Lagrange earns Yanks' most outstanding rookie honors after stellar spring
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TAMPA, Fla. -- Carlos Lagrange will get a taste of the big league life on Sunday afternoon when he boards the Yankees’ charter flight, having been named the club’s scheduled starter for Monday’s exhibition against the Cubs in Mesa, Ariz.
From there, Lagrange and several of his teammates will travel to begin their seasons with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Based on what the Yankees’ No. 2 prospect has shown recently, he may not be there for long.
Lagrange’s sharp efforts were recognized before Sunday’s Grapefruit League exhibition against the Phillies at George M. Steinbrenner Field with the presentation of the 2026 James P. Dawson Award, given annually to the most outstanding Yankees rookie in Spring Training.
The 22-year-old posted an 0.66 ERA across four spring appearances (one start), striking out 13 batters across 13 2/3 innings with four walks. That, coupled with consistent triple-digit velocity, prompted rave reviews from Yankees veterans.
Gerrit Cole said of Lagrange’s heat: “It’s like, silly. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Catcher Austin Wells offered: “I don’t have any doubts he could help us right now.”
And Max Fried said he expects Lagrange will “definitely impact this team.”
Aaron Boone believes that, too, which is why the Yankees manager said it was “a difficult decision” to option him back to the Minors.
“He’s definitely got everyone’s attention,” Boone said. “I love where he’s at. I would not be surprised if he is impacting us [in the] early, middle, later part of the season. I can just tell you we’re all very excited about his continued development and what we think he could mean to our team at some point.”
Lagrange was 11-8 with a 3.53 ERA in 24 combined games (23 starts) with High-A Hudson Valley and Double-A Somerset last season. He led all Yankees farmhands in opponent batting average (.191) while ranking second in strikeouts (168) and fourth in winning percentage (.579).
In conjunction with the award, Lagrange was presented with a watch courtesy of Oris.