Charleston: The land of beer shakes, the pitcher-friendly Joe, and "Director of Fun" Bill Murray.
Down south in Charleston, the Yankees' Low-A affiliate has been fortunate enough to see their share of nice prospects pass through over the past couple years. The 2014 campaign was no different as some talented players made a stop in Charleston, most notably a pair of first round picks from the 2013 MLB Draft who made terrific impression on the organization: outfielder Aaron Judge and lefty starter Ian Clarkin.
The dauntingly tall Judge did not play for the Yankees at all last year after the draft due to a quad issue, so there was understandably an air of mystery surrounding him as he began the season. He quickly put those concerns to bed by getting off to an incredible start to his professional career in Charleston, slugging .333/.428/.530 with a 167 wRC+ in 278 plate appearances. Judge wasn't hitting for much power at first, but as the season progressed, he found his stroke and the South Atlantic League pitchers paid the price. He was named to the SAL All-Star Team, and shortly after playing in the mid-June game, he was promoted to High-A Tampa, certainly a well-deserved honor.
Clarkin spent pretty much the whole year at Charleston, and the 19-year-old dazzled in his first full professional season. (He only made a few GCL appearances last year.) He pitched to a 3.21 ERA, 3.74 FIP, and struck out 9.2 batters per nine innings, a nice complement to his solid 2.8 BB/9. Clarkin demonstrated poise beyond his years on the mound, speaking volumes about his professionalism and maturity. The Yankees even let him make a spot-start for Tampa at the end of the year, foreshadowing where he is likely to advance in 2015. Keep an eye on this southpaw as he makes his way through the minors.
Another pitcher to watch who began the Charleston probably ended up as the Yankees' top prospect for 2014: righty Luis Severino. The same age as Clarkin, Severino did not take long to demonstrate that he was a man among boys in the Sally League, where he made 14 starts with a 2.79 ERA and 2.70 FIP, striking out 9.3 batters per nine and yielding only two walks per nine.
Two other pitchers who were not quite as heralded but opened some eyes in 2014 anyway were righty Jaron Long and lefty Caleb Smith. The son of hitting coach Kevin Long, Jaron was an undrafted free agent in 2013, and he was initially assigned to Charleston after six starts across a couple levels last year. He was terrific in the Sally League, pitching to 1.64 ERA and 2.27 FIP in 11 games (four starts), fanning 8.4 batters per nine innings with impeccable control: a 1.5 BB/9. Long did not stay in Charleston for very long, and he moved up to Tampa around the same time as Judge. Smith also eventually found his way to Tampa after setting a club record for strikeouts in a single game and notching a 3.10 ERA and 3.62 FIP in nine starts with the RiverDogs, as well as a 9.2 K/9 despite a bit of an unsightly 4.0 walks per nine. Nonetheless, he earned his promotion.
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