TAMPA, Fla. -- A pair of deserving Yankees prospects picked up hardware before Tuesday’s 4-4 Grapefruit League tie with the Red Sox at George M. Steinbrenner Field, as catcher/first baseman Rafael Flores and right-hander Cam Schlittler received Kevin Lawn Awards as the club’s Minor League Position Player of the Year and Pitcher of the Year, respectively.
Flores, 24, split last season between High-A Hudson Valley and Double-A Somerset, slashing a combined .279/.379/.495 with 31 doubles, 21 homers and 68 RBIs in 122 games. Signed as an undrafted free agent, Flores has developed into the Yankees’ No. 17 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline.
“Rafael is going to be a really good catcher in this league for a long time,” manager Aaron Boone said.
Among qualified Yankees farmhands, Flores ranked second in homers, doubles, extra-base hits (52) and total bases (215); third in hits; tied for fourth in walks; and fifth in RBIs, slugging percentage and OPS (.874). He's 2-for-11 (.182) this spring.
“I think the bat is big,” Boone said. “I think it’s real, real power, and he’s really good behind the plate. I talk all the time about presence with our catchers, and he has that. So, it was a lot of fun getting to know him.”
Schlittler, 24, made 25 combined appearances (23 starts) with High-A Hudson Valley, Double-A Somerset and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre last season, going 8-8 with a 3.36 ERA.
A seventh-round pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, Schlittler is the Yankees’ No. 12 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline. He paced all qualified Yankees farmhands in strikeouts (154), was tied for third in wins and ranked fifth in ERA and opponents’ batting average (.218). He allowed eight runs in 12 1/3 innings this spring (5.84 ERA).
“You see the stuff and, man, it jumps,” Boone said. “The fastball really plays. For him, it’s just about that next level of strike-throwing and command, and gaining that experience. You see all the stuff is there.”
The awards are named in honor of Kevin O’Brien Lawn, the son of longtime Yankees vice president and chief of operations Jack Lawn, who passed away in 1999. Each player received a trophy as well as an engraved designer watch.
The Torre story
For the second consecutive spring, Hall of Fame manager Joe Torre completed his turn as a spring guest instructor by executing a pitching change, visiting the mound to claim the baseball from left-hander Max Fried in the fifth inning on Tuesday.
“I know he really enjoyed himself,” Boone said. “He’s a fixture at this role now and loves it, and we love having him. Just to be able to have his wisdom here and his wealth of experience, he just relates so well to everyone. It’s really great having him.”
Fried said he was “surprised” to see the 84-year-old Torre approaching in full uniform, including the familiar No. 6 on the back. Torre told Fried he had to take him out because he’d just covered first base on a Carlos Narváez groundout; Fried said he replied, “Yes, sir.”
“He’s obviously one of the legends of the game,” Fried said. “It was special.”
Next steps for Schmidt
Clarke Schmidt is slated to throw a live batting practice session on Thursday and may not be ready to pitch April 3 against the D-backs at Yankee Stadium, as previously scheduled.
Shoulder fatigue kept Schmidt from making a scheduled start Monday against the Blue Jays in Dunedin, Fla., though he tossed 24 pitches in the bullpen at George M. Steinbrenner Field and said he recovered without issue.
Schmidt has made just one Grapefruit League start this spring, throwing 38 pitches on March 11, and the Yankees are concerned he may not have enough time to build stamina before the regular season begins.
“It just depends, do we want to keep building him up for another start or two?” Boone said. “That’ll be the question we have to answer. Obviously, he’s not going to be up to a [high] pitch level, so we’ll make that call here.”
If Schmidt begins the season on the injured list, the Yankees may break camp with both veteran Carlos Carrasco and rookie Will Warren in the rotation. Carrasco can opt-out of his contract if he's not on the Yankees' 40-man roster by Saturday.