Spencer

Jones

Jones spent the entire season with Somerset, hitting .259/.336/.452 with 17 homers, 25 steals and a whopping 200 strikeouts in 544 plate appearances. All those K’s meant that even with a .401 BABIP, he fell short of an .800 OPS. He remains a very intriguing prospect, but he might not prove ready to contribute next year.

It’s definitely not what you want. Jones has struck out a staggering 194 times in 511 plate appearances this season at the Double-A level. That’s just a shade below 40 percent of the time. It’s fair to wonder if the towering 23-year-old slugger will make enough contact to survive at the highest level. Given his performance this season in the upper minors, he’s done little to assuage those concerns.

Jones is one of the more intriguing dynasty prospects in the entire fantasy landscape, but it’s fair to question whether he’ll eventually make enough contact at the highest level to make an impact for fantasy managers. The 23-year-old slugger is striking out nearly 40 percent of the time this season at the Double-A level, which seems like a recipe for disaster in the majors. It’s not unprecedented for a top prospect to make adjustments and improve, but we need to see it from Jones before we’re ready to move him back up our dynasty rankings again. He’s always going to strike out a ton, but the plate skills need to improve if he’s going to make it to the majors.

It’s a star-studded lineup with several of the top fantasy prospects in the game featured alongside Basallo. The 19-year-old burgeoning slugger has morphed into one of the premier dynasty hitters in the fantasy landscape last year, and has backed it up this season in the upper minors, batting .274/.338/.449 with 12 homers and seven steals through 75 games for Double-A Bowie. Here’s the full lineup: Max Clark CF, Cole Young 2B, Sebastian Walcott SS, Basallo C, Spencer Jones RF, Xavier Isaac 1B, Colson Montgomery 3B, Jaison Chourio LF and Harry Ford DH.

Downs, 25, actually had a shot at earning a reserve role on the team’s Opening Day roster with a strong showing in Grapefruit League action. He was off to a slow start though, hitting just .231 (3-for-13) with a pair of doubles and three RBI. He’ll continue to function as extra depth at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to open the season.

Aided by a favorable breeze, the homer measured at 470 feet. Jones has the look of someone who should be hitting 30-40 homers per year, though he managed a total of 16 between high-A and Double-A last year. Most likely, his game power will improve with experience, and he’d be a 2024 sleeper if the Yankees didn’t have Jasson Domínguez eventually coming back to an outfield that already seems crowded as is. Maybe he’ll overcome that and make an impact anyway, but the deck is stacked against him right now.

Jones was the Yankees’ first-round pick in the 2022 MLB draft. The 2-year-old is a towering, power-hitting outfielder and hit .268/.337/.450 with 13 homers and 35 stolen bases across 459 plate appearances for High-A Hudson Valley.

Jones will reportedly receive the full $2.881 million signing bonus slot value for the 25th overall selection in the 2022 MLB Draft. The towering outfielder from Vanderbilt possesses a massive frame and big-time over-the-fence power potential, if he puts it all together. Sounds like a Yankees’ outfielder already.

Jones is massive, standing 6-foot-7 a la Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton. Unsurprisingly, his best tool is his power, but he’s also a solid outfielder who can play any of the three outfield positions. The question mark here comes with his hit tool, as his long levers make it unlikely he can hit for a high average. Still, the power is legit, and he could be a middle-of-the-order hitter someday if everything maxes out.