The Boston Red Sox certainly turned heads by claiming Nick Yorke for themselves.
The Red Sox surprised MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince and Jim Callis on Wednesday night when they selected the Archbishop Mitty High School second baseman in the first round of the 2020 MLB Amateur Draft. Yorke didn’t rank highly on MLB Pipeline’s draft-prospect rankings, yet Chaim Bloom in his first draft as Red Sox chief baseball officer opted for the teenage infielder with the 17th overall pick.
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Castrovince early Thursday morning described the pick as a “bold move by Boston.”
“With the 17th overall pick, the Red Sox selected … the 139th-ranked Draft prospect by MLB Pipeline,” That was Archbishop Mitty (Calif.) High School second baseman Nick Yorke, one of the more stunning selections of the evening,” Castrovince wrote.
“If Yorke honors his commitment to the Arizona Wildcats, the Red Sox would receive a compensation pick a year from now. But chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom made it clear that the Red Sox value Yorke. Because the Red Sox do not have a second-round selection as punishment for sign-stealing, they didn’t feel confident he would still be available to them for their next pick at No. 89 overall. …”
Callis believes Yorke-to-Boston represents a once-in-a-decade MLB draft surprise.
“This might be the most surprising first-round pick since the Cubs took Hayden Simpson 16th overall 10 years ago,” Callis wrote. “It’s even more of a shock considering that the Red Sox don’t have a second-rounder after losing it as punishment for illegal sign-stealing. Yorke has a sweet right-handed swing and is one of the best pure prep hitters on the West Coast, but MLB Pipeline ranked him No. 139 on its Top 200 Draft Prospects list. He has had shoulder surgery in the past, so he may wind up at second base.”
Castrovince and Callis’ reactions to Boston’s pick are similar to those of ESPN’s panel of MLB experts, who also expressed some surprise during the MLB Draft broadcast.
Yorke likely will need time to develop into a big-league-caliber player, and only then will fans and experts alike be able to judge whether Bloom pulled a rabbit out of his proverbial hat.
