Overlooked Triple-A prospect making Yankees forget all about Agustin Ramirez mistake

The New York Yankees have done a phenomenal job of developing catching talent in recent years, and responded to Austin Wells' rise by selling a number of their standouts. Carlos Narvaez has positively impacted the Red Sox early, Jose Trevino is making fans in Cincinnati, and, most notably, Agustin Ramírez is shredding baseballs in Miami after being dealt for Jazz Chishom Jr. last summer.

But just because they've cleaned out their system doesn't mean its bereft of talent at the position. 24-year-old Rafael Flores has an .886 OPS at Double-A Somerset to start the year, and one of the Yankees' surprise 40-man roster additions this offseason has ignited one level higher.

Jesús Rodríguez (just 23) is listed as a catcher on the Yankees' 40-man, but has plenty more tricks up his sleeve beyond the confines of the tools of ignorance. Unlike Ramirez, or any of the other catchers they surrendered, there's a lot more versatility here.

Rodríguez might find himself mashing behind the plate at the MLB level someday, too, but on other days of the week, he can be counted on to fill in at first, third, second, or even left field.

Yankees have versatile prospect Jesús Rodríguez rising through ranks after losing Agustin Ramírez

But can he hit? Yes, he seems to be able to hit.

Rodríguez started silently at Double-A (.107 average in 28 at-bats) before earning a promotion, which doesn't typically happen after that level of production. It seems the Yankees may have had the right idea, though; he's mashed .388 with a .990 OPS in 14 games since moving up a level. That's been good for a small-sample-size 176 wRC+, as well as several below-the-hood metrics that portend great things (47.2 Hard Hit%, 93.3 Contact Percentage on pitches in the zone).

Essentially, Rodríguez can be slotted all over the diamond and can hit potently; he's like a mini Ramírez clone, except with the added bonus of the flexibility he provides.

If Ramírez keeps mashing like Barry Bonds in Miami, then yes, we can certainly reevaluate the 2.5 years of Jazz Chisholm Jr. the Yankees will ultimately receive. The Yankees could collect 300 Jesús Rodríguezes, and it wouldn't cover for one Black Swan event like that.

But if Ramírez ends up merely very good, and the Yankees can walk away with Chisholm Jr., Rodríguez, and some established trade trust with the Marlins, then they should have no regrets whatsoever.