SCRANTON, Pa.— While the Yankees were making history at Oracle Park with back-to-back shutouts against the Giants, their farm system opened its own season Friday with a performance that should grab the attention of every fan tracking the organization’s pitching depth.
The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders routed the Buffalo Bisons 8-0 in the Triple-A opener, and the story of the night was a right-hander who has spent the better part of four years fighting through elbow injuries just to get back on a mound.
For the Yankees, the pipeline below the big league club continues to churn out reasons for optimism.
A Yankees prospect with a long road back
Brendan Beck was once considered one of the Yankees’ most polished pitching prospects. A second-round pick out of Stanford in 2021, he signed for just over $1 million and was expected to move quickly through the system.
Then the injuries hit. Beck underwent Tommy John surgery late in 2021, costing him all of 2022 and most of 2023. He returned to pitch 31 innings at High-A Hudson Valley in the second half of 2023, posting a 1.74 ERA that suggested the talent was still intact. But another elbow setback wiped out his entire 2024 season.
Beck made it back again in 2025, pitching to a 1.82 ERA in 11 games at Double-A Somerset before earning a promotion to Triple-A Scranton. Entering this season, the 27-year-old had appeared in just 36 minor league games across his entire professional career.
Ranked as the Yankees’ No. 22 prospect on MLB Pipeline’s 2026 list, Beck is a command-oriented pitcher whose best attribute has always been his feel to pitch. His four-pitch mix and competitive streak have drawn comparisons to Shane Bieber at the same stage of development.
Beck ties career high with nine strikeouts in Yankees Triple-A opener
Friday’s performance was the best evidence yet that Beck is fully healthy and ready to compete for a Yankees call-up. He threw five shutout innings against the Bisons, the Triple-A affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays, allowing just one hit.
Beck struck out nine batters in 74 pitches, tying a career high according to MLB Pipeline. He generated 18 swings and misses on the night, a remarkable rate for a pitcher whose game has traditionally been built more on command than swing-and-miss stuff.
The Yankees have invested years of patience and rehabilitation in Beck. If he can sustain Friday’s level of performance, he adds yet another arm to a collection of young Yankees pitchers that already includes Carlos Lagrange and Elmer Rodriguez at the top of the organizational depth chart.
With the big league Yankees rotation currently missing Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodon and Clarke Schmidt on the injured list, every arm in the system matters. Beck’s ability to throw strikes, change speeds and generate outs without overpowering velocity is exactly the profile the Yankees development staff has worked to cultivate.
Yankees top outfield prospects open with solid showings
Beck was the headliner, but the RailRiders’ lineup card also featured two of the Yankees’ most watched position players.
Jasson Dominguez, the once-hyped outfielder who is still fighting to prove he belongs in the big league picture, batted leadoff and played left field. He went 1-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored.
Spencer Jones, ranked as the Yankees’ No. 6 prospect by MLB Pipeline, hit second and went 1-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and two runs scored. The left-handed slugger’s RBI double in the third inning came off the bat at 105.8 mph to the opposite field, a sign that the raw power that has made him one of the most intriguing Bronx farmhands is translating to game action.
Both Dominguez and Jones are expected to be among the first position players the Yankees call up if a need arises at the big league level this season.
Yankees farm system has more to show in the days ahead
Friday’s opener was just the first taste. Carlos Lagrange and Elmer Rodriguez, the two Yankees pitching prospects who generated the most buzz during spring training, have their own Triple-A starts approaching. Their performance on the farm could determine how the Bronx Bombers handle their pitching staff as the season progresses.
For now, Beck’s five shutout innings offered a reminder that the Yankees pipeline extends beyond the names making headlines. The 27-year-old Stanford product has been through more setbacks than most pitchers face in an entire career. If Friday was any indication, he may finally be ready to deliver on the promise that made the Yankees spend a second-round pick on him five years ago.
How do you see the performance by Brendon Beck?
