Justus Sheffield knows how to make a first impression.
Making his New York Yankees system debut after coming over from Cleveland as part of last week's Andrew Miller trade, Sheffield set a career high with 11 strikeouts in six innings in Class A Advanced Tampa's 7-1 win over Daytona. He allowed one earned run on two hits and one walk, with 58 of his 88 pitches going for strikes in the outing.
Sheffield, the Yankees' No. 7 prospect as well as No. 92 overall on the Top 100, was locked in from the outset of the game as he retired Daytona's first six batters before yielding back-to-back doubles to open the third inning. It would turn out to be the only hits allowed by the 20-year-old left-hander in the outing.
Sheffield fanned the side in the fourth inning, added two more punchouts in the fifth and then notched his career-best 11th strikeout in his sixth and final inning of work. He previously had recorded 10 strikeouts twice in his career, with the latest coming on July 2 as a member of Class A Lynchburg.
Prior to joining the Yankees in the Trade Deadline blockbuster that also sent Clint Frazier (Yankees' No. 1/No. 22 overall) to the Bronx Bombers, Sheffield, whom the Indians selected in the first round (No. 31 overall) of the 2014 Draft, had posted a 3.59 ERA with 93 strikeouts in 95 1/3 innings (19 starts) for Class A Advanced Lynchburg.
Pacing Tampa's offense was shortstop Gleyber Torres (Yankees' No. 2), who went 2-for-4 with a walk and his first home run -- a three-run shot in the seventh inning -- since coming over from the Cubs in the Aroldis Chapman trade. Ranked No. 24 on the Top 100, the 19-year-old has hit 10 home runs in 103 games this season between the Cubs' and Yankees' systems, while the three-hit performance lifted his average to .273.