The final 10 rounds of the 2021 MLB Draft were held on Tuesday, and after selecting Eastern Illinois SS Trey Sweeney with the No. 20 overall pick on Sunday night and making nine picks Monday, the Yankees added 10 more new Baby Bombers to the fold.
Learn more about Sweeney and the Day 2 picks, and meet their picks in Rounds 11-20 with our capsule profiles below:
ROUND 11 (No. 333 overall): RHP Jack Neely, Ohio State (Redshirt Soph.)
Neely played at Texas in 2019, logging 9 2/3 innings, and the 6-foot-8 righty was 2-3 with a 6.10 ERA in 12 games/9 starts in his lone year in Columbus, striking out 62 in 41 1/3 innings.
ROUND 12 (No. 363 overall): C Ben Rice, Dartmouth (Junior)
Rice was drafted more on the strength of his Summer League play, as Dartmouth canceled their 2021 season. He instead played for the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod League, going 10-for-30, and that followed a 2020 where, after Dartmouth banged their season seven games in, Rice played in the Futures League and was named MVP. He .350 in 38 games for Worcester last summer, leading the league with 11 homers and a .683 slugging percentage.
ROUND 13 (No. 393 overall): RHP Zach Messenger, University of Virginia (Junior)
Over 51 games (11 starts) in three years in Charlottesville, Messenger went 5-3 with a 4.42 ERA, with 107 strikeouts in 99 2/3 innings.
ROUND 14 (No. 423 overall): RHP Sean Hermann, Durant HS (Plant City, FL)
Hermann was dominant in the Sunshine State as a HS senior, going 9-0 with a 0.36 ERA in 16 games and striking out 135 (against just 13 walks) in 78 1/3 innings. He had a 1.28 ERA over three varsity seasons and struck out 209 in 136 2/3 innings.
ROUND 15 (No. 453 overall): RHP Danny Watson, VCU (Junior)
Watson, from just outside Albany in Nassau, N.Y., made the Atlantic-10 All-Rookie Team as a freshman in 2019, posting a 2.15 ERA in 29 1/3 innings. He posted a 4.06 ERA in 19 games/six starts in 2021, striking out 55 in 44 1/3 innings.
ROUND 16 (No. 483 overall): RHP Cole Ayers, Manatee-Sarasota CC (Sophomore)
Ayers started 16 of his 17 games at the Florida JUCO – recording a save in his lone relief appearance – and was 8-4 with a 3.80 ERA and 114 Ks in 87 2/3 innings pitched.
ROUND 17 (No. 513 overall): OF Grant Richardson, University of Indiana (Junior)
Richardson was a First Team All-Big Ten selection after hitting .320 with seven home runs and 33 RBI in 44 games. A three-year starter for the Hoosiers, Richardson hit .312 in 104 games with 21 homers and 87 RBI.
ROUND 18 (No. 543 overall): RHP Bailey Dees, Penn State (Senior)
Another 6-foot-8 righty, Dees was 8-9 with a 4.52 ERA in 43 games (33 starts) over four years in Happy Valley. In 2021, he was 4-4 with a 5.59 ERA in 66 innings pitched.
ROUND 19 (No. 573 overall): C Dominic Keegan, Vanderbilt (Junior)
Perhaps a steal in Round 19 in Keegan, who was the backup catcher on Vandy’s 2019 CWS team before needing to have a rib removed and missing a large chunk of time. He dominated the Futures League in 2020 and was poised for a big season for the Commodores, but missed time after contracting COVID-19. Still, he finished with a .345/.427/.638 slash line with 15 homers and 57 RBI in 60 games, and was named Most Outstanding Player in the Nashville Regional for the Vandy team that was the CWS runner-up.
He was ranked as the No. 176 prospect by MLB Pipeline, who gave this scouting report that might explain why he dropped so low:
“Keegan's prodigious strength allows the ball to jump off his bat despite what appears to be an effortless right-handed stroke. He has plus raw power but will need to get more consistent at the plate to make the most of it. His swing can get long at times, and while he can catch up to good velocity, he struggles with off-speed pitches. Keegan would offer more value if he were a viable catcher, but that remains to be seen because he caught just one game in the first three months of this season. He has solid arm strength but a slow release that enabled North Alabama to steal five bases against him, and his receiving is a work in progress. A below-average runner, he projects as an average defender at first base and might merit a look at an outfield corner or third base.”
ROUND 20 (No. 603 overall): RHP Sean Hard, St. Joseph Regional HS (WHERE, NJ)
Hard, who is committed to Boston College, impressed in his lone full season as a pitcher at St. Joe’s, allowing just two earned runs and striking out 87 in 50 2/3 innings. The 6-foot-5 righty is a power pitcher whose fastball already hits 95, but as MLB Pipeline noted, “his breaking stuff is fringy right now and needs refinement and there is some reliever risk as he's more thrower than pitcher right now.”
Follow Lou DiPietro on Twitter: @LouDiPietroWFAN
Follow WFAN on Social Media
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Twitch