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TAMPA — Trey Sweeney is 6-foot-4, quiet, plays in the infield and can hit.
Drafted in the first round by the Yankees last June, the 21-year-old is just starting his first spring training with the organization and has already impressed some with similarities to DJ LeMahieu, due to his demeanor, body type and work ethic.
Now, the Yankees hope he develops into a similar type of player — although Sweeney hits from the left side.
“I love him as a player,’’ new hitting coach Dillon Lawson said Wednesday at the Yankees’ development complex. “It’s exciting to think about the shortstop group we have right now in the organization.”
Sweeney is among the more recent additions to that group, joining Anthony Volpe — considered by many observers to be among the top prospects in the game — as well as Oswald Peraza, who could find his way to The Bronx at some point late this season.
Sweeney wasn’t heavily recruited out of St. Xavier High School in Louisville, Kentucky. He wound up playing in college at Eastern Illinois University, where he was coached by Jason Anderson.
Anderson was drafted by the Yankees in 2000 as a right-handed pitcher, spent parts of 2003 and 2005 in The Bronx, as well as part of ’03 with the Mets after being part of the deal that brought Armando Benitez to the Yankees.
Anderson didn’t care about who else recruited Sweeney, he was just glad he got him.
“I don’t know what it is we saw [in Sweeney], it was more about what others didn’t see,’’ Anderson said by phone. “We loved everything about him and knew after his first practice here he’d be our starting shortstop.”
What stood out to Anderson then is still the case now.
“He’s got the size, a great lefty swing and a good arm,’’ Anderson said. “I always called him a unicorn. He was too good to be true. He plays the game the right way and with the right mindset. He’s not going to say much, he’s just going to focus on the work.”
Sweeney spent a handful of games last summer in the Florida Complex League before being moved to Low-A Tampa, where he played well in 29 games.
With Peraza seemingly headed to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (at some point, since he’s on the 40-man roster and can’t play until the MLB lockout ends) and Volpe (who, like Sweeney, is not on the 40-man roster and can therefore play) likely bound for Double-A Somerset, Sweeney could end up at Tampa or High-A Hudson Valley.
“It was good I got a little professional experience under my belt,’’ Sweeney said. “I’m just looking to keep learning a lot of new things this year. The most important thing is to not worry too much about results right now and just focus on improving my game.”
As a freshman in college, Sweeney said he had no expectations of being picked in the first round.
After a solid first season, Sweeney hit well as a sophomore before that year was cut short because of the COVID pandemic. He continued to develop last season as a redshirt sophomore, which put him into a different trajectory.
“My first couple years [in college], maybe the first round wasn’t an option, but it wasn’t too surprising by the end,’’ Sweeney said of his ’21 season at Eastern Illinois, when he was named Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year. “None of it was a thought of mine going into college.”
These days, he’s matched up with Volpe, the Yankees’ first-round pick from 2019.
“It’s cool to see that level of competition every day,’’ Sweeney said. “Playing alongside someone like that is fun. I think we make each other better.”
What the Yankees do with their depth at the spot will be a significant question once the lockout ends. Sweeney would like to see all of them stick around.
“We’re definitely loaded at that position,’’ Sweeney said. “Hopefully we can all keep moving forward.”
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