New York Yankees Select George Lombard Jr. 26th Overall

The 18-year old shortstop is currently committed to Vanderbilt.
Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
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With the 26th overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, the New York Yankees selected shortstop George Lombard Jr.

Lombard Jr., the son of current Detroit Tigers bench coach George Lombard Sr., was drafted out of Gulliver Prep High School in Miami, Florida.

Currently 18 years old, Lombard Jr. ranked 31st on MLB’s Top 250 Draft Prospects list. In his senior year of high school, he hit .478 with 14 doubles and six home runs.

Although listed as a shortstop, it would make sense for the Yankees to move him to third base (a position of need) or second base (due to concerns about arm strength), as the team has a large surplus of shortstop prospects, including Roderick Arias, Trey Sweeney, Oswald Peraza, and of course Anthony Volpe, the current Yankee shortstop.

However, developing middle infield prospects has been a strength for the Yankee farm system as of late, and Lombard Jr. has great fundamentals with no tool considered to be below average. The strongest of those tools is his excellent raw power, which surely caught the Yankees’ attention.

Lombard Jr. signed a national letter of intent to play at Vanderbilt, but with the Yankees selecting him in the first round, he will likely begin his professional career instead.

Here are Lombard Jr.’s tool grades:

Hit: 50 | Power: 55 | Run: 50 | Arm: 55 | Field: 50 | Overall: 50

2023 Stats:

29 GP, 115 PA, 90 ABs, 43 Hits, 34 Runs, .478 AVG, .583 OBP, 6 HRs, 22 RBI


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Joe Najarian
JOE NAJARIAN

Joe Najarian is a Rutgers University graduate from the Class of 2022. After an eight-month stint with Jersey Sporting News (JSN), covering Rutgers Football, Rutgers Basketball, and Rutgers Baseball, Najarian became a contributing writer on Inside the Pinstripes and Inside the Mets. He additionally writes on Giants Country, FanNation’s site for the New York Giants. Follow Joe on Twitter @JoeNajarian