Yanquiel Fernández earns International League Player of the Week after power surge
Fernández’s six-game burst, capped by a two-homer, six-RBI night and a ninth-inning winner, made a strong case that his bat is forcing attention.
Yanquiel Fernández turned a hot week into a league-wide honor. The 23-year-old right fielder was named International League Player of the Week after batting .379 and playing all six games for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, a stretch that mixed daily production with the kind of power that changes a series.
The loudest night came at Coca-Cola Park on May 19, when Fernández homered twice and drove in six runs in the RailRiders’ 15-4 win over Lehigh Valley. That game announced the week. He followed it with enough consistency to make the award feel earned rather than decorative, then closed the set on May 24 by driving in the winning two runs in the ninth inning of a 5-4 victory over the IronPigs that left the series split 3-3.
That is the real significance for a player at Triple-A. A single blast can grab a recap; six games of impact, with Fernández in right field every day, tell evaluators something sturdier. His week was the kind of stretch that matters in a league filled with major-league depth and players trying to force their way onto the next roster conversation. It was also backed by proof that this was not an isolated spike. MiLB video content highlighted his 11th home run on May 20, another reminder that the power was showing up in real time.
Fernández brings a long track record of offensive damage. Born in Havana, Cuba, he signed with the Colorado Rockies as an international free agent on July 12, 2019 for $295,000. He opened his pro career with a .937 OPS in the 2021 Dominican Summer League, then broke out in the California League in 2022, leading the circuit with 109 RBIs, tying for third with 21 home runs and finishing fifth with a .507 slugging percentage. His career minor-league line now sits at .277/.333/.812 with 85 home runs.
He also reached the majors on July 2, 2025, which raises the stakes on every productive week at Triple-A. This one did not guarantee another call, but it did sharpen his case. For the Yankees’ top affiliate, Fernández looked less like a fill-in and more like a bat that belongs in the center of the conversation whenever New York needs impact from the next man up.
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