Now that Shane Greene has been traded to the Tigers, Yankees fans are probably wondering who replaces him on the depth chart. The way I saw out he was the perfect candidate to be the teams 6th or 7th starter, and considering that the rotation’s health is still a question-mark, a seventh starter is somewhat important However I don’t think fans or the team should fret over the loss of Greene, mostly because I feel that they have another Greene like player in Bryan Mitchell.
Like Greene, Mitchell was a relatively late round draft pick, he was drafted in the 16th round of the 2009 draft. And like Greene Mitchell’s minor league numbers for the most part have never matched his stuff. In his five years as a Yankee he has put up an ERA of 4.45, a WHIP of 1.478, a SO of 8.2, and a BB/9 of 4.3. His peripherals have generally been better than his results, but overall he hasn’t had a great minor-league career.
Of course the same can be said of Greene, and at the end of the day we saw that Greene has the stuff to be a major-leaguer. And while it was only 11 innings we saw that same major league ability out of Mitchell, remember no one ever really questioned his stuff. He was a top 30 prospect since 2010, and was rated as high as 11 since he has been a Yankee.
Mitchell is a four-pitch pitcher, who throws a mid-90’s fastball, a plus curveball, and a promising but inconsistent cutter, and changeup. His stuff would really play up in the pen, but many feel that he could be a starter. His ability to strikeout people out and force ground-outs, makes him a very good fit in Yankee stadium. 54% of the batted balls against Mitchell are grounders. He does tend to allow a lot of hits to rightfield, but those hits aren’t that deep, and he generally doesn’t give up that many homers.
Overall I felt he did made a big adjustment this year. Looking at his overall numbers that might not be clear, his 3.67 ERA and his 4.44 FIP in AAA isn’t great or anything, but it should be noted that he finally showed improved control. His BB/9 in AAA was just 3.46 which is one walk per 9 less than what he did in AAA, he also showed good control in his short stint in the majors. Overall this is a very good sign because it’s what was holding him back. Like Greene, I expect Mitchell’s stock to soar if he proves he can command his stuff.
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