NEW YORK — The Yankees turned a seventh-round pick into a playoff hero last year. Now they believe they can do it again. The organization has identified another mid-round arm with eerily similar traits to Cam Schlittler.
His name is Mac Heuer. Most fans have never heard of him. That is about to change.
Baseball America just released updated prospect rankings for every organization. Heuer made one of the biggest jumps in the Yankees system. He vaulted from unranked after the draft to No. 12 in the organization.
The right-hander has not thrown a single professional pitch yet. But evaluators already see massive potential.
A Texas Tech arm with raw power and untapped potential
The Yankees selected Heuer in the eighth round of the 2025 draft out of Texas Tech. He was the 254th overall pick. The organization signed him for $400,000.
His college numbers were not pretty. Heuer posted a 6.28 ERA in 14 starts during his final season. He struck out just 19.8% of batters faced. Those stats would normally scare teams away.
The Yankees looked deeper. They saw a 6-foot-5, 265-pound frame that generates serious power. They saw a fastball that touches 98 mph with spin rates over 2,500 RPMs. They saw a pitcher who had not yet learned how to maximize his tools.
Sound familiar? That description fits another Yankees mid-round pick who emerged as a star last summer.
The Schlittler blueprint shows exactly how this works
Cam Schlittler was the 220th overall pick in the 2022 draft. The Yankees took him in the seventh round out of Northeastern. His minor league numbers did not jump off the page either.
Then the coaching staff got to work. They fixed his fastball grip. They taught him to drive through the ball instead of around it. His velocity spiked. His movement improved. He became a weapon.
Schlittler debuted in July 2025. He posted a 2.96 ERA in 73 innings. He struck out 84 batters. His fastball averaged 98 mph, placing him in the 95th percentile for velocity.
The defining moment came in October. Schlittler threw eight scoreless innings in Game 3 of the Wild Card Series against Boston. He struck out 12 Red Sox hitters to end their season.
Manager Aaron Boone has already called Schlittler “a future staple of our rotation.” Ace Gerrit Cole praised him during the playoff celebration. “This guy has come up and delivered right away,” Cole said. “He’s got it. I don’t know exactly what it is. It’s hard to define it. But he’s got it.”
Heuer shares the same mechanical issue Schlittler fixed
The parallels between Heuer and Schlittler go beyond surface-level traits. Both pitchers had the same specific problem with their fastballs.
Schlittler used to get around the ball instead of staying behind it. His spin did not fully convert to vertical movement. Once the Yankees adjusted his grip, he started generating true backspin. His induced vertical break jumped to 16.3 inches at the big league level.
Heuer has the exact same tendency. He cuts the ball at times, getting around it rather than driving through it. His spin rates are already elite. The movement just needs to catch up.
The Yankees have fixed this issue before. Clarke Schmidt, Michael King, and Will Warren all improved their four-seam fastballs through the same process. Pitching coach Matt Blake and his staff have developed a clear system for this type of adjustment.
Physical tools that cannot be taught
Heuer brings traits the Yankees cannot coach. His 6-foot-5 frame and 265-pound build make him an imposing presence on the mound. He fields his position well despite his size. His delivery stays consistent.
The 21-year-old right-hander sits between 93-95 mph with his fastball but touches 98. He already throws a cutter, slider, and changeup. Those secondaries need refinement, but the foundation exists.
In college, Heuer struck out 94 batters while walking just 48. He attacks the zone with aggressiveness. The command is already there. The stuff just needs polishing.
Baseball America noted the excitement around Heuer in a recent tweet. “Mac Heuer is already knocking on the door of the top tier of the Yankees’ system,” the outlet wrote. “And he hasn’t even thrown a professional pitch yet. Will we see him in the upper minors by the end of 2026?”
Yankees pitching development continues to produce results
New York has become one of baseball’s best organizations at developing pitching talent. The track record speaks for itself. Schlittler joined a long line of homegrown arms who exceeded expectations.
The system continues to churn out arms. Carlos Lagrange, the team’s No. 2 prospect, also draws comparisons to Schlittler. The 6-foot-7 Dominican right-hander touches triple digits. He posted a 2.58 ERA with 176 strikeouts in 150 innings last season.
With Cole, Carlos Rodon, and Clarke Schmidt all expected to miss time in 2026 due to injuries, the Yankees need these young arms to step up. Schlittler will carry a heavier load. Heuer could accelerate through the system faster than expected.
The organization bet on traits over stats when drafting Heuer. If the coaching staff works its magic again, the Yankees might have found their next breakout star for a fraction of the cost.
What do you think?
