New York Yankees sign flame-throwing pitcher in free agency

New York Yankees
New York Yankees

The New York Yankees have signed a bevy of undrafted pitchers, including Jarod Lessar, Trevor Holloway, Ocean Gabonia, Carson Coleman, and now flame-thrower Connor Pellerin.

At 6 foot four and 210 pounds, Pellerin is a big picture. He posted a 2.25 ERA over six games as a junior, following up a tumultuous sophomore campaign where he logged 88.4 4 ERA over 21 appearances. Allowing 25 runs and 31 walks over 26.2 innings, Pellerin certainly tries not to think about those tough times often. However, he improved significantly and just one season, which shows his ability to adapt and learn from his mistakes.

The Yankees, though, who signed him to a $20K deal, saw his mid-90s fastball and solid slider as benefits to their minor-league system. With the right coaching, Pellerin could be a solid pitcher down the line. Considering Pellerin is an undrafted player, I believe it will take him quite some time to climb the minor-league system, but never say never. He did crack Baseball America’s top 500 MLB draft prospects this year, which says something about the talent he contains and hopefully can expand on moving forward.

I project Pellerin as more of a relief,  back-end pitcher, as he doesn’t have the continuity to serve as a starter. He struggled in larger sample sizes and only started two games during his sophomore season, which he struggled mightily in. Nonetheless, if he can develop his abilities and add placement to his strong arm, he can be effective on the back-end of games.

Reason for excitement:

Pellerin did toss 13 shut-out innings for the Orleans Firebirds in 2019, striking out 24 batters and walking one man per inning. The limitations in scouting this year have forced the Yankees to take more chances on undeveloped prospects. Ultimately, his strong arm will have gone a long way in scouting evaluations and analysis. The virtual aspect of modern times might have actually benefited him and landed him a job with the Yankees.