Drew Henson

Organization Prospect Rankings

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  Ranked New York Yankees #6 prospect in 2003
  As a quarterback at Michigan, Henson projected as a potential first-round pick in the NFL draft. The Yankees traded him to the Reds in July 2001 and reacquired him the following spring, giving him a six-year, $17 million contract to give up the gridiron. Few prospects can match Henson's size, strength and athleticism. He can mash fastballs down in the zone and hit mistakes a long way. He also has an above-average arm and good lateral agility. His take-charge mentality makes him a favorite of Yankees brass. Henson's bat speed is only fair, though, and he tends to muscle the bat through the zone. His swing is long and he struggles to recognize offspeed pitches. His September callup ended early when he was sent to Tampa to work on defense. Henson has been rushed to the majors, yet he didn't get 400 at-bats in a season until 2002 because of football and injuries. His struggles in the Arizona Fall League underscored he's not ready for New York. He's headed back to Triple-A Columbus.
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  Ranked New York Yankees #1 prospect in 2002
  Henson was unhappy after the Yankees traded him to the Reds in a package for Denny Neagle in July 2000, shortly after he wouldn't commit full-time to baseball. He appeared to be leaning closer to football, where his future was just as bright as it is in baseball. After he passed for 2,146 yards and 18 touchdowns at Michigan in 2000, football experts projected him as No. 1 pick material for the 2002 NFL draft. Henson favored baseball but wanted to be a Yankee, so the Reds dealt him back to New York for outfielder Wily Mo Pena and $1.9 million. Henson signed a six-year, $17 million major league contract and left the gridiron for good after the trade. Five games into last season, a pitch broke his left wrist and sidelined him for two months. Henson has special power potential. His raw power rates near 80 on the 20-to-80 scouting scale, and he has launched mammoth, 500-foot blasts since he was a high school freshman. He established the national high school record for home runs. He's a unique physical specimen, with unusual athleticism for his size. He's not ready to play third base in the majors yet but has the tools to be an above-average defender. He has plus-plus arm strength and soft hands. He lost valuable experience by splitting his time between two sports, and it shows most in his pitch recognition and plate discipline. The Yankees rushed Henson to Triple-A last year, and he would have been better served by a full year in Double-A. The holes in his swing were exposed as he struck out once every three at-bats during the regular season and in the Arizona Fall League. Henson's .314-6-33 performance there spurred speculation he was ready for New York. The Yankees put an end to that by trading for Robin Ventura, but Henson remains the third baseman of the future. Henson has a chance to be a franchise player because his work ethic and intelligence are as outstanding as his talent.
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  Ranked Cincinnati Reds #3 prospect in 2001
  The Yankees drafted Henson and signed him for a $2 million bonus, fully aware that the pull of football might prevent the University of Michigan quarterback from ever reaching the Bronx. Henson's future became the Reds' headache when they acquired him with three other prospects in the Denny Neagle deal. Obviously, his all-around athleticism is enviable. He displays nimble feet at third base, outstanding hands and a cannon arm. He runs well for his size and hits proficiently to all fields. His power is his best tool. It almost goes without saying that he has poise, as he's about to thrive in front of 110,000 fans at Michigan on home Saturdays. A baseball chauvinist might say that Henson's only weakness is football. Having divided his athletic attention, he needs at-bats--which may never come--to polish his plate technique. He would be a top-rated quarterback prospect and a possible No. 1 overall pick if he enters the NFL, but he passed on the 2001 draft, which the Reds take as an encouraging sign. Football still offers him guaranteed millions and a shot at playing at the highest level right away, while baseball will require a couple of additional years in the minors before he might get a call to the majors. Idealists who think Henson will choose baseball over football should repeat these two words: John Elway.
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  Ranked New York Yankees #7 prospect in 1999
  Background: Baseball America's 1998 High School Player of the Year, Henson set a new all-time high school home run record. He fell in the draft because he was considered an even better quarterback prospect and signed a two-sport bonus worth at least $2 million. He's a freshman at the University of Michigan. Strengths: Aside from having only average speed, it would be hard to exaggerate Henson's overall tools. He has enormous power potential and bat speed, and enough arm strength to throw 70-yard passes or 95-mph fastballs. Weaknesses: The list of top college and professional quarterbacks is dotted with former baseball players. A parallel list of major leaguers contains very few former college quarterbacks--especially those who signed out of high school and tried to play both sports on two different levels. The Future: Henson represents a very high-risk, high-return type of gamble, the type that the Yankees can afford and don't mind taking. One thing is certain--he will have a longer career in pinstripes than John Elway did.

Minor League Top Prospects

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  Ranked International League #13 prospect in 2002
  The Yankees might have rushed Henson to Triple-A last year after signing him to a $17 million contract, but he enjoyed a strong Arizona Fall league and then hit .296 for Columbus through May. Just when he looked like he was turning his tools into performance, the bottom fell out. Henson batted just .202 over the final three months to finish at .240. His biggest problem lies in a lack of plate discipline. He whiffed 151 times in 471 at-bats, including 40 strikeouts in his final 28 games. Despite his woes, Henson still possessed the best package of tools and biggest upside of any IL third baseman. He improved his defense, showing better actions around the bag to go along with his plus arm. His power potential is off the charts. "He just needs more at-bats to get better offensively," Evers said. "His power's going to play. He's just behind as far as making contact and making adjustments."
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  Ranked International League #14 prospect in 2001
  The Yankees gave Henson a $17 million contract this spring to have him give up football--he was a potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2002 NFL draft as a University of Michigan quarterback--but he didn't provide an immediate return. He broke his left hand when hit by a pitch in April and had a rough time at the plate. Yet he did show off many of the tools that made the Yankees covet him so much. He has a huge arm, looks the part of a third baseman and has the ability to hit for monstrous power. He hit seven of his 11 homers in the season's final four weeks. "The first time we played them, he was pulling the ball way too much," Kim said. "But I could see a big difference a month later when we played them again. He has pretty good first-step quickness, right off the bat," Kim said. "His hands are OK. His backhand is really good, he can move to his left and he has a good arm." "I don't think it's very fair to judge him on this season," Tosca said. "He made some plays to his right where he showed a tremendous arm."
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  Ranked Eastern League #7 prospect in 2000
  From mid-May through mid-July, rare was the day when Radison wasn’t answering questions about Henson. Newspapers from across the nation called to ask: "How good is he?" and "What sport will he eventually play full-time?" The answers: "Exceptional" and "I don’t know." Henson handled the EL very well for a 20-year-old with just 79 games of pro experience. He has big-time power and a big-time arm. Of course, he also uses that arm to quarterback the University of Michigan football team, and he has serious NFL potential. He’ll have a tough decision to make if he goes high in the NFL draft. Getting traded to the Reds with three other prospects in a deal for Denny Neagle in July only muddied the process. "He's got easy power and good agility for a big man," Radison said. "He's 6-foot-5 and can play third base. That's unusual. He has good footwork at third. He's only 20 years old. Not only does he have tools, he has makeup. He's a smart guy. He's a winner. He's an achiever."
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  Ranked Florida State League #2 prospect in 1999
  The only thing that will slow Henson's rise to the big leagues, according to FSL managers who got a good look at him in his abbreviated stay, is his college football career at Michigan. "I've never seen a ball hit so far, so hard, so long in my life as I did when he hit a ball on the clubhouse roof beyond left field (at Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter)," Dorante said. "This guy's got some serious power and he's a pretty decent third baseman. He throws the ball like a football, but he's going to be something special if he decides to play baseball." The lure of college football, particularly playing in front of more than 100,000 fans at Michigan home games, can't be matched by minor league baseball. Some managers expressed concern that a serious football injury could jeopardize a promising baseball career, however. "If he can put the numbers up he did in Tampa playing part time, I'd say his baseball potential is really, really high," Lakeland manager Mark Meleski said. "He's got a very high ceiling."

Top 100 Rankings

• Ranked Baseball America's #9 prospect in 2002
• Ranked Baseball America's #14 prospect in 2001
• Ranked Baseball America's #24 prospect in 2000
• Ranked Baseball America's #100 prospect in 1999

• December, 1999 Scouting Report
  From mid-May through mid-July, rare was the day when Radison wasn’t answering questions about Henson. Newspapers from across the nation called to ask: "How good is he?" and "What sport will he eventually play full-time?" The answers: "Exceptional" and "I don’t know." Henson handled the EL very well for a 20-year-old with just 79 games of pro experience. He has big-time power and a big-time arm. Of course, he also uses that arm to quarterback the University of Michigan football team, and he has serious NFL potential. He’ll have a tough decision to make if he goes high in the NFL draft. Getting traded to the Reds with three other prospects in a deal for Denny Neagle in July only muddied the process. "He's got easy power and good agility for a big man," Radison said. "He's 6-foot-5 and can play third base. That's unusual. He has good footwork at third. He's only 20 years old. Not only does he have tools, he has makeup. He's a smart guy. He's a winner. He's an achiever."