CLEARWATER, Fla. — Against the Yankees, Trea Turner went down swinging on a four-seam fastball. J.T. Realmuto watched a 96 mph heater catch the zone for strike three. Alec Bohm whiffed to end the first inning. Three All-Star caliber hitters.
Three strikeouts. And Will Warren walked off the mound like it was just another day at the office.
The 26-year-old right-hander gave the Yankees exactly what they needed Sunday in a 5-3 Grapefruit League victory over the Phillies at BayCare Ballpark. But the pitching story of the afternoon did not end with Warren. A former first-round pick named Ben Hess made a strong case that the Yankees’ pitching pipeline runs deeper than the headline names suggest.
Warren’s new approach fuels a scoreless afternoon
Warren, who co-led the American League with 33 starts last Yankees season, was nearly spotless in his second outing of the Yankees spring training. He threw 3 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing just one hit with no walks and four strikeouts on 50 pitches, 33 of them strikes.
In his first spring start for the Yankees, he allowed one run in 2 2/3 innings against Toronto with four strikeouts. The improvement was visible. So was the confidence.
“If I see, like in that first inning, I thought that they were off the heater, I’m just gonna keep throwing the heater until they prove that they can hit it,” Warren said.
One key change is driving the results. Warren has moved from the first base side to the third base side of the pitching rubber this spring. He used that setup in college but shifted to the other side as a pro. Now the Yankees pitcher has gone back, and the early returns are encouraging.
“I think the attack angle is really weird to righties,” Warren said. “I get really late swings over there. The lefties, I think the backdoor sweeper is going to be a huge pitch for me. The lines are getting sharper as we go throughout the spring, so I really like the adjustment we made.”
Yankees manager Aaron Boone was direct in his praise.
“I thought he was excellent,” Boone said. “Four-seam was crispy. I thought his command was really good.”
Warren went 9-8 with a 4.44 ERA last season. With Gerrit Cole still rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, the Yankees will lean on Warren heavily in the early months. A step forward from him could reshape the rotation picture.
Hess proves he belongs in the Yankees pitching conversation
Carlos Lagrange and Elmer Rodriguez have dominated the headlines among Yankees pitching prospects this spring. But Boone made it clear before Sunday’s game that the buzz should extend to another arm.
“Really good. I think Carlos and even Elmer have gotten a lot of headlines, but Benny’s right there with them,” Boone said of Hess. “What’s impressed me about him is his pitchability. He’s behind the count, he can land a breaking ball. He’s got two different breaking balls that are really good pitches for him. He’s a big, physical guy, has the starter righty profile. I’ve been excited by what I’ve seen so far.”
Hess backed it up on the field. The 23-year-old Yankees star threw two scoreless innings in relief of Warren, allowing just one hit after giving up a leadoff single. He retired the next six batters in order. It was his second spring appearance and it came against the meat of the Phillies lineup.
The Yankees’ first-round pick in the 2024 draft, Hess stands 6-foot-5, 255 pounds and is ranked as the team’s No. 6 prospect by MLB Pipeline. He went 7-4 with a 3.22 ERA in 22 starts last season between High-A Hudson Valley and Double-A Somerset, striking out 139 with 46 walks in 103 1/3 innings.
One NL talent evaluator told reporters this spring that some in the industry are underestimating Hess. A rival AL scout compared his frame and pitching style to former big leaguer Lance Lynn, noting the improvement theYankees arm made from the start of last season to the finish.
“He’s that guy that’s going to log innings, knows how to pitch to stay in the game,” another NL scout said. “He knows what he’s doing and he can command his fastball. Every time I’ve seen him, he was able to locate, elevate, go in and out. There’s definitely plus pitchability there.”
While Lagrange has touched 103 mph and regularly sits in the triple digits, Hess is not that kind of power arm. But a second AL scout noted that his fastball can reach 97 and plays up because of his body type.
“He’s just a thicker-body guy, a slower mover, and I think it surprises people and hitters,” the scout said. “There’s a little bit of deception for me. His fastball gets on them fast.”
Hess figures to open the season at Double-A Somerset. But Sunday offered a reminder that the Yankees’ pitching depth extends well beyond the names making the biggest noise. And the organization knows it.
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