It took almost a month, but George Lombard Jr. has teed off at the Minors’ highest level.
MLB.com's No. 21 prospect certainly didn't waste any time doing it Wednesday afternoon, though, as he homered on the first pitch he saw in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre's 8-1 loss to Worcester at PNC Field.
Lombard drove a four-seam fastball from southpaw Jake Bennett (BOS No. 6) over the left-field wall. It left his bat 103.1 mph and went 363 feet, landing in front of the scoreboard before bouncing off it and into a waiting fan's hands.
It marked the first time the Yankees’ top prospect left the yard in his 24th game for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. He’s compiled a slash line of .204/.364/.280 since being promoted from Double-A on April 28. The 20-year-old slashed .312/.400/.512 with a .912 OPS in 20 games to start the season for Somerset.
COMPLETE YANKEES PROSPECT COVERAGE
Lombard's home run could be an encouraging step in his development, and he’s already earned valuable defensive reps at shortstop that show off his 60-grade field tool to full advantage. When Anthony Volpe was in the RailRiders lineup at short, Lombard showed off his versatility by playing third and second base. He moved back to his natural position when Volpe headed back up to the Bronx Bombers following an injury to José Caballero.
The 2023 first-rounder has played at at least two levels in each season of his career. That run started right after the Draft, when he combined to slash .311/.466/.356 between the Rookie-level Florida Complex League and Single-A. Although he stole a pro-best 29 bases, he struggled some over two Class A levels in 2024, then broke out last season between High-A Hudson Valley and Somerset with career highs of 111 hits, 32 doubles, nine homers, 90 runs and 49 RBIs.