In early January, the New York Yankees were still reeling from the departure of their second baseman of the past seven years, when Gleyber Torres signed a one-year, $15 million free agent contract with the Detroit Tigers. But the ideas on how to replace Torres came quickly, and one of the biggest and most exciting involved a trade involving the Yankees’ top two pitching prospects.
That proposed trade, which never came to fruition, would have seen the Yankees taking three-time All-Star and 2015 American League Rookie of the Year Carlos Correa from the Minnesota Twins. In exchange, the Yankees were to send back a package that included their top pitching prospect Will Warren — and their second-ranked pitcher on the prospect list, Chase Hampton.
Hampton Chooses Immediate Tommy John Surgery
The trade never happened, and now neither will Hampton’s season. In a stunning and unexpected setback, the 23-year-old Texan righthander underwent Tommy John surgery Friday morning in New York City.
It was just on Wednesday that Yankees manager Aaron Boone revealed that there was “something going on” with the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in Hampton’s pitching elbow. Boone at that time said that Hampton, who was participating in the Yankees’ big league spring training camp, had been sent to New York for medical imaging on the elbow.
The results came back with not only bad news, but the worst-case scenario — a tear in the ligament that would require surgical repair. Hampton chose to have the procedure immediately, despite that it brings his 2025 season to a sudden end.
“I think in his mind, just dealing with some of the things he’s had to deal with over the last year-plus, I think there’s a little bit of, ‘Hey, let’s get fixed and get back on the trail,’” Boone said on Saturday. “So hopefully there’s a little comfort in knowing that he has a chance to put this behind him. So, long road back, but doesn’t change what a talented guy he is.”
Recovery from the surgery typically takes a minimum of one year, meaning that hope for Hampton to make his Yankees debut in 2025 is now extinguished. Hampton dealt with a series on injuries in 2024, limiting him to just seven starts over three levels of the Yankees’ minor league system.
Prospect Projected as Possible Mid-Rotation Starter
Hampton was a sixth-round draft pick for the Yankees in 2022 out of Texas Tech. He made his professional debut in 2023, going 2-1 with a 2.68 ERA in nine starts for the Hudson Valley Renegades, the Yankees’ Advanced Single-A affiliate in the South Atlantic League.
That performance earned Hampton a quick promotion to the Double-A level, where he fought his way to a 4.37 ERA but struck out 68 in 59 2/3 innings for the Eastern League Somerset Patriots. Despite the injury setbacks in 2024, Hampton ended that season as New York’s sixth-ranked overall prospect and second-ranked pitching prospect, according to MLB.com, behind only 25-year-old righty Will Warren who made his debut for the Major League club last season.
Fangraphs also ranked Hampton No. 6 overall in the Yankees’ system.
“There’s a version of Hampton that returns with the velocity he’s had for most of his career — a fastball in the low 90s — and projects as a No. 4-5 starter,” wrote Fangraphs prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen. “And then there’s the apex version we saw for a few months in 2023 who would more cleanly fit in the middle of a rotation.”
Either way, all MLB teams generally need pitching reinforcements as the season progresses, and if they can find those options in their own farm system rather than being forced to make trades, that can give a competitive team a significant advantage. The Yankees just lost one possible option in Hampton for at least another year.
