The Yankees' scouting history saw disheartening prospects like Mason Williams, who epitomized the failed strategies of their earlier drafts. Despite a successful minor league stint, his overall MLB performance was underwhelming. Drafted in 2010, Williams showed promise by winning the 2011 New York-Penn League MVP but ultimately fell short of expectations. His brief tenure included 25 games with the Yankees, revealing both the potential and limitations that ultimately defined the Yankees' challenging scouting period before the Baby Bombers emerged. The organization eventually shifted focus toward more analytically sound player evaluations, moving away from high-risk picks like Williams.
Williams represented the last vestige of everything wrong with Yankees amateur scouting pre-Baby Bombers. This should sound familiar: a way-over-slot ($1.5 million) toolsy high school player from Florida.
In his first season after being drafted, he was named the 2011 New York-Penn League MVP, hitting to a .349/.395/.468 triple slash with 28 stolen bases.
Even just scouting the stat line, you can see the red flags, as in that environment, he was able to put up a near-.400 BABIP and post those numbers while barely walking.
Granting Williams free agency in 2017 epitomized a shift in the organization, moving away from high-risk prospects who rarely developed as expected.
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