BRIDGEWATER — Coming down the stretch of the season, the main attractions at Double-A Somerset include a pair of pitchers who are in their first season with the Yankees.
Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz and Ben Hess are respectively ranked by MLB Pipeline as the organization’s No. 6 and No. 7 prospects, and they have performed as advertised.
Rodriguez-Cruz is sporting a 2.13 ERA in 109.2 innings — the most among Yankees farmhands — with 122 strikeouts. And the right-hander has allowed only five earned runs in four starts since being promoted from High-A Hudson Valley, including two straight scoreless outings.
“For me I feel like it’s been a little bit of the same,” Rodriguez-Cruz said of adapting to Double-A. “There’s some adjustment you’ve got to make. It’s a new league, different type of players, so just trying to get every single bit of information I can and just bring it out every single day and just bring out the best in me.”
That’s been a seamless process with the Yankees, who traded catcher Carlos Narvaez to the Red Sox in exchange for Rodriguez-Cruz. The 21-year-old said the trade came as a surprise when he got the phone call because it’s not often you see a deal between the Yankees and Red Sox as rivals.
He admitted he had mixed feelings at first because he was thankful for his time in Boston, but the Yankees have helped him unlock even more confidence in his arsenal. He throws a four-seam fastball, sinker, sweeper, gyro slider, curveball and occasionally a splitter. The sinker and sweeper have become higher-usage pitches for him this season.
“Ever since I got here, they put more emphasis on trusting all my stuff and using all my pitches,’ Rodriguez-Cruz said. Getting to two (strike) counts and trying to use all of them to my advantage where it plays best. I feel like it’s just more confidence. I feel like ever since I got here they just let me pitch and they’re letting me execute, and I feel like I’m just taking advantage of that.”
The Red Sox selected him in the fourth round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Leadership Christian Academy in Puerto Rico. He attributes his uptick in fastball velocity last year to added weight and strength. He was around 160 pounds when he got drafted and now is about 180.
“Ever since I got drafted that was the goal for me — get weight — because eventually it would translate to me having more velo,” said Rodriguez-Cruz, whose fastball sits around 94-96 mph. “I felt like if I put in the work in the offseason — in the gym, food-wise — it’s something that’s helped me, and just continue to keep doing it.”
Ben Hess was the Yankees’ first-round pick last year out of Alabama and is the organization’s seventh-ranked prospect. (Somerset Patriots Photo)
Hess, meanwhile, was the Yankees’ first-round pick last year out of the University of Alabama. And what a difference a single year in pro ball has made.
Despite possessing excellent stuff and 106 strikeouts in 68.1 innings in his final season with the Crimson Tide, Hess had a 5.80 ERA and needed refinement. So the Yankees adjusted some of his pitch shapes and usage, and he has sported a 3.86 ERA in 16 starts so far between High-A and Double-A.
“I didn’t really set too many expectations going into the first year of pro ball. Just trying to come out, get better, use this as a learning experience to ultimately reach the major leagues,” Hess said. “I didn’t set too many expectations in terms of level. The goal was just to go out and get better every start, and I think I’ve done that.”
Hess, a 6-foot-5 right-hander, throws a four-seam mid-90s fastball, a curveball, a slider and a changeup. He began throwing the curveball when he was about 16 years old and hasn’t altered it much; the Yankees have simply doubled his usage of it. But he did enhance the shape of his changeup while working at the team’s development complex in Tampa last year.
“I spent most of the offseason at the complex as well, so I got to take full advantage of all those resources,” the 22-year-old Hess said. “From the technology to the people and the facilities, all of it, it’s top-notch.”
Hess revealed that he didn’t pitch between May 29 and June 25 at Hudson Valley because of personal reasons — nothing injury related. The 81 pitches that he threw in his Somerset debut on Wednesday were his most in a game since throwing 99 on May 29 because he had to build his pitch count back up from the time missed.
Even so, his 16 starts and 71 innings are already more than he ever threw in a college season.
“I feel great, ready to finish out strong,” Hess said. “I’m not sure what they’re gonna do in terms of scaling my innings or anything. I’m just gonna go out and keep pitching, try to throw as many innings as I can.”
Rodriguez-Cruz echoed similar sentiments when asked if he might have his workload reduced in the last few weeks of the season. His goal was to stay healthy this year and reach 100 innings, and he has already well surpassed his previous career high of 89.2 last year.
He is set to pitch Sunday at TD Bank Ballpark in a marquee matchup against Binghamton’s Jonah Tong, who is the Mets’ No. 2 prospect and No. 51 in all of baseball.
“I feel really good right now,” Rodriguez-Cruz said. “Even though it’s been a long season, I feel like I’ve still got a lot left and arm has been feeling good. So just trying to keep going and just keep working hard.”
Originally Published: August 9, 2025 at 11:55 AM EDT