New York Yankees 2023 Top 30 Prospect Wraps: Tyler Hardman

The New York Yankees have an intriguing power prospect in Tyler Hardman, who set a career mark in home runs despite playing fewer games than in 2022.

InsideThePinstripes.com will review each of the New York Yankees’ Top 30 prospects, as ranked by MLB.com at the end of the 2023 season.

No. 17: 1B Tyler Hardman, Somerset Patriots (Double-A)

Statistics for 2023: (77 games, all at Somerset) .237/.332/.558/.890 with 56 runs, nine doubles, two triples, 26 home runs, 56 RBI, 40 RBI, 110 strikeouts.

Season Transactions: Started season at Somerset. Spent Aug. 8-Sept. 22 on the Somerset 7-day injured list.

Season Summary: Hardman is a power hitter, pure and simple, and he showed that again in 2023 in spite of missing the last two months due to an injury. In just 77 games at Somerset he set a career high in home runs with 26. He hit 22 of them in 2022 with two minor league affiliates, but in 111 games. The RBI production dropped, but that is likely a product of missing time. Strikeouts are still a significant problem for him, the ratio between that and walks was nearly 3-to-1. It’s also worth noting that he had the same amount of walks in 2023 as he did in 2022 in 34 fewer games, so his eye got better. The batting average also took a drop, too. But that’s not necessarily a deal-breaker in the Majors if you have consistent power.

Road Through the Organization: The Yankees knew what they were getting when they drafted him in 2021 as a fifth-round pick and sent him $200,000 in bonus money. He won a home run derby in the Cape Cod League in 2019 and he won the Big 12 Conference batting title (.397) at Oklahoma in 2021. Then he stepped into the South Atlantic League with Hudson Valley and was fourth in the league with 22 home runs. He also tied for the Arizona Fall League home run lead with six in 2022. The right-hander just hits home runs, period.

What’s next: The Yankees must have their eye on him for a year or two down the road because of his power and his ability to play at either first or third (lately he’s been at the hot corner and it sounds like his glove has improved). With his bat, a team has to find a way to get him in the line up every day. He has a better eye that his stats suggest, as MLB.com scouts say he can work pitchers to full counts. If he can improve as a fielder on both corners, and if the bat remains steady, he can work himself into a promotion to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre by the end of 2024. This assumes, of course, his injury doesn’t throw him off track.

2023 New York Yankees Top 30 Prospect Wraps:

No. 30 Elijah Dunham | No. 29 Danny Watson | No. 28 Edgar Barclay | No. 27 Justin Lange | No. 26 Yoendrys Gomez | No. 25 Matt Sauer | No. 24 Agustin Ramirez | No. 23 Ben Rice | No. 22: Anthony Hall | No. 21 Brendan Beck | No. 20 Jared Serna | No. 19: Roc Riggio | No. 18 Zach Messinger |