Yankees Select Agustin Ramirez, Clayton Beeter

The Yankees announced that they have selected the contracts of right-hander Clayton Beeter and catcher Agustin Ramirez. Today is the deadline for a club to add players to its 40-man roster in order to protect them from being eligible in the Rule 5 draft.

Beeter, 25, was selected by the Dodgers with the 66th overall pick in the 2020 draft. He came to the Yanks in the 2022 deadline deal that sent Joey Gallo to Los Angeles. Beeter split the 2023 season between Double-A and Triple-A, tossing 131 2/3 innings over 27 appearances, 26 starts. He struck out an impressive 28.8% of batters faced on the year but also issued walks at a 13.1% clip. That lack of control is nothing new, as he has walked 12.6% of batters faced in his minor league career overall.

Ramirez, 22, was signed as an international amateur out of Venezuela in 2018. In 2023, he spent time in Single-A, High-A and Double-A, getting 492 plate appearances in total. He launched 18 home runs in that time and also stole 12 bases. He walked in 12.4% of his trips to the plate while limiting his strikeouts to a 17.3% clip.

Baseball America currently lists Beeter as the club’s #20 prospect and Ramirez at #24. The former will give club some optionable pitching depth on the roster while Ramirez will add to a catching mix that is already somewhat crowded. Jose Trevino, Kyle Higashioka, Austin Wells, Ben Rortvedt and Carlos Narvaez are also on the 40-man, giving the Yanks six backstops on the roster, an unusually high number. It was reported last month that the club is signaling that they are willing to trade from their surplus in that department.