Talent development is not linear in Major League Baseball. The New York Yankees know that all too well.
With a starting rotation filled with veterans and two rising stars, the Yankees are on the lookout for ways to get some of their minor-league pitching talent into the Majors consistently.
For some, that is going to mean a role change.
The New York Post reported on Friday that one such prospect, right-hander Clayton Beeter, is now considered a reliever by the organization and will be worked that way moving forward. The Post quoted pitching coach Matt Blake to confirm the change.
Beeter made his Major League debut last year with New York and did so as a reliever. But he didn’t last long. He pitched in three games early in the season. He didn’t factor in a decision, had a 4.91 ERA and only pitched 3.2 innings.
The Yankees sent him back to Triple-A and he returned to being a starter, which he has been most of his professional career. He went 3-1 with a 2.08 ERA in 12 games (seven starts), with 56 strikeouts and 21 walks in 39 innings. He spent most of the second half of the season on the 60-day injured list.
Beeter has been considered a Top 30 prospect and a starting pitching prospect since he joined the organization in 2022. He was the return from the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Joey Gallo trade. Before that, he was the Dodgers’ second-round pick in 2020 out of Texas Tech.
The bulk of his minor league career saw him start games. In fact, 83 of his 92 games have been starts. He had a 12-17 record with a 3.63 ERA, with 428 strikeouts and 164 walks in 300 innings.
The 2023 season was his breakthrough, as he went 9-7 with a 3.62 ERA in 27 games (26 starts). He struck out 165 and walked 75 in 131.2 innings.
Baker said the move was as much about Beeter’s make-up as it was about opportunity. Baker said that Beeter relies on a fastball-slider combination and because those are his two best pitchers, that makes him more suitable for a relief role, perhaps for multiple innings.
The pitching coach called the pitch mix “super powerful.”
The decision puts Beeter in the mix with a large number of relievers competing for, perhaps, one or two spots in the bullpen.
Devin Williams is the closer. Luke Weaver, Mark Leiter Jr., Tim Hill and Jonathan Loáisiga give New York veteran options in key roles.
But a quality middle reliever who can pick up multiple innings when a start goes awry is valuable. That’s where Beeter must prove himself now.
