Will the New York Yankees make those who doubted them in this year's draft look foolish?
The New York Yankees had to watch 38 top prospects fly off the board before getting their say.
Because the Major League Baseball Draft now penalizes teams 10 spots if they go over the highest luxury tax threshold, the Yankees were waiting and waiting and waiting on Sunday night.
Once they got their turn at 39, they selected Dax Kilby, a shortstop from Newnan H.S. (GA) with a good hit tool. But the selection raised some doubts for one baseball analyst.
In the wake of the draft, Bleacher Report's Zachary D. Rymer labeled the Yankees as "losers" of night one, specifically taking issue with the Kilby selection.
"Kilby is ranked as the draft's No. 62 prospect in his own right, and there are questions as to whether he'll stick at shortstop or move to second base or the outfield," Rymer wrote. "As a Clemson commit, he'll have the option to go to college to try to improve his stock if the Yankees don't give him a hefty enough bonus.
"To that end, they have only $5,383,600 to work with and Kilby's slot value is almost half that at $2.51 million."
Follow The Sporting News On WhatsApp
The Yankees shouldn't particularly need Kilby to stay at shortstop based on how their roster projects at the moment. Sure, fans are incensed about Anthony Volpe's struggles, but even if he doesn't turn it around, top prospect George Lombard Jr. has seemingly become the heir apparent.
But if for some reason the Yankees can't get Kilby signed, or if he depletes their bonus pool enough to cause trouble later in the draft, it's understandable that the pick might be questioned.
Then again, the Yankees knew their bonus pool was small, and that's the cost of doing business in pursuit of World Series wins. They just have to draft wisely, and properly evaluating how well they did in that regard will take time.
More MLB: Yankees predicted to land Diamondbacks star in deadline blockbuster
Category: Baseball
