Brett Barrera taken by the New York Yankees in the 2022 MLB Draft

After a sensational junior season Brett Barrera played his way right onto draft boards and was taken by the New York Yankees

Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

Just seven picks prior to the Baltimore Orioles drafting shortstop Adam Crampton, the New York Yankees selected his elite hitting middle-infield counterpart, Brett Barrera.

The @pac12 regular-season batting king also has some serious pop...

The @Yankees just added another big bat.#GoStanford pic.twitter.com/H4w8mmDoZX

— Stanford Baseball (@StanfordBSB) July 18, 2022

Barrera was a pleasant surprise for the Cardinal this past season after being one of the best hitters in the country batting .372 in the regular season en route to claiming the Pac-12 batting crown. He led the team in batting average (.351), was second in triples (3) and doubles (19), while hitting safely in 52 of his 63 games with an at bat this year.

Unlike Crampton over at shortstop, Barrera is not as defensively sound but his ability to hit and spray the ball all over the field at that is likely what convinced the Yankees to take him in the eighth round with the No. 250 pick.