The Yankees and their No. 20 overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft, Eastern Illinois SS Trey Sweeney, have reached a deal, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman.
New York will be giving Sweeney $3 million, which is close to the slot value for that pick at around $3.2 million.
The 6-foot-4, 200-pound Sweeney slashed .328/.437/.517 with 17 homers and 58 RBI in 117 games over his college career. Using his left-handed bat, he has both raw power and contact ability.
“I feel like I bring a lot of diversity,” Sweeney said on draft night. “I’m a versatile player and reliable on both sides of the ball. I’m a hard worker and love the game of baseball, so I’m ready to play.”
Yankees VP of domestic amateur scouting, Damon Oppenheimer, added: “He has excellent raw power and contact ability, and he can hit to all fields with strong plate discipline. At shortstop, he has a good clock, doesn’t play rushed and has good field awareness. His timing for both getting to ground balls and getting the ball across the infield is excellent. We also really like Trey’s make-up as he’s smart with good instincts. With his overall tool set, we believe he has the potential to be an impact player.”
Sweeney will likely see rookie ball reps soon as he gets acclimated to being a pro now. Then, it’ll be up to him to work his way through the ranks to eventually wear the pinstripes one day.