Lombard Jr.'s two-sport upbringing fueling his Spring Training burst

This story was excerpted from Bryan Hoch’s Yankees Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

TAMPA, Fla. -- It has already been a memorable spring for George Lombard Jr.

On Feb. 25, the Yankees prospect hit what he’ll consider his first professional home run, rounding the bases in a Grapefruit League game in the spring opener against the Blue Jays. He joked that he’d take a screenshot of the box score, his name appearing in the same columns as Juan Soto and Aaron Judge.

Then, on March 3, the 18-year-old shortstop was tabbed to take the lineup card to home plate with his father, George Lombard Sr., a former big league outfielder and the Tigers’ current bench coach.

“It was awesome,” Lombard said. “I got to spend the whole day here, so I worked out with the guys in the morning, which was really cool. Just being around them, and then obviously the game, and playing against [my father] for the first time. Hopefully, it gets to happen many more times in the future.”

Lombard’s fun promises to continue on Saturday, when he participates in the inaugural Spring Breakout game at George M. Steinbrenner Field, taking on a stacked team of the Blue Jays’ top prospects.

“It’s been a little bit of a roller coaster, but everyone here -- from all the staff, all the players -- have been super welcoming,” Lombard said. “It kind of helped me assimilate into the new system, the new lifestyle. Everything was a little crazy at first, but it’s been good. I’ve kind of settled in here, and it’s been great.”

The Yankees’ first-round selection (26th overall) in last year’s MLB Draft, Lombard received an over-slot $3.3 million signing bonus to bypass a commitment to Vanderbilt University. He began his pro career by playing 13 games for the Rookie-level Florida Complex League Yankees and Single-A Tampa, stroking 14 hits in 45 at-bats (.311).

“Hopefully, [2024] is a good year,” Lombard said. “It’s going to be a lot of baseball, more than I’ve played in a year in my life. So it’s just kind of staying mentally strong throughout the whole year and sticking with my plans the whole time. Hopefully, if I trust the process and keep working hard, it’ll go pretty well.”

Rated by MLB Pipeline as the Yankees’ No. 7 prospect entering this season, Lombard is touted as having solid tools across the board, with a sound right-handed swing and a mature approach at the plate.

“You top that off with elite makeup; the guy has grit,” said Damon Oppenheimer, the Yankees’ senior vice president of domestic amateur scouting. “He doesn’t take any pitches off. You get Major League bloodlines with his dad, and his mom being an elite soccer [player] and gymnast. Those kinds of things all add up for us, to what we think we can get as a special prospect, a special Major League-type player.”

Lombard has plus bat speed and strength, which translates into raw plus power that could grow as he fills out his 6-foot-3 frame. Also a standout soccer player at Gulliver Prep in Miami, Fla., Lombard said that playing two sports growing up helped him get to this stage.

“It’s funny; you don’t see too many baseball/soccer guys,” Lombard said. “I’ve always done it. My mom played soccer, and I always had a ton of fun playing it. As you would guess, there were some questions [about] what I was going to play throughout high school, especially my senior year.

“Everyone that I asked told me that if you enjoy playing [soccer], go out and do it. It was something that helped me with baseball on the athletic side, getting faster, and then also learning to compete. I would advise any other younger baseball players to give it a try. It was super helpful for me.”