I was fortunate to have been able to get a brief first look in the first half of a doubleheader in Tampa recently at some of the kids drafted by the Yankees in the 2025 MLB Draft. This isn’t the full class, of course; pitchers won’t make their professional debut until the 2026 season at the earliest (barring any potential injury or surgery), and a handful of position players like Kaeden Kent, Core Jackson and Robbie Burnett went straight to High-A Hudson Valley. Regardless, it was good to finally put faces with names, and see what some of them were capable of. Additionally, I was even more fortunate to have been able to see 1st rounder, Dax Kilby, record his first professional hit. It should be noted that I did not have access to batting practice, so I cannot comment on any power potentials.
I will grade Kilby, since he was who I paid the most attention to, but will have blurbs for the others that I saw. I will also include videos of the respective players (if available) from a YouTube video I have uploaded to the YS channel.
SS Dax Kilby
DOB: 11/17/2006 (18)
HT: 6-2
WT: 190
H/T: L/R
Acquired: 2025 1st Round (Newnan HS, Newnan, GA)
Highest Level: Low-A
ETA: 2028
2025 Rank: #7 / 55 OFP
Grades:
| Hit | Power | Field | Throw | Run | OFP | Risk |
| 55 | 50 | 55 | 55 | 70 | 55 | High |
Kilby has a tall, thin frame with long levers and lots of room to grow. He stands with a very slight crouch at the plate, in the center-rear of the left-handed batter’s box, holding the bat at a nearly directly vertical angle with moderate bat waggle. Kilby has a quick, compact-ish swing given his frame, and has a small leg kick, only enough to pick up his foot an inch or so off the ground.
There is a lot to like here, and I can see why the Yankees chose Kilby as their first round selection. His speed was the initial thing to impress: he nearly beat out a dribbler that ultimately went 6-3 by running from HP to 1B in 4.01 seconds. While it took him until his 4th game and 9th professional at-bat to record his first hit, Kilby hit it over second base at 96.7 MPH as a line drive into shallow center field. Kilby obviously has a good sense for swing decisions, considering that despite that hitless deficit he had yet to record a strikeout, and It’s difficult to gauge true power without having access to batting practice, so he earned an “average” there just to seem neutral. Kilby was quick on his feet to field balls hit to him and did not hesitate to quickly discard balls over to the first baseman.
OF Richie Bonomolo, Jr.
DOB: 10/30/2003 (21)
HT: 5-11
WT: 190
H/T: R/R
Acquired: 2025 7th Round (Alabama)
Highest Level: Low-A
ETA: 2029
2025 Rank: Unranked / 50 OFP
Bonomolo has a compact but muscular frame, similar to that of Brett Gardner (also 5-11, 195). He stands in the back corner of the right-handed batter’s box. Bonomolo has a high and prolonged leg kick, placing a lot of his weight on his back leg ahead of the swing. He also has the quickest swing speed of the group I saw, reminding me of when I saw Clint Frazier in Tampa.
Bonomolo put up solid power numbers with Alabama, but has yet to go yard professionally. Considering how high his leg kick is and his upper-body musculature, expectations are high for Bonomolo to put up 20+ HR/season. I didn’t get a spectacular look at Bonomolo, offensively speaking, but he’s mechanically sound and there is nothing of immediate concern to me with his game play. He ran good routes, but were not incredibly efficient and will need some work. Regardless, he executed plays well, and has an average arm. If the Yankees get even a significant fraction of the output that Gardner had as a 7th round pick, Bonomolo will become a solid prospect. He is unranked currently as there are other prospects more deserving of Top 30 placement, but I can see him landing on a list before too long.
1B Kyle West
DOB: 11/02/2002 (22)
HT: 6-4
WT: 195
H/T: L/R
Acquired: 2025 13th Round (West Virginia)
Highest Level: Low-A
ETA: 2029
2025 Rank: Unranked / 50 OFP
Like Kilby, West has a tall, thin frame (taller than Kilby at 6-4 vs 6-2) with long levers and room to grow in the torso. West’s frame reminds me of that of what Spencer Jones looked like shortly after he was drafted from Vanderbilt. I think that kind of musculature should be something that can be expected of West. West has a rather open, erect stance in the back of the batter’s box, holding his bat above his shoulder nearly parallel with the ground. He also has a moderate leg kick with what appears to be average swing speed.
The most impressive part of West’s game is his defense, and he made a difficult pick off of a very off-line throw to first base in one situation. West went 0-for-3 in this game, but the swing mechanics are sound, even if the swing decisions may not be just yet. It’s still incredibly early to offer offensive predictions, but he does appear to be a streaky hitter. However, he suffered an ankle injury in Saturday’s game and has since been placed on the 7-day injured list.
SS/3B Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek
DOB: 6/4/2003 (22)
HT: 6-3
WT: 185
H/T: R/R
Acquired: 2025 20th Round (Southern California)
Highest Level: Low-A
ETA: 2029
2025 Rank: Unranked / 40 OFP
Martin-Grudzielanek has a tall, athletic build with room to grow, with a frame reminiscent of Derek Jeter (6-3, 195). Considering he has been playing 3B, I don’t know if building a lot more muscle is the way to go. Martin-Grudzielanek has an open stance with a slight crouch, standing at the back of the batter’s box. He has a very minor, and quick, leg kick with average bat speed.
Martin-Grudzielanek has been the most impressive of the group drafted considering the Yankees selected him at the end of the draft in the 20th round, and a lot of that may be attributed to the bloodline with his father, Mark. Martin-Grudzielanek has a good feel for the game at 3B, and his athleticism and ability to read plays is above-average. His arm is average to above-average, and he has good range, but he did make an off-line throw to 1B where the 1B had to really stretch to make the play. Despite this, Martin-Grudzielanek has well-below-average speed running down the line. Martin-Grudzielanek’s bat is average to above-average, and on the day of the game, he had the highest batting average (8-for-23, .348) of the team, and the second-highest OPS (.878) behind Marshall Toole (2024, 15th round).
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