Why Yankees are buzzing over top prospect George Lombard Jr.

TAMPA, Fla.

A week before the New York Yankees started spring training, a crew of players made up of veterans and minor-leaguers went through drills at the teams player development complex, and top shortstop prospect George Lombard Jr.

found himself taking ground balls with Anthony Volpe.

Lombard, just 19 years old, marveled at what he saw from the 23-year-old Gold Glove Award winner.

Advertisement The way his feet work his footwork is as good as anybody in the game, Lombard said.

While Lombard could have been awed working out next to someone whose career path he hopes to emulate, he wasnt.

Instead, he used the time as a learning experience.

It was a moment that proved to the Yankees they were right in drafting him in the first round out of a Miami-area high school in 2023.

Hes blown our player development department away with the quality of person and work ethic, Boone said.

So far, Lombard has impressed during his first formal invitation to Yankees big-league camp.

The Miami native appeared in 10 spring games on the major-league side last year, but this was the first time he had an MLB spring training locker with his name on it.

Its really exciting, Lombard said, getting to be around these guys every day for the next couple of weeks.

Its something that Im going to be able to take a lot from and learn a lot from, especially because there are a lot of guys in this clubhouse with a lot of experience who have been around the game for a long time.

Conversations with Cap.

@georgelombardjr x @TheJudge44 pic.twitter.com/au7evz5HTs New York Yankees (@Yankees) February 19, 2025 Amazing makeup, Boone said.

Excellent athlete.

Soccer player, too.

It shows.

Really good defender.

Has shown offensively a profile that hes going to have the ability to control the strike zone.

Such a young man.

But a guy were really excited about.

Hes had a good start to his minor-league career and, I think, a guy whos going to play in the big leagues for a long time.

Lombard gained more notoriety in the offseason when The Athletic s Keith Law ranked him as the No.

98 prospect in the game and as the second-best in the Yankees system, behind outfielder Jasson Dominguez.

Baseball America put him at No.

88 while Baseball Prospectus ranked him No.

100.

Advertisement When healthy, hes a plus runner, which might slide down towards (above average) as he gets bigger, Law wrote .

Hes also likely to move off shortstop but end up a plus defender at third or second, probably third given his above-average arm and eventual size.

The 6-foot-2, 190-pounder heard some of the hype.

All that stuff is cool, he said, but you try not to put too much attention toward it.

Just focus on my work and what Im doing to get better.

Obviously, that stuff is cool and all but it doesnt really mean much.

At the end of the day, youre a baseball player playing against nine other baseball players.

Youve just got to go out there and get it done.

Its more just focusing on myself and what I have to do to keep improving and keep becoming a better baseball player.

Lombards father played parts of six major-league seasons with the Atlanta Braves, Detroit Tigers, Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Washington Nationals before going into coaching.

He coached in the farm systems of the Boston Red Sox and the Braves before spending five seasons as the Los Angeles Dodgers first base coach.

Hes going into his fifth season as the Detroit Tigers bench coach.

Lombard Jr.

spent time in the Dodgers clubhouse, where he took a particular liking to one shortstop: Corey Seager.

I got to watch him work a lot, Lombard said.

Hes a fun player to watch.

Lombard, who also counts Francisco Lindor among his favorites, said that his first full season in professional baseball last year was a learning experience for him.

Although his numbers didnt pop off the page, he impressed the Yankees with how he adjusted.

Lombard mostly played shortstop, but to share time with fellow top prospect Roderick Arias, he also played second base and third base.

Lombard hit .232 with five home runs, 37 RBIs and a .693 OPS in 81 games at Low-A Tampa.

He earned an August promotion to High-A Hudson Valley, where he hit .226.

Advertisement Lombard said learning about the everyday grind of the baseball season opened his eyes.

The biggest difference coming from high school and now playing the first full year of professional baseball was that youve got to do it again every single day, he said.

Both in good and bad ways.

When youre hitting good, you cant get too high because youve got six more games this week.

You can get exposed.

Its staying level-headed.

When you get too low, youre going to have four at-bats the next day to knock them off.

So, its just trying to stay consistent every day because the highs and lows will come.

Its that mindset that had Boone gushing.

You can tell hes been in a major-league clubhouse before, the manager said.

Hes an A makeup kid.

...

He checks all those boxes.

Hes going to be a really good player.

You can tell that (his parents) did a really good job raising him.

And the Yankees hope to bring him up to the Bronx sooner than later.

(Photo of Lombard, left: New York Yankees / Getty Images).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.