As Gerrit Cole fired live batting practice in the early days of spring training, Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” soundtracked George Lombard Jr.’s plate appearance against the 34-year-old ace.
The grunge anthem made for an apropos song choice as Lombard Jr. – who smoked a line drive to left – is the youngest player in Yankees camp. And yet, those who have spent time with the shortstop describe a 19-year-old who is wise beyond his years.
“You can tell he’s been in a major league clubhouse before,” Aaron Boone said. “He’s an 80-makeup kid.”
Lombard Jr., the Yankees’ second-best farmhand according to Baseball America, is in the midst of his first big league spring training. But as Boone alluded to, the top-100 prospect is no stranger to the majors despite never playing above High-A.
His father, George Lombard Sr., played for the Braves, Tigers, Devil Rays and Nationals from 1998-2006. Lombard Jr., born in 2005, wasn’t alive for most of his dad’s playing career, but he tagged along when Lombard Sr. took minor league coaching jobs with the Red Sox and Braves, and then a big league gig with the Dodgers.
Lombard Sr. served as Los Angeles’ first base coach from 2015-2020, a span that saw the Dodgers play in three World Series. They won it all in 2020.
“It’s helped me so much, both just being around my dad and listening to my dad talk about baseball, and then just being around the game and seeing how big leaguers go about their business and how they work,” Lombard Jr. said. “Watching that amount of baseball, just picking up little cues in the game, it’s helped me a ton.”
The older Lombard, meanwhile, relished the chance to watch his son learn from All-Stars like Justin Turner and Corey Seager.
“Anytime you can get a young kid to be around big league guys, it’s really cool,” said Lombard Sr., now the Tigers’ bench coach. “Anyone that’s been on the pro side of things realizes how much we’re gone, so it is really cool to have them around as much as possible.”
These days, Lombard Jr. is paying close attention to veterans such as Aaron Judge, DJ LeMahieu and Paul Goldschmidt. Still several levels away from the majors, he sees his invitation to big league camp for what it is: a chance to be a “sponge” who absorbs as much as possible from the MVPs, batting champs and Gold Glovers who surround him.
He’s also formed a bond with another young shortstop: Anthony Volpe.
The two have been taking groundballs together regularly since Lombard Jr. reported to camp at the end of January. Lombard Jr. has also made it a point to pick Volpe’s brain.
“Great attitude. Really hard worker, really athletic,” Volpe said. “The way he approaches every day, he’s very curious. I think he wants to get better and is very eager.”
When the two are not discussing defensive techniques or the ins and outs of a big league routine, they also chat about what it’s like to be baby-faced at Steinbrenner Field this time of year.
Volpe’s first big league camp experience wasn’t quite the same, as he won the Yankees’ shortstop job as a 21-year-old at the end of his first spring training in 2023. Still, he feels he can relate to Lombard Jr.
“I just want to be a familiar face that he can go to for anything,” Volpe said, adding that others helped him along the way. “My first camp was the year I made the team, so I never really had that experience of coming off my first pro season and then being able to just be involved in everything. But from a homegrown, drafted Yankee standpoint, I feel like I could share experiences with him and the rest of the guys in the system.”
As Volpe mentioned, 2024 was Lombard Jr.’s first full professional season. A soccer star and standout ballplayer at Gulliver Prep (Pinecrest, Florida), he played in 13 games as an 18-year-old after being drafted 26th overall in 2023.
Lombard Jr. played in 110 games last season between Single-A and High-A, slashing .231/.338/.334 with 25 doubles, five homers, 45 RBI and 39 stolen bases. His numbers weren’t remarkable, but the Yankees were encouraged by the adjustments he made along the way.
Lombard Jr. has looked like a power threat lately, as the right-handed swinger drilled a 414-foot solo homer at 108.4 mph off Steinbrenner Field’s left field scoreboard over the weekend. He added another blast of the two-run variety on Monday night.
George Lombard Jr. is 19 years old and just sent a ball out 414 feet and 108.4 MPH off the bat. Future Yankees superstar. pic.twitter.com/NXXqFkA8NH
— Evil Empire (@octoberstanton) March 1, 2025
While those cuts turned some heads, the Yankees have been routinely infatuated with Lombard Jr.’s defense, which has made cameos at second and third base. That part of his game has benefitted from his soccer skills, as he believes his time on the pitch boosted his speed, footwork and agility.
“I see great feet,” infield coach Travis Chapman said. “His ability to read hops, move and create hops with his feet is pretty impressive.”
Meanwhile, Lombard Sr. mentioned his son’s ears when asked about the teen’s strengths. He deemed Lombard Jr. a strong listener who processes the game well, an assessment shared by members of the Yankees’ organization who have noticed the youngster’s attention to detail.
As for areas to work on, Chapman said that Judge and Volpe challenged Lombard Jr. to take on more of an active leadership role in the minors this season.
Lombard Sr. would also like to see more consistency from his namesake. The father noted there’s a big difference between playing a few games a week in high school and the everyday grind of a professional season, which Lombard Jr. had not experienced until last year.
Now Lombard Jr. is looking forward to his second full campaign, as are the Yankees. He’s not sure where it will begin, but he can’t wait to apply the lessons he’s being taught this spring.
“I just want to go out there, relax and play my game,” Lombard Jr. said. “It’s just really a learning experience, going out there and having fun, playing my game and showing everybody what I can do.”