The New York Yankees found a way to keep Yanquiel Fernandez in the organization.
The Yankees outrighted the 23-year-old outfielder to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after he cleared waivers Monday.
The Yankees claimed Fernandez off waivers from the Colorado Rockies on Feb. 4 and had him on their major-league roster until they designated him for assignment Feb. 9. All 29 major-league clubs had the opportunity to poach him from the Yankees before he was assigned to Triple-A.
But Fernandez cleared waivers and will be in Tampa as a non-roster invitee. He slashed .225/.265/.348 with four home runs in 138 at-bats for the Rockies in 2025.
The Yankees Outrighted Yanquiel Fernandez to Triple-A
It’s been a whirlwind February for the Cuban-born Fernandez, who the Yankees claimed early in the month then saw himself in flux yet again after being DFA’d just five days later.
It is the time of the year for roster moves, and some are just clerical. But after acquiring infielder Max Schuemann from the Athletics for right-hander Luis Burgos, the Yankees did stand to lose Fernandez mere hours after they landed him.
Still, Fernandez passed through waivers, which allowed him to be moved off the Yankees’ 40-man roster and to the minor leagues.
He is on a minor-league contract, and the Yankees will need to make another roster move — either outrighting a veteran or placing a player on the injured list — to add him to their 40-man roster for him to get the call to the Bronx.
Still, as a non-roster invitee at major-league camp, he’ll have the opportunity to earn a spot if he can hit or show out during spring training, which opened Tuesday.
Yanquiel Fernandez is an Organizational Lottery Ticket
The Yankees have long strived to have major-league-caliber depth in Triple-A, since they regularly pluck minor-leaguers from Scranton/Wilkes-Barre when major-league injuries inevitably happen.
So having a talented player like Fernandez available continues that trend. The 6-3, 198-pound outfielder is a left-handed hitter with 70-grade power, who has drawn comparisons to Yordan Alvarez of the Houston Astros, since each is Cuban born and boasts effortless ability to drive the ball out of the park.
Fernandez forced his way into the majors in 2025 by mashing at Albuquerque of the Pacific Coast League. He slashed .284/.347/.502 with 13 homers, 39 RBIs and 43 runs scored in 243 ABs and struck out just 38 times before getting called up to Colorado in July.
But he fell out of favor in Colorado due to his penchant for striking out — he had a 31.8% strikeout rate with the Rockies last year, though his minor-league strikeout rate was a more reasonable 22.2% over five years in the Rockies’ system.
So the Yankees may see Fernandez as an investment in their future. He is a former top-5 prospect in the Rockies system, who with the proper development, could end up being a left-handed hitting DH in the majors — since Alvarez also started as an outfielder before primarily playing DH in Houston.
Having a player with such upside, effectively serving as a lottery ticket, can’t hurt, especially since he is still so young.
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