through tenth round? There should be a level of trust for Matt Blake staff’s eye for untapping pitching talent. Perhaps it is encouraging to see the organization target arms with underwhelming numbers, but that they see something in. Grade the second half of the top 10 below, and if you missed voting on Rounds 3-5, check out Kunj’s article. The Hess and Cunningham polls are in their own articles.