CLEARWATER, Fla. – Estevan Florial rounded the bases on Thursday afternoon after slugging a jaw-dropping three-run homer onto the berm beyond Spectrum Field's left-center-field wall. In the visiting dugout, Yankees manager Aaron Boone nudged the Hall of Famer next to him.

"'Wow. There is a short list of people who can hit a ball like that.' I said that to Reggie Jackson on the bench," Boone said after New York's 6-0 Grapefruit League victory over the Phillies. "He was quick to tell me that he was one of them."

Florial figures to give Mr. October and the Yankees plenty to watch in years to come. Rated as the club's No. 1 prospect by MLB Pipeline, the 21-year-old has wowed this spring, providing plenty to dream upon as he exhibits what many believe to be the best all-around tools package in the organization.

"I know the team knows what I can do already," Florial said. "I don't think it's a surprise for any of them. [I need to] get better as a player overall, as a hitter, take the most that I can take. Every year, every at-bat I take, I feel like I get better."

In 75 games for Class A Advanced Tampa, Florial batted .255/.354/.361 with 16 doubles, three triples, three homers, 27 RBIs and 11 stolen bases, a year truncated by right hamate (hand) surgery that cost him two months of development.

"It's part of the game," Florial said. "It's something I had to try to live with. Nobody likes to get hurt."

General manager Brian Cashman has said that Florial could begin his season in either Tampa or with Double-A Trenton. During his time in camp, Florial said that he has tried to learn from veterans like Brett Gardner and Aaron Judge. He added that Aaron Hicks' seven-year, $70 million extension did not prompt him to wonder about his own future.

"If I can't control something, I don't have to get nervous about it," Florial said. "The only thing I can do is go out there and do the best I can. We love Hicks here. Who wouldn't like to have Hicks on our ballclub? For me, I'm blessed to have him next to me. It's somebody I can learn a lot from."

Positive Pax

James Paxton was in control of the Phillies' lineup on Thursday, scattering three hits over 3 1/3 scoreless innings. The lefty struck out five and walked none, and he said that the release point on his breaking ball is improving. Paxton believes the Yankees can weather the injury to Luis Severino, who is not expected to re-join the rotation until mid-April.

"It's tough to lose a guy like Sevy. Luckily, it looks like it's not going to be for very long," Paxton said. "He's a big part of this team. You can't really fill those shoes. We've got some good depth. We've got some good young guys that I think will step in and fill that hole for us until Sevy gets healthy. Hopefully, it's not too long that he's out."

Seeing red

Clint Frazier has not shied away from his intent to steal playing time from Gardner this season, and though Boone said that the 24-year-old's at-bats have improved, the Yankees believe that Frazier needs to make up the development time that he missed while being limited to 69 games (15 in the Majors) last year by injury.

"I think he needs regular at-bats," Boone said. "That doesn't necessarily mean they won't come here. I certainly feel like he is going to impact our club this year. With some of the time he missed last year, regular at-bats -- especially early -- are important. So it will just be determining if he is going to get them here. We'll make that determination as the picture becomes a little more clear in the next few weeks."

Name to know

With Severino and CC Sabathia both set to begin the year on the injured list, plus a long-relief vacancy, Boone has mentioned Luis Cessa, Domingo Germán and Jonathan Loaisiga as likely candidates to absorb big league innings. Stephen Tarpley, who made his debut last September, has time to push into that mix.

"Tarpley is someone we feel really good about," Boone said of the 26-year-old lefty. "He's going to impact our club at some point and has a bright future with us. As a lefty, he's a guy we can match up a little bit; he can get both hands [hitters] out. He's also someone we feel like gives us more than just an inning. He's certainly a guy very much in that mix."

Bombers bits

Boone said that Hicks (lower back stiffness) was expected to resume throwing and swinging a bat on Thursday, and could play this weekend.

Up next

The Yankees will be under the lights on Friday at George M. Steinbrenner Field, hosting the Tigers in a 6:35 p.m. ET exhibition. Right-hander Masahiro Tanaka will start for New York, opposed by left-hander Matthew Boyd. The game will be broadcast on YES, MLB.TV and WFAN.