Elijah Dunham Stats & Scouting Report

AB	347
AVG	.248
OBP	.332
SLG	.455
HR	15

Full name Elijah Zechariah Dunham
Born 05/29/1998 in Evansville, IN
Profile Ht.: 5'11" / Wt.: 213 / Bats: L / Throws: L
School Indiana
Drafted in the 40th round (1,204th overall) by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2019.

Top Rankings

Organization Prospect Rankings

BA Grade/Risk: 45/High

Track Record: If not for the pandemic, Dunham might have gotten drafted in the first 10 rounds. Instead, the draft was shortened to five rounds and Dunham signed with the Yankees as a free agent after a standout career at Indiana. He split his first pro season between both Class A levels before spending all of 2022 helping Double-A Somerset to the Eastern League championship. After the season, Dunham headed to the Venezuelan Winter League.

Scouting Report: Dunham was lauded for his combination of power and speed. That blend showed up in 2022, when he was one of just four Yankees minor leaguers to hit 15+ home runs and steal 35+ bases. Internal evaluators were pleased by improvements in Dunham's swing decisions and launch angle. He doesn't chase particularly often but his rate of in-zone swing and miss is a bit high at 20%. Because he is limited to a corner-outfield spot--he split 2022 between both right and left field--Dunham's power need to at least maintain its current level or take a step forward in order to profile at either spot. To that end, evaluators noticed that Dunham appeared stronger than a season ago, and he moved to a toe tap instead of a leg lift. He's an average defender with an average arm that would fit in either corner. He's a below-average runner who gets stolen bases because of his instincts.

The Future: Dunham will move to Triple-A in 2023 and has a future as a role player on a championship club or a regular on a second-division team.

Scouting Grades Hit: 40. Power: 50. Speed: 50. Fielding: 50. Arm: 50.
Track Record: In a normal world, Dunham would have heard his name called at some point in the 2020 draft. With the draft shortened to just five rounds because of the pandemic, however, Dunham went unpicked and instead signed with the Yankees as a free agent a week later.

Scouting Report: In his first test as a pro, Dunham showed an intriguing combination of power and speed and finished the year as one of just seven minor leaguers with 13 or more home runs, 28 or more stolen bases and fewer than 100 strikeouts. He hit the ball plenty hard, with an average exit velocity of 89.2 mph and a maximum of 111 mph. The next step is getting Dunham to hit the ball in the air more often to make the most of his bat-to-ball skills and hard contact. Defensively, he likely fits as a left fielder who can use his plus speed to cover plenty of ground.

The Future: Dunham will likely move to Double-A Somerset, where he’ll give his strong contact and on-base skills their first test against more advanced pitching.

Draft Prospects

The Pirates selected Dunham in the 40th round of the 2019 draft during his draft-eligible sophomore season, but Dunham elected to go back to Indiana, where it looked like he was going to simply continue mashing. Through 15 games in the 2020 season, Dunham was off to a torrid pace, hitting .390/.493/.559 with 11 walks and eight strikeouts. His seven doubles led the Hoosiers, as did his on-base percentage. A strong and physical corner outfielder listed at 6-foot, 213 pounds, Dunham has shown a strong knack for hitting in his collegiate career, with an innate ability to find the barrel with a short, compact swing. While there is some stiffness in Dunham’s operation that might need to be loosened up at the next level, there aren’t a ton of holes to speak of. He hits for average and power and has also shown solid ability to work the count and manage the strike zone, with 53 career walks to 69 strikeouts. Dunham does have some wood bat performance in the New England Collegiate League. Last summer with Ocean State, Dunham hit .360/.408/.574 with six home runs in 34 games, though scouts don’t put the same weight on that performance as they do the Cape Cod League. If he continued hitting like he started the 2020 season, he might have risen even higher on draft boards. Dunham isn’t the toolsiest player and is close to maxed out physically, but teams can have some confidence in his balanced offensive profile in a corner outfield spot.

Scouting Reports

BA Grade/Risk: 45/High

Track Record: If not for the pandemic, Dunham might have gotten drafted in the first 10 rounds. Instead, the draft was shortened to five rounds and Dunham signed with the Yankees as a free agent after a standout career at Indiana. He split his first pro season between both Class A levels before spending all of 2022 helping Double-A Somerset to the Eastern League championship. After the season, Dunham headed to the Venezuelan Winter League.

Scouting Report: Dunham was lauded for his combination of power and speed. That blend showed up in 2022, when he was one of just four Yankees minor leaguers to hit 15+ home runs and steal 35+ bases. Internal evaluators were pleased by improvements in Dunham's swing decisions and launch angle. He doesn't chase particularly often but his rate of in-zone swing and miss is a bit high at 20%. Because he is limited to a corner-outfield spot--he split 2022 between both right and left field--Dunham's power need to at least maintain its current level or take a step forward in order to profile at either spot. To that end, evaluators noticed that Dunham appeared stronger than a season ago, and he moved to a toe tap instead of a leg lift. He's an average defender with an average arm that would fit in either corner. He's a below-average runner who gets stolen bases because of his instincts.

The Future: Dunham will move to Triple-A in 2023 and has a future as a role player on a championship club or a regular on a second-division team.

Scouting Grades Hit: 40. Power: 50. Speed: 50. Fielding: 50. Arm: 50.
BA Grade/Risk: 45/High

Track Record: If not for the pandemic, Dunham might have gotten drafted in the first 10 rounds. Instead, the draft was shortened to five rounds and Dunham signed with the Yankees as a free agent after a standout career at Indiana. He split his first pro season between both Class A levels before spending all of 2022 helping Double-A Somerset to the Eastern League championship. After the season, Dunham headed to the Venezuelan Winter League.

Scouting Report: Dunham was lauded for his combination of power and speed. That blend showed up in 2022, when he was one of just four Yankees minor leaguers to hit 15+ home runs and steal 35+ bases. Internal evaluators were pleased by improvements in Dunham's swing decisions and launch angle. He doesn't chase particularly often but his rate of in-zone swing and miss is a bit high at 20%. Because he is limited to a corner-outfield spot--he split 2022 between both right and left field--Dunham's power need to at least maintain its current level or take a step forward in order to profile at either spot. To that end, evaluators noticed that Dunham appeared stronger than a season ago, and he moved to a toe tap instead of a leg lift. He's an average defender with an average arm that would fit in either corner. He's a below-average runner who gets stolen bases because of his instincts.

The Future: Dunham will move to Triple-A in 2023 and has a future as a role player on a championship club or a regular on a second-division team.

Scouting Grades Hit: 40. Power: 50. Speed: 50. Fielding: 50. Arm: 50.
BA Grade: 45/High

Track Record: In a normal world, Dunham would have heard his name called at some point in the 2020 draft. With the draft shortened to just five rounds because of the pandemic, however, Dunham went unpicked and instead signed with the Yankees as a free agent a week later.

Scouting Report: In his first test as a pro, Dunham showed an intriguing combination of power and speed and finished the year as one of just seven minor leaguers with 13 or more home runs, 28 or more stolen bases and fewer than 100 strikeouts. He hit the ball plenty hard, with an average exit velocity of 89.2 mph and a maximum of 111 mph. The next step is getting Dunham to hit the ball in the air more often to make the most of his bat-to-ball skills and hard contact. Defensively, he likely fits as a left fielder who can use his plus speed to cover plenty of ground.

The Future: Dunham will likely move to Double-A Somerset, where he&#39ll give his strong contact and on-base skills their first test against more advanced pitching.
Track Record: In a normal world, Dunham would have heard his name called at some point in the 2020 draft. With the draft shortened to just five rounds because of the pandemic, however, Dunham went unpicked and instead signed with the Yankees as a free agent a week later.

Scouting Report: In his first test as a pro, Dunham showed an intriguing combination of power and speed and finished the year as one of just seven minor leaguers with 13 or more home runs, 28 or more stolen bases and fewer than 100 strikeouts. He hit the ball plenty hard, with an average exit velocity of 89.2 mph and a maximum of 111 mph. The next step is getting Dunham to hit the ball in the air more often to make the most of his bat-to-ball skills and hard contact. Defensively, he likely fits as a left fielder who can use his plus speed to cover plenty of ground.

The Future: Dunham will likely move to Double-A Somerset, where he’ll give his strong contact and on-base skills their first test against more advanced pitching.

Career Transactions

OF Elijah Dunham assigned to Somerset Patriots from Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.
OF Elijah Dunham assigned to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders from Somerset Patriots.
OF Elijah Dunham roster status changed by New York Yankees.
OF Elijah Dunham assigned to New York Yankees.
OF Elijah Dunham assigned to Somerset Patriots from Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.
OF Elijah Dunham roster status changed by New York Yankees.
New York Yankees invited non-roster OF Elijah Dunham to spring training.