Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, Calif., has produced three big leaguers in the history of the Draft: Outfielders Mike Vail, who first came up with the Mets in 1975, and Mitch Haniger, who went on to Cal Poly before being drafted by the Brewers in 2012, as well as right-hander Trevor Hildenberger, who wasn’t drafted out of high school, but was drafted out of Cal in 2014. Yorke isn’t projected to go as early as Haniger did after his college career (No. 38 overall), but it’s a strong possibility his bat gets him off the board way earlier than either Vail (17th round of June 1970 Draft) or Haniger (31st round, 2009).
Scouts believe Yorke has a real chance to swing the bat, with perhaps even plus hit potential from the right side of the plate. He’s a natural hitter with a pure swing and an advanced approach at the plate and there’s enough power potential in there to believe he could eventually be a run-producing type of player.
The questions about Yorke pop up concerning his future defensive home. He’s played shortstop in high school, and might have the range, hands and instincts to stay there, but he had shoulder surgery and has anchors in his shoulder causing him to DH for all of his junior year in 2019. He was back on the dirt this spring, but what had been solid average arm strength had not yet returned. Still, he could profile very well as an offensive-minded second baseman with a bat that could be worth luring away from his commitment to the University of Arizona.
A surprise first-round pick in 2020 out of the California high school ranks, Yorke made the Red Sox look smart when he broke out of the gate with a .913 OPS in his first full season with Single-A Salem in 2021. His next two years didn’t go as well, and he began the 2024 season repeating Double-A, but things clicked when he got to Triple-A; he continued to rake after the Pirates acquired him near the Trade Deadline for Quinn Priester. After a .918 OPS in 78 combined Triple-A games across two organizations, Yorke made his big league debut in mid-September.
Yorke was able to rediscover his feel to hit last year, swinging and missing less often, doing more damage on pitches in the zone than he had in 2023 or even at the start of the ‘24 season. Much of that is because Yorke, often a tinkerer at the plate, got back to using the big part of the field after being too pull-oriented previously. He’s at his best when he drives the ball to the right side of the field, making him a much better hitter with two strikes, while understanding he is strong enough to pull mistake breaking stuff for home run power, though he can also hit the ball out the other way.
It’s good that Yorke has reclaimed his stroke because the rest of his game is fringe-average, though his instincts help him steal some bags. His long-term defensive home is still up in the air. He’s played mostly second base in the Minors, although the Pirates gave him time at all three outfield spots following the trade and he got a game in at third in the big leagues. Second and a corner spot -- likely right field at PNC Park -- are probably the best options, and he could hit his way into the big league lineup soon.
Shoulder surgery limited Yorke to DHing as a California high school junior, and the pandemic reduced his season senior to five games, but the Red Sox got more scouting looks than most teams and made him a surprise first-round pick in 2020. Signed for an under-slot $2.7 million, he paced the Single-A Salem in hitting (.323) and OPS (.913) during his 2021 pro debut and ranked among the best pure hitters in the Minors. He hadn’t approached those numbers in 2022, though he rebounded a bit in Double-A in 2023 and continued a solid trend when challenged with a move to Triple-A this season. That caught the Pirates’ eye and they acquired him close to the Trade Deadline for Quinn Priester.
Yorke has the sweet right-handed swing and hand-eye coordination to hit for a high average, but he hadn’t done so consistently while tinkering with his setup and becoming much more pull-oriented the past two seasons, though that improved during his time in Worcester this year. He's still barreling fastballs but scuffling against breaking balls and changeups. He has the bat speed and strength to produce 20 homers per season, though he now looks more like an everyday player than a potential star.
The rest of Yorke's tools are fringy, though he has good baserunning instincts and will steal an occasional bag. He's a surehanded if not especially athletic or rangy defender, and Boston's internal metrics viewed him as a better second baseman than outside organizations did. His lack of arm strength limits his versatility, though he saw time in left field in 2024 and it was better than expected, with the Pirates likely to keep the second base-outfield mix going.
Scouts got limited looks at Yorke as a California high schooler because shoulder surgery limited him to DH duty as a junior and the pandemic ended his senior season after five games, but the Red Sox loved his bat and signed him for an under-slot $2.7 million as a surprise first-round pick in 2020. That looked like a shrewd investment after he led the Low-A East in hitting (.323) and OPS (.913) in his pro debut, but he didn't look like the same hitter last season. He slashed just .231/.303/.365 while dealing with toe, back and wrist injuries, and making adjustments to his swing and approach that didn't help.
Yorke did rebound in the Arizona Fall League and looked more like his 2021 self, regaining control of the strike zone and smacking line drives to all fields. With his sweet right-handed stroke and ability to recognize pitches, he should produce high batting averages, and his hitting ability and developing strength should make him a 20-homer threat. After he got too pull happy and had less success driving the ball in the air in 2022, Boston hopes that his AFL success means that he's back on track -- and that has been the case in Double-A this season.
Though Yorke has fringy speed, he plays faster than that because of his instincts and will flash solid run times on occasion. His arm earns fringy to average grades, which along with his quickness, limits his defensive options to second base and left field. He's a sure-handed and competent defender at second, though some scouts thought his athleticism regressed in 2022, something he'll have to address to remain at the keystone.
Yorke was hard to scout as a California high schooler because shoulder surgery before his 2019 junior season limited him to DH duty that spring and restricted him on the showcase circuit that summer, and then the coronavirus pandemic ended his senior year after five games. The Red Sox saw him enough to believe that he could become an elite hitter, so they made him a surprise first-round pick in 2020 and signed him for an under-slot $2.7 million. He more than justified their faith in his pro debut, overcoming a slow first month to lead the Low-A East in hitting (.323) and OPS (.913) while batting .325/.412/.516 overall -- making him just the ninth teenaged batting qualifier to top the .300/.400/.500 threshold in a full-season league in the last 20 years.
After batting .195 with a 23 percent strikeout rate in his first month as a pro, Yorke adjusted and hit .361 with a 14 percent whiff rate the rest of last season. He's extremely advanced at the plate with a sweet right-handed swing, the ability to recognize pitches and a disciplined, all-fields approach. He's growing into some power as he's getting stronger and learning to turn on pitches more easily -- he went deep 11 times in his final 35 games, compared to just three times in his first 62 contests -- and he could produce 20 or more homers on an annual basis.
Scouts graded Yorke as having fringy speed in high school, but he played quicker than that in 2021, showing solid run times on occasion. His average quickness and arm strength limit his infield options to second base, where he should become a competent defender with more experience. Left field would likely be Plan B, and he looks like he'd provide enough offense to profile there if necessary.
Yorke was the biggest surprise in the first round of the 2020 Draft, though some clubs regarded him as the best high school hitter on the West Coast. He was difficult to evaluate because shoulder surgery before his junior season in 2019 relegated him to DH duty that spring and limited him on the showcase circuit, and because the coronavirus shutdown meant he played just five games in 2020. But the Red Sox saw enough to believe that he can become an elite hitter, so they selected him 17th overall and signed him for an under-slot $2.7 million.
Yorke has a pretty right-handed swing and advanced plate discipline and pitch recognition. He hits the ball to all fields with authority and while most of his over-the-fence power presently comes to his pull side, he's adding strength and could develop into a .300 hitter who produces 20 homers annually. He joined Boston's alternate training site toward the end of the summer and though he was the youngest player there and had no pro experience, he didn't look out of place and reached base in five of his first six plate appearances, including a double off big leaguer Matt Hall.
A shortstop before he injured his shoulder, Yorke has the hands and instincts for that position but his fringy to average speed limits his range. His arm also hasn't come all the way back yet, another reason that second base appears to be his best fit. If he hits like the Red Sox believe he can, his bat will profile at a number of positions.
Though scouts regarded Yorke as one of the best high school hitters on the West Coast in the 2020 Draft, he was tough to evaluate. Shoulder surgery before his junior season in 2019 relegated him to DH duty that spring and led to limited appearances on the showcase circuit, and the coronavirus shutdown meant he played just five games in 2020. The Red Sox believed so much in his bat that they surprised the industry by drafting him in the first round, signing him for a below-slot $2.7 million as the 17th overall pick.
Boston believes that Yorke has the tools to become an elite hitter. He has an advanced ability to recognize pitches and control the strike zone, and he has a sweet right-handed swing with plenty of bat speed that allows him to pepper the ball to all fields with authority. Most of his over-the-fence power currently comes to his pull side, but he's getting stronger and could blossom into a .300 hitter who produces 20 homers on an annual basis.
Yorke had solid arm strength before his surgery, but his arm hasn't bounced all the way back yet. A shortstop before he got hurt, he has the hands and instincts for that position but his fringy to average speed limits his range a bit. The safest bet right now is that he winds up at second base, but if he hits like the Red Sox expect he will, his bat will play anywhere.
These run values are leveraged, meaning the base/out situation at the time of the event does impact the run value (thus introducing context outside the batter's own contribution).
Note: xHR tells how many of this player's batted balls would have been out of other stadiums. The "Adjusted" view here accounts for different wall heights, distances and environmental effects using Statcast Park Factor data.
Standard
Year
HR
2024
2
3
2
2
2
2
2
3
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
2
2
3
3
2
3
2
3
3
2
2
2
2
3
2
2
2025
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
1
2
1
2
2
1
2
2
1
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
Player
3
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
3
4
4
4
5
5
3
3
5
5
4
5
4
5
5
3
4
4
4
5
4
4
Note: xHR tells how many of this player's batted balls would have been out of other stadiums. The "Standard" view here accounts for different wall heights and distances but excludes environmental effects. It is based purely on the observed trajectory of the hit.
! Note: Shifts are through the 2022 season, Shaded starting from the 2023 season, Shift: three or more infielders are on the same side of second base, Shade: positioned outside of their typical responsible slices of the field. Learn more about how positioning is defined here
