A little more than 10 years ago, the Yankees dealt away Jesús Montero, the crown jewel of their farm system (and a crown jewel in all of baseball, honestly), in a trade that brought Michael Pineda to the Bronx. So where did that leave the Yankees’ system as the 2012 season loomed? Even after the blockbuster deal, the club was in good shape. Baseball America listed New York 13th in its ranking of MLB farm systems prior to Opening Day 2012.
In retrospect, a decent number of the players listed among FanGraphs’ Top 15 preseason Yankees prospects went on to at least reach the big leagues.