Right-handed Yankees pitching prospect Jhony Brito ranks highly among rookies likely to get an MLB cap in 2023. About a week ago, the Yankees gave Brito the best compliment of all when they added him to their 40-man roster instead of letting him leave through minor-league free agency.
The Yankees pitching prospect is currently throwing bullpen sessions at the Yankees’ academy in Boca Chica in between starts in the Dominican Winter League. It gives Brito more time with the coaches and teachers who helped him have a good 2022 season and puts him in a position to probably make his debut in the big leagues in 2023.
In a phone interview earlier this week, Sam Briend, who is in charge of organizational pitching, said of Brito, “Absolute workhorse and there is nothing bad to say about him.”
Last year, the 24-year-old Yankees pitching prospect did well at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. He played 18 games in the minors and went 6-2 with an ERA of 3. 31. This included his 15 games as the starting pitcher. It happened after Brito showcased a highly dominant performance at Double-A Somerset, where he went 5-2 in eight starts and had an ERA of 2.36. Brito was listed as the 22nd-best prospect for the Yankees by Baseball America. He was also ranked No. 22 in the organization by MLB Pipeline.
Briend loved what the Yankees pitching prospect had to offer. His instructor said:
“Changeup is an absolute above-average major-league pitch. The sinker dominates. He’s one of those guys that, every level he’s gone up, he’s actually ended up rising to the challenge and becoming even better than he was the previous time. You think about that and, well, you should get better, but a lot of times guys move up and they get worse. He kind of rose to the challenge every time. He understands who he is as a pitcher.”
Briend also said that Brito might be “the best person in charge in our group.” The Yankees pitching prospect’s fastball speed went up in 2022 because the Yankees’ player development staff worked with the pitcher to alter his delivery to use his lower body more. He reached 98 mph but mostly stayed between 95 and 94 mph. His best pitch is a changeup that fades in the mid-80s. Briend also said that Brito’s slider was still getting better.
Briend said Brito might have been almost ready to play in the MLB in 2022.
“I think he knocked down the doors and another injury or something we might have seen Brito in the big leagues. I would not be surprised if he knocked down that door fully next year.”
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