Spencer

Jones

The Yankees don’t have a particularly crowded outfield in Triple-A, but they’re going to return the 23-year-old Jones to the level at which he struck out 200 times last season. Jones did have a solid spring, hitting .250/.333/.594 with three homers, but even then, he fanned in 16 of his 36 plate appearances.

Pereira missed all of last season recovering from Tommy John surgery and will open the year back in the upper minors. The 23-year-old former top prospect figures to be back in the big leagues at some point in the coming months. Jones remains one of New York’s most talented prospects, thanks to his top-of-the-scale raw power, but persistent strikeout issues in the upper minors threaten to prevent him from reaching his potential.

Jones has struck out six times in 16 plate appearances, but he also has two homers, two doubles, two singles and two walks, giving him a 1.500 OPS. It’s definitely a nice beginning for a prospect whose stock dropped while he was hitting .259/.336/.452 with 200 strikeouts in Double-A last season.

The homer came after Everson Pereira appeared to strike out to end the sixth, only to get the call reversed on challenge. Jones isn’t getting as much hype this spring after hitting .259/.336/.452 with 17 homers and a whopping 200 strikeouts in 544 plate appearances in Double-A last year, but the tools are still there. He’ll likely open as the center fielder for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre this season.

Jones is the most prominent name among New York’s non-roster invitees despite his fantasy stock tumbling considerably in recent years due to persistent strikeout issues in the upper minors. He remains one of the more intriguing talents in the game due to his massive frame, athleticism and light-tower pop. The 23-year-old slugger struck out nearly 40 percent of the time last year at Double-A Somerset, but we’re not ruling out the possibility that an adjustment or two transforms him into an impact fantasy contributor.

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.