Yankees' Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz named minor league Player of the Year

Baseball America named Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz the Yankees Minor League Player of the Year on Monday, honoring the 22-year-old right-hander after a breakout season across High-A, Double-A and Triple-A. He finished with a 2.58 ERA and 176 strikeouts in 150 innings, the second-most strikeouts in the minor leagues behind Mets rookie Jonah Tong (179).

Rodriguez-Cruz’s season featured velocity and control, and he averaged 95-plus miles per hour while establishing himself as an aggressive strike thrower. “That’s one of the reasons we went after him — we just thought there was a lot of upside,” said Sam Briend, the Yankees' director of pitching. “He’s a really aggressive strike thrower, throws really hard. He averaged 95-plus miles an hour. We really thought the secondary pitches were the pieces we could impact.”

Baseball America also listed him in its Top 100 prospects, and he could begin next season at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he was promoted for his final start of the regular season on Saturday after Double-A Somerset’s playoff run ended. The award underscores the depth of the Yankees’ pitching pipeline, with Rodriguez-Cruz viewed as one of the most advanced members of the organization’s upcoming wave of pitchers.

The breakout season for Rodriguez-Cruz comes as the Yankees have cultivated a group of promising arms at several levels, including those who contributed to the team’s success on the road this season and in postseason-like environments at the affiliates. Baseball America’s recognition reflects the player’s progression across three levels and the organization’s continued emphasis on developing velocity, control and refined secondary offerings. As Rodriguez-Cruz continues to refine his repertoire, scouts will be watching how his breaker and changeup develop to complement a fastball that sits comfortably in the mid-90s and above.