Minor League Season Starts Today; Yankees Loaded With Talent

Looking through the rosters for the New York Yankees minor league affiliates, you notice a group of highly regarded prospects. You could see many of these players make appearances in the Bronx if an injury occurs with the big league club.

In Scranton, the Triple-A squad is loaded with talent. The pitching staff should be one of the best in the minors and the lineup consists of big time prospects and players with major league experience.

Yankees No. 1 prospect Jesus Montero headlines the group. Montero was unable to win the backup catcher position for the Yankees this spring and will get the chance to play every day for the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Yankees. Montero will look to continue his growth as an every day catcher.

Ramiro Pena and Brandon Laird will lead the infield. Both have major league experience, Pena having a lot. The two will handle the left side of the infield. Pena was sent to Triple-A after Eduardo Nunez beat him out in the competition to backup the major league infielders.

The Scranton outfield is also full of major league experienced players. Kevin Russo, Greg Golson, Chris Dickerson, and Justin Maxwell have all seen time with a major league team.

While the lineup is rather impressive, the strength of Scranton may be the pitching staff. Andrew Brackman (pictured), David Phelps, Brian Anderson, and Hector Noesi are all top starting pitching prospects. Each will continue to develop and possibly help out the major league team if needed. Scranton will also have veteran major leaguer Kevin Millwood to start the season. Millwood was signed late in spring training and is attempting to make the major league roster.

On paper, it looks as though the Scranton Yankees will be one of the better teams in Triple-A this season. Of course the roster of minor league teams is ever changing.

Moving down one level to Double-A, the Trenton Thunder have a few top prospects as well. Yankees fans making the trip to Trenton will get a chance to see two young but highly regarded starting pitchers in Dellin Betances and Manny Banuelos. Many scouts believe these are two top of the rotation type pitchers that can make the big league club within the next couple years.

Pat Venditte is an interesting and entertaining sight for fans. Venditte is a switch-pitcher. While an entertainment factor, Venditte is also a very good pitcher out of the bullpen.

Of course, we have to mention the $20 million minor leaguer Kei Igawa. He will likely be used out of the bullpen.

Trenton has another top prospect in catcher Austin Romine. Romine is in Double-A so he can play every day. If the team had sent him to Triple-A, both him and Montero would not be able to play every day behind the plate. Romine is thought of as one of three top catching prospects under the Yankees control. Montero and Gary Sanchez are the others.

As mentioned earlier, minor league rosters change throughout the season as players are moved up and down in the organization. With that said, as the season begins tonight, the Yankees minor league affiliates are stacked with talent. Particularly at the higher levels, the teams should see a lot of success this season.