So it Seems Chance Adams Got Called Up, Who is Next?

If you have been reading me for the past two seasons or so then you are well versed in my thoughts on Yankees right-handed starting pitching prospect Chance Adams. To sum it up, I absolutely love the guy and I love what he brings to the table now and what he could bring to the club in the future. The future may not be too far off now after the Yankees organization promoted Adams to Triple-A Scranton leaving him just a phone call and a shuttle bus away from the Major Leagues and Yankee Stadium leaving me to wonder who is next. Which Yankees prospect or prospects are making their case to be the next to take the big step closer or to the Major Leagues?

Tyler Wade is probably Major League ready right now, and I say probably because one never truly knows until the bright lights are on them along with 40,000 sets of eyes, and he is making it hard for the Yankees to justify keeping him down on the farm. Wade is slowly becoming the Yankees answer to super-utility player Ben Zobrist but the young right-hander has seemingly found a bat to go with his defensive versatility. In Wade’s first 34 games in Triple-A this season the 22-year old is slashing .319/.394/3447 with 12 extra base hits and 12 stolen bases. Wade has played shortstop, second base, third base and all three outfield positions along the way and he would leave a smile on Yankees manager Joe Girardi’s face every single morning when he woke up if he and his versatility were on the big league club. That day may be coming very soon.

While Wade’s path to the Major Leagues seems like an obvious and simple one that cannot be said about Dustin Fowler. Fowler has been absolutely tearing the cover off the ball while playing a stellar center field for the Scranton RailRiders but the Yankees outfield is already congested enough as it is. Adding Fowler to the mix of Brett Gardner, Jacoby Ellsbury, Aaron Judge and Aaron Hicks is just going to be a really tough sell barring a trade, which is unlikely to happen if the Yankees are competing, or an injury to an outfielder, which in the words of Joe Girardi is not what you want.

The path for Daniel Camarena seems more obvious than Fowler’s as the Yankees seemingly need a left-handed reliever out of their bullpen and Camarena can be just that. Camarena has split time between Double-A and triple-A this season and has pitched exceptionally well posting a 2.52 ERA combined, a 2.15 ERA since joining Triple-A, along with a .236 batting average against. Can you say LOOGY? Tommy Layne better watch out because Camarena may be coming for his spot, well as soon as he gets off the disabled list with this shoulder injury. It isn’t considered to be serious but no timetable has been announced for his return at the time of this writing.

So there you have it, three names to keep an eye on as the season drags on. Enjoy your day.