Yankees youngsters Will Warren and Chase Hampton showing promise

TAMPA — Two of the Yankees’ most intriguing homegrown options for starter depth offered a flash of the future — perhaps not too distant — on Friday. 

Will Warren and Chase Hampton threw live batting practice on a backfield with an interested crowd that included a handful of Yankees executives and coaches. 

“They looked really good,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Two guys we’re certainly excited about and excited that they’re in camp with us and checking that box of that experience, which is important to be around our guys. I’m excited about their progress and definitely feel like those guys have bright futures.” 

Those futures might start by having an impact on the 2024 Yankees, especially in the case of Warren, who is closer to the big leagues after throwing 99 ²/₃ innings at Triple-A last season, though some talent evaluators view Hampton as having a higher ceiling. 

Either way, the Yankees will almost certainly need more starters than the five penciled into their rotation, a few of whom battled health issues last year.

And after an offseason in which the Yankees traded away four of their starting depth options for Juan Soto, there is ample opportunity for the likes of Warren and Hampton to step up and into the next tier of pitchers awaiting their chance in The Bronx. 

“I just feel like I can help the team,” Warren said. “How high that ceiling is or any of that, I don’t know. I just want to get out there and show them what I got.” 

Warren, a 24-year-old right-hander, leans on a sinker-slider combination that “is real,” Boone said, and tough on right-handed hitters.

He also throws a four-seam fastball, changeup and cutter, an arsenal that he has continued to develop since being drafted by the Yankees in 2021. 

Hampton, a 22-year-old right-hander, pitched his first season as a pro last year but opened plenty of eyes in the process. Between High-A Hudson Valley and Double-A Somerset, he posted a 3.63 ERA with 145 strikeouts in 106 ²/₃ innings. 

“Just me being a competitor,” Hampton said. “Going out there and trying to win as much as possible and honestly try to punch everybody out I see. So I think that was really the biggest thing.” 

Both Warren and Hampton said they were trying to soak up as much information as possible in their first big league camps. The Yankees should also gain plenty of insight on their two young arms. 

“Both of them have advanced arsenals, so you can see what it looks like,” pitching coach Matt Blake said. “Now it’s just a matter of learning how to use them against more advanced hitters.”