The Yankees de New York they signed to Blake Perkins, 25, with a minor league contract Wednesday. Perkins, a center fielder, was selected in the second round by the Nationals in 2015 for an $ 800,000 signing bonus in the MLB.
Baseball America ranked Perkins as the Nationals ’11th prospect in 2018 and then as the Royals’ 26th prospect in 2019. The Nationals traded Perkins to the Royals as part of a package that brought back pitcher Kelvin Herrera in 2018.
Here’s a portion of Baseball America’s scouting report on Perkins from 2019:
Making multiple comparisons to Major League Baseball outfielder Jon Jay, Perkins better fits the profile of a fourth outfielder if he can make a significant improvement at the plate. He’s a glove-first player, an excellent defender in center field with mature instincts, excellent losses, and an above-average arm. He controls the strike zone well, as evidenced by his 15 percent walk rate, but his 22 percent strikeout rate indicates he needs to make more contact to take advantage of his above-average speed. It has no power.
Major league business was suspended because owners blocked the players on December 2 as the parties try to work out a new collective bargaining agreement. It’s unclear if spring training (or even the regular season) will start on time while the sides work things out.
