Entering Monday’s action, no single New York Yankees player in spring training has played in more games than infielder Alexander Vargas.
And when he steps into the batter’s box this spring, good things happen.
Vargas’ slash line looks like a video game in seven at-bats — .714/.750/1.571/2.321. He has five hits with two home runs, four RBI and three runs scored.
He isn’t destined to make the Major League roster this year. He hasn’t played above Double-A Somerset. But the 23-year-old prospect from Cuba is one of the talks of spring training among prospects.
Per Baseball America, he is not among the franchise’s Top 30 prospects going into this season. Plus, he’s listed as a shortstop, a position currently handled by Anthony Volpe.
Alexander Vargas with a 3-run blast in Clearwater 💪 pic.twitter.com/589Saj33La
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This could be the start of a potential breakthrough for Vargas, who was one of the centerpieces of the Yankees’ 2018 international signing class. But it’s been a slow ramp-up for the middle infielder.
In 2019 he played just eight games in the Dominican Summer League before he was brought stateside to play for the Yankees’ rookie league team. Combined he only slashed .233/.313/.373/.686 with one home runs and 18 RBI.
Like every prospect in 2020, he didn’t get to play professionally after minor league baseball was shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, he returned to the field and played 42 games with the Yankees’ Florida Complex League team as he batted .273/.362/.393/.755 with three home runs and 26 RBI.
That led to a promotion to Class-A Tampa. But for the following two seasons he struggled at the plate, even as he earned a promotion.
With Tampa in 2022, he slashed .203/.271/.311/.582 with eight home runs and 33 RBI in 100 games, his first full season of minor league baseball. He moved up to High-A Hudson Valley in 2023 and played in 103 games, but the slash line didn’t budge, as he batted .206/.248/.342/.590 with nine home runs and 53 RBI.
Last season represented a better season at the plate. He started the season at Hudson Valley but only stayed there for five games before he was promoted to Somerset. He slashed .251/.295/.376/.671 with four home runs and 35 RBI. He spent part of the season on the injured list.
This season could be a big one for Vargas, who has progressed consistently since he joined the organization. A promotion to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre isn’t out of the question during 2025.
