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.

The Yankees hold the 25th overall selection in the 2022 MLB Draft, set to take place Sunday-Tuesday in Los Angeles as part of the All-Star Game festivities.

Damon Oppenheimer, the club’s vice president and director of amateur scouting, has been hard at work with his army of scouts and cross-checkers, seeking to identify who will be the nation’s most promising prospect in their slot -- regardless of position.

“It’s completely about taking the best available player,” Oppenheimer said. “In the amateur world, you can’t stop taking the best. You’re not trying to take somebody because you’re short on a position or you have too many. If you don’t want to take a guy [who is the best available player], you’re going to get yourself in trouble.”

In his most recent mock draft, MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis had the Yankees targeting Tennessee outfielder Jordan Beck, while also connecting the Bombers to Florida outfielder Sterlin Thompson and Vanderbilt outfielder Spencer Jones. Meanwhile, Jonathan Mayo had the club selecting shortstop Cole Young in his latest mock.

Callis also noted that the Yanks may turn to Tennessee right-hander Blade Tidwell, who could have become the top college pitcher taken before he missed the first six weeks of the season with shoulder soreness.

Four members of the Yankees’ current 40-man roster were selected in the MLB Draft: outfielder Aaron Judge (2013, first round), right-hander Ron Marinaccio (2017, 19th round), left-hander Jordan Montgomery (2014, fourth round) and Clarke Schmidt (2017, first round).

Shortstop Anthony Volpe, currently starring at Double-A Somerset, was also the club’s first-round selection in 2019. The organization’s No. 1 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, Volpe is one of three Yankees farmhands heading west to participate in Saturday's SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game.

“He dealt with some adversity early on [in 2022] and fought through it,” general manager Brian Cashman said of Volpe. “He’s finding his stride, so it’s all good. I look forward to the way he goes about it in the second half, too. He’s a really talented player; great makeup. His future, we believe, is bright.”

By the way, according to WAR, the most valuable player ever selected 25th overall in an MLB Draft was Mike Trout (2009, by Angels). That selection initially belonged to the Yankees, but it was transferred to the Angels as compensation when the Yanks signed first baseman Mark Teixeira as a free agent.