While the New York Yankees are focused on bring Juan Soto back to the Bronx, two prospects made waves at the Arizona Fall League.
MLB.com’s Jim Callis revealed that infielder Caleb Durbin, 24, and outfielder Garrett Martin, 24, have impressed during their time in Arizona over the past month.
Durbin, who was a 14th-round selection by the Atlanta Braves in 2021 and came over to the Yankees in a trade in December 2022, set records for steals in a game, season, and career.
“I give a lot of credit to our first-base coach, [Derek] Woodley with the Yankees,” Durbin told MLB.com. “He’s done a tremendous job just gameplanning for pitchers and that’s one of the reasons why I’m here is to keep refining my skills on the basepaths because that’s a big part of my game. I think it can be a big part of the game in general, so having that in my toolbelt and coming here and refining it and having those results to show for it, it’s huge for me.”
Over 23 Arizona Fall League games, Durbin slashed .301/.425/.518, with four home runs, and 27 stolen bases.
Durbin has also been extremely versatile in the field — playing second, third, short, left, and center while in Triple-A and the Arizona Fall League this past year.
As for Martin, who signed a non-drafted free agent contract with the Yankees in 2023, showed off his power, hitting five home runs with an .860 OPS in 18 games.
According to Callis, three of those blasts averaged 441 feet.
Related: Juan Soto’s surprising answer to impending free agency after World Series exit should terrify New York Yankees fans
Will New York Yankees bring up Caleb Durbin or Garrett Martin for 2025?
While it’s not yet known what the Yankees have in store for Martin, general manager Brian Cashman is already high on Durbin.
During last week’s general managers meetings, Cashman mentioned Durbin as a potential starter next season since Gleyber Torres is a free agent.
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) November 5, 2024"I'm not gonna dissect what he's good at and not as good at. Obviously he'll have a lot of conversations with a lot of teams that have a need in that area and that might include us, who knows. But appreciate his efforts while he was here"
– Brian Cashman on Gleyber Torres pic.twitter.com/BIstv72I1f
Over 281 games in four minor league seasons, Durbin has hit .269 with a .781 OPS. He only has 22 home runs during that time, but does have 64 doubles and has walked more than he has struck out (134 to 111). Durbin has also scored 187 runs and stole 110 stolen bases.
