New York Yankees 2023 Top 30 Prospect Wraps: Clayton Beeter
InsideTheMets.com will review each of the New York Mets’ Top 30 prospects, as ranked by MLB.com at the end of the 2023 season.
No. 16: RHP Clayton Beeter, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Triple-A), Someset Patriots (Double-A)
Statistics for 2023: (27 games, 26 starts) 9-7, 3.62 ERA, 131.2 innings, 105 hits, 54 runs (53 earned), 18 home runs, 75 walks, 165 strikeouts, .216 opponent batting average, 1.37 WHIP.
With Somerset (12 starts) 6-2, 2.08 ERA, 60.2 innings, 44 hits, 14 runs (earned), three home runs, 31 walks, 76 strikeouts, .204 opponent batting average, 1.24 WHIP.
With S/W-B (15 starts, 14 games) 3-5, 4.94 ERA, 71 innings, 61 hits, 40 runs (39 earned), 15 home runs, 44 walks, 89 strikeouts, .227 opponent batting average, 1.48 WHIP.
Season Transactions: Started season with Somerset. Promoted to S/W-B on June 23. Pitched in Futures Game for American League.
Season Summary: Beeter was nearly unhittable at Somerset and he only allowed 14 runs in 60.2 innings. That, along with the .204 opponent batting average, earned him the promotion to Triple-A and a berth in the Futures Game with the American League. With S/W-B he had a losing record, the ERA ballooned by two points and he gave up 15 home runs in 71 innings. However, the opponent batting average only went up to .227 and he maintained a 2-to-1 strikeout ratio. The walk rate was still a bit high, but that was similar to what he did at Somerset.
Path Through the Organization: The Dodgers took Beeter in the supplemental second round in 2020, in part because they had some concern about his medicals, including his 2017 Tommy John surgery. Still, the Dodgers gave him $1.196 million and used him as a chip to get Joey Gallo from the Yankees at the trade deadline in 2022. Even though he didn’t win a pro game until 2023, Beeter’s makeup can be found in his stats, which includes a .215 career opponent batting average and 372 strikeouts in 261 career innings.
What’s next: He’s knocking on the door now. The ERA has to improve and he needs to cut down on his walks. But, per MLB.com scouts, he has an effective slider, a potentially dominant fastball and an emerging plus curveball. With three pitches, that could make him an effective starter or long reliever at the MLB level. But he has to get there first. He’s a likely starter at S/W-B to begin 2024 and then the Yankees will let his performance dictate whether he stays there or makes an appearance at Yankee Stadium at some point in 2024.
2023 New York Yankees Top 30 Prospect Wraps:
No. 30 Elijah Dunham | No. 29 Danny Watson | No. 28 Edgar Barclay | No. 27 Justin Lange | No. 26 Yoendrys Gomez | No. 25 Matt Sauer | No. 24 Agustin Ramirez | No. 23 Ben Rice | No. 22: Anthony Hall | No. 21 Brendan Beck | No. 20 Jared Serna | No. 19: Roc Riggio | No. 18 Zach Messinger | No. 17 Tyler Hardman |
