The Rise of The Yankees Top Power Arm
- Carlos Peña
- 3 days ago
- 6 min read
Most international free agent prospects gain industry buzz because of high six or seven figure signing bonuses. Others get attention because someone notices them before everyone else does. For me, that prospect was Carlos Lagrange.
Carlos Lagrange officially signed with the Yankees on February 4, 2022. He was 18 years old and according to reports had been sitting 93-95 mph in pre-signing showcases. Solid velocity for a teenager, but nothing that was going to cause scouts to come running with six figure offers.
The Dominican righty showed up for his first live session with the organization and touched 98 MPH. The Yankees were shocked. So were the scouts who happened to be watching. The moment that radar gun lit up flashing 98 MPH before he'd thrown a single professional pitch was a sign of things to come.
A 6’7 power arm with explosive velocity, and the type of raw stuff that immediately makes you stop when you see it. The first time I saw film on him, I was intrigued by the velocity and his moxie on the mound. Going back 4 years , on the YankeesFarm podcasts I tried my best to stay grounded about him, but it was incredibly difficult after seeing him week after week. Now the rest of baseball is starting to catch up and seeing what I saw.
Lagrange made his professional debut with the DSL Yankees in 2022, and the strikeout ability immediately jumped out. In 33 innings, he struck out 43 batters while allowing only 10 hits. He made it look extremely easy, pumping high 90s Fastballs paired with a 12-6 Curve and a Changeup. For an older Yankee fan like me, he instantly gave me Dellin Betances vibes.
The fastball already sat in the upper-90s, and the breaking ball flashed the kind of swing-and-miss shape that hinted at a much bigger ceiling. For anyone paying attention closely, it was the first glimpse of what could eventually become one of the most electric arm in the Yankees’ system.
The command wasn’t perfect, which is common for a Dominican teenager armed with a 97-98 MPH fastball but the raw stuff was undeniable.
Like many young power pitchers, the next step wasn’t perfectly smooth but keep in mind that development isn’t always linear.
In 2023, Lagrange made his stateside debut in the Florida Complex League and it was a mixed bag. Lagrange was still learning to pitch and showing progress. He led the FCL with 63 strikeouts over 41.2 innings, the most strikeouts in the FCL since 2018. He was part of a Yankees FCL squad that was widely considered one of the most talented FCL teams ever assembled.
Lagrange’s fastball was touching triple digits, and now armed with a slider that had power and shape, along with a plus changeup.
In 2024, a back injury derailed Lagrange's season before it started. He logged just 21 innings in the regular season on nine appearances, an ERA that ballooned north of 6, and the walk rate that was genuinely concerning. For a lot of prospects, a season like that becomes a turning point in the wrong direction and maybe even a pivot to the bullpen.
The Yankees sent him to the Arizona Fall League that October, and he responded with a 2.08 ERA across five outings, earning AFL Fall-Star recognition. The loss of development time from the injury may have been the reason for the extreme command issues we saw at the AFL, but Lagrange would never admit to that as he doesn’t like to make excuses. The work continued.
The Yankees stuck with him as a starter, believing that if he ever harnessed delivery consistently and was able to repeat his mechanics, the upside would be enormous. Credit to Lagrange, as he continued to work on being a better pitcher.
If 2023 made believers out of the people paying attention, 2025 made believers out of everyone. Before the 2025 season started, the Yankees signaled what they thought of Lagrange and the progress he had made.
He was chosen to start the Yankees’ Spring Breakout game in March 2025, MLB’s showcase event designed to highlight the best young talent in each organization. Many questioned the call and what they were missing.
Spring Breakout isn’t just another exhibition game, it’s where teams showcase the organization's top prospects. For a pitcher who had spent the previous season battling command issues, giving Lagrange the ball to start the game spoke volumes. And like a movie straight out of Hollywood, it turned out to be a preview of what was to come.
The assignment to High-A Hudson Valley to open the year was a bit of a surprise given the injury and lack of innings a Tampa. He started the 3rd game of the season, pitched 3 innings and struck out 7, but he gave up 5 Runs in the start. The most important stat in his box score that night was, 2 Walks. Everything seemed to click after that start. He would go on a run, where he’d pitch 28.1 Innings to a 2.22 ERA while walking just 5 batters and striking out 43! We began to see Lagrange’s transformation.
In his first five starts, he struck out seven or more batters. In 41.2 innings at Hudson Valley, he struck out 64 batters, posted a 4.10 ERA, and most encouragingly, he walked just 12 batters. The control had taken a massive leap. People noticed.
After starting the year in Hudson Valley, he earned a summer promotion to Double-A Somerset, where the stuff truly began to take off.
With Somerset he posted: 3.22 ERA - 1.29 WHIP | 78.1 IP - 51 H, 50 BB, 104 K | 11.95 K/9 - 31 K% | .183 AVG | 3.44 FIP
In just his 3rd start at Double A, Lagrange strikes out 12 over 5.1 Innings and suddenly the buzz wasn’t just coming from YankeesFarm followers anymore. The rest of baseball was starting to notice.
Across High-A Hudson Valley and Double-A Somerset, Lagrange put together the season that turned him from an intriguing arm into one of the most talked-about pitching prospects in the Yankees system:
11–8 | 3.52 ERA - 1.20 WHIP | 120 IP, 82 H, 62 BB, 168 K | 12.6 K/9 - 33.4 K% | .189 AVG | 3.14 FIP
Among pitching prospects to not yet debut he finished 2nd in strikeouts, to Elmer Rodríguez.
The excitement around Lagrange is easy to understand once you watch him pitch.
He’s armed with a 5-pitch arsenal the features:
Fastball that sits 98-100, touches 103 mph
Gyro Slider/Sweeper
Cutter
Changeup
This is what differentiates Lagrange from Dellin Betances. Betances was a FB/Curveball pitcher while Lagrange comes with a full arsenal that’s packed with multiple plus pitches. Outside of their size and both being Dominican, that’s about the only similarity.
Lagrange arrived at Spring Training in Tampa as a non-roster invitee, and within two weeks he had become the most talked-about prospect in Yankees camp. It started during an early live batting practice, when he struck Aaron Judge out on a 102.6 mph fastball he dotted on the black, a sequence that immediately went viral. Aaron Judge, the best hitter on the planet, flailing at a heater from a 22-year-old kid out of Bayaguana.
In his Spring debut against Detroit, he touched 102.4 MPH and struck out 4 batters over 3 shutout innings. Next came Minnesota, he struck out 4 over 3 shutout frames, allowed just one hit allowed, and his Sweeper, Changeup, all generating 50% whiff rates during the game.
Through his first three spring appearances: a 0.93 ERA, 9 strikeouts 3 walks, in 9.2 innings, and the fastball is averaging 98 MPH and over 102+.
Aaron Boone stood in front of reporters after the Twins game and said the strike-throwing had been there from the jump, it jumps out at you, and the ability to attack the zone has taken a step forward. That is exactly what I have been watching develop in real time since 2022.
Then came Gerrit Cole. A future Hall of Famer, the ace of the Yankees staff and he gave Carlos Lagrange a glowing review. When one of the best pitchers of this generation watches a prospect throw and is genuinely amazed by what he sees…that's everything.
Judge called him a future frontline starter for New York.
Every Yankees account on social media is posting his clips. Every prospect publication has him as a Top 100 prospect in baseball. The mainstream baseball world is now fully locked in.
I asked Lagrange how’s he taking all this new publicity he’s been getting, he laughed and said “It’s been crazy.”
The debate right now is if and where Lagrange fits on the Opening Day roster. With the Yankees in need of bullpen help, there's a real conversation about whether he breaks camp as a reliever. Brian Cashman has been open about it. Matt Blake has said the bullpen could be his fastest path to the Bronx.
Personally, I think you protect the starter upside for as long as you possibly can. He comes armed with starter's arsenal and that needs to be given time and patience to be developed.
Whether he breaks camp in the bullpen or gets sent to Triple-A Scranton to continue developing as a starter, one thing is certain: Carlos Lagrange is going to be a part of the Yankees' future. The arm is real. The stuff is elite and cannot be taught. The development curve has been steep, and the ceiling hasn't changed since the first time I uttered his name on the podcast.
And if the trajectory continues, Carlos Lagrange might be the next impact arm to come out of their system.
Every Prospect. Every Level. Every Day.
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