MLB Power Rankings: Top 25 players under 25
21. Gleyber Torres
Less than a year removed from blowing out his elbow and going under the knife for Tommy John, Gleyber Torres is already in the big leagues and adding to the embarrassment of riches for the Yankees. The cup truly does runneth over for this team in terms of young talent. The Yankees have not been this good and this young since the early Derek Jeter years.
All Torres has done in his first 100 MLB plate appearances is hit .330/.394/.602 with seven home runs and 19 RBI. The power has been somewhat unexpected considering Torres never hit more than 11 home runs in the minors, but he has been adding bulk to his 6-foot-1 frame.
The Cubs did get their World Series title with Aroldis Chapman (although it really was more in spite of him, not because of him), so the trade can never be ruled a total bust. If Torres continues to hit like this, however, it will only go to serve as another cautionary tale of a team paying too much for a rental.
Torres is the best prospect the Yankees have had in well over a decade, and he is just another feather in the cap for GM Brian Cashman, who has to be considered one of the best executives in the sport. Cashman doesn’t get nearly enough credit because he has a massive budget to work with, but his move to sell off assets at the deadline in 2016 set the Yankees up with pieces to contend for a World Series for years to come.