Saturday, May 25, 2013

Yankees claim David Huff

(Jason Miller/Getty)
 The Yankees claimed David Huff off waiver from the Indians and designated Francisco Rondon for assignment. Huff has only pitched three poor innings with the Indians this year and has traditionally been a starter for the Indians in his five major league season, he has an career ERA of 5.40, but he 28 and left handed so teams are going to have an interest in him. He is out of minor league options so the Yankees will need to send somebody down to make room for him or they could try to outright him to the minors and considering this is his second time being DFA and he reached the Yankees so it is possible they could outright him.
People may remember Huff for getting it in the head by an Alex Rodriguez Line drive in 2010 and apparently the Yankees were considering Huff in the 2006 draft but he was taken by the Indians at 39th overall, the Yankees instead took Joba Chamberlain at 41st overall.

Curtis Granderson injured in hit by pitch......again

In yesterdays game against the Rays Curtis Granderson was hit by a pitch from Cesar Ramos and suffered a broken knuckle on the pinky finger of his left hand. The Yankees placed him on the 15 day DL and recalled Brennan Boesch from Triple A. The timetable is at least four weeks and Granderson will see a hand specialist on Monday in New York. Obviously this hurts the Yankees, but its especially annoying considering that Granderson has only played 11 games since coming back from his broken forearm suffered in the spring. Granderson had this to say following the game (via Mark Feinsand):

“I bounced back from [the forearm injury], I’ll bounce back from this.The hand is still on, it didn’t fall off. You can take a look at all the positives from everything. It’s a better break than the previous one, that’s a good thing, it should be back sooner than the last time so that’s a good thing. The team is playing well. Hopefully we come back and the team is right where we need it to be and continue to help this team move forward until the end.”

The Yankees really needed Grandersons bat, but Youkilis and Teixeira are starting rehab assignments soon so they can hopefully survive the loss. One idea pitched by River Ave Blues is that the Yankees should see if Overbay can handle playing the outfield, its not ideal but if he can be passable then the Yankees could keep his bat in the lineup. Overbay did play some outfield in the minors but that was ten years ago at this point, so the Yankees would definitely want to see how he handles it before they put him there in a game. Either way hopefully Granderson can return soon.

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Jesus Montero demoted to Triple A

The Seattle Mariners demoted Catcher Jesus Montero to Triple A today as he had only hit .208/.264/.327 with Three home runs on the year after a disappointing, but not awful, season last year in Seattle. More with that the Mariners are not calling up top catching prospect Mike Zunino, who is currently in AAA, so it looks like they will be moving Jesus from catcher to another position, most likely DH. Montero is only 23 so its not as if the Mariners or anyone else should give up on his bat, but his glove was always poor and this season he has only 8 walks in 110 Plate appearances. What obviously makes this story intriging for us Yankees fans is that Montero was the top Yankee prospect who, along with pitcher Hector Noesi,  was traded to Seattle for the 23 year old Fire baller Michael Pineda, who promptly got hurt and has not actually pitched for the Yankees yet this season and pitching prospect Jose Campos who also was injured during the year. The Mariners had been declared the winner of the trade last year but this latest turn throws everything into the air as none of the pieces in the trade have been very good for either side and so we are still likely years away from learning just who has won this trade. We still have to see exactly what Pineda will do as he has reportedly been throwing around 95 in his rehab work.

Saturday, May 18, 2013

Yankees acquire Reid Brignac

The Yankees have acquired Reid Brignac for $75,000 after Brignac was designated for assignment by the Rockies. Its assumed that Brignac will replace Alberto Gonzalez, but the team has not officially announced anything.
Brignac, can't really hit or walk with a career line of .228/.270/.321 (60 wRC+) in 769 plate appearances. You might remember him from his time with the Rays from 2008-2012. What Brignac does bring is above average fielding at all three non first base infield spots and so is a marginal upgrade over Gonzalez. I expect that Brignac will play short against right handers and obviously provides the versititlity that the Yankees did not have with Gonzalez. Its a small upgrade, but still an upgrade.

Thursday, May 16, 2013

David Adams & Dellin Betances called up

David Adams has been called up to the New York Yankees and Chris Nelson has been designated for assignment. This was first reported by Josh Norris and I am a little bit late because they did not officially make the move until after I had left to go to the game last night. Adams went 1-4 with a solid single for his first Major league hit and had some good plays at the hot corner and all on his 26th birthday too.  Dellin Betances was called up today and Brett Marshall was optioned after Marshall threw 108 pitches going 5.2 ugly mop up innings after Hughes gave up 7 runs in 2/3 of an inning. Marshall did not look very good, giving up 5 runs, walking 5 and striking out 1 but he did soak up a lot of innings for the Yankees and left the bullpen rested. Betances was part of the Killer B's just three years ago and then Brackman was terrible, Banuelos got hurt and Betances was wild, but Betances was moved to the bullpen recently and is getting the call up until Joba Chamberlain is back from his Oblique injury. This is Betances second stint with the big league club after making two appearances in September 2011, including starting the last game of the year. This is really Betances last chance to carve out a role in the majors with the Yankees as he is out of minor league option years after this year and could very well find himself in jeopardy of being DFA if he cannot pitch well out of the pen.

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Granderson activated from DL

The Yankees activated Curtis Granderson from the disabled list and optioned Vidal Nuno to AAA Scranton. Curtis will start tonight in Left Field and batting 4th hopefully with his much needed power on display against the Mariners Ace, Felix Hernandez. In case you don't remember Granderson was hit by a pitch two pitches into spring training by Blue Jays pitcher J.A Happ. Granderson had a mixed season last year, his Batting average and Slugging percentage were suprisingly low considering his 43 Home runs, but he still walked a lot and I would hope that he will improve on his contact rate. Some people think that Granderson is absolutely worthless because he struck out 195 times last year, but honestly I subscribe to the idea that most players make 300-450 outs a year, so does it really matter how they are made? Some people have actually suggested that the Yankees are better off without Granderson, which is completely absurd; Ichiro has a sub .300 OBP and an OPS of .650 and if you ask some people that's apparently better because Granderson strikes out a lot.

Sunday, May 12, 2013

Nunez to the DL

The Yankees list of wounded has increased again as they have placed Eduardo Nunez on the DL today due to his left ribcage issue, the team announced. Infielder Alberto Gonzalez will be recalled from Triple-A to take his roster spot. Mark Teixeira has been transferred to the 60-day DL to clear a 40-man roster spot.
The problem was thought to be minor but it ha lingered and the Yankees would like to have a backup infielder, the good news though is that its retroactive to last Sunday so hopefully he only has to spend a little more than a week on the DL. The Yankees acquired Gonzalez a few days ago in a trade with the Cubs for a player to be named later or cash considerations. The Tex thing isn't a huge deal as at this point he wasn't likely to come back until June anyway and just started swinging a bat.

Saturday, May 11, 2013

Yankees intend to call up David Adams

When Kevin Youkillis went down with a back injury the Yankees called up Corban Joseph before trading for Chris Nelson to get some infield help. The man playing third base for the AAA Railriders was David Adams was not called up because he had been released to free a 40 man spot and because it was in spring training he could not be called up for thirty days after he had resigned. For those of you asking why he was released it sounds like the Yankees basically had already set up with him that he would resign after his release to clear a 40 man spot and if they had DFA him he could have been picked up off waivers. Kind of a weird situation but Adams had missed most of spring training with a back injury and so he wasn't going to be useful early in the season and the Yankees must have assumed Youk could be healthy for a month and a half, way off on that one. A report out right now is that the Yankees will bring up Adams as soon as he is eligible, which will be this Wednesday  May 15th. Adams has been manning third base regularly but has gotten time at 1st and 2nd this year as well, as well as hitting .325/.411/.494 with two home runs and nine RBI in 23 games at Triple-A this season. The Yankees intend to play him regularly when they do call him up and it will be interesting to see where they play him, it would make sense if he played at 1st with Nelson/Nix at third, but if that was the case I expect that Adams would be playing 1st more in Scranton rather than the two starts he has there this season. We will just have to wait and see what happens, but if Adams gets the call then it probably is the end for Ben Francisco as a Yankee. Fun fact May 15th is also David Adam's Birthday, so getting a call up and start would be a good birthday present.

Monday, May 6, 2013

The end of Derek Jeter?


Derek Jeter’s 2012 season cannot be undersold he was absolutely amazing, I don’t think anybody thought that at age 38 he would possibly hit as well as he did, I did not even realize until I saw the stats but his 216 hits in the 2012 season was the second most in his career as in only once in his 18 year Major League baseball career did he have more hits than in 2012 and that was way back in 1999 when he had 219. That being said everything changed when Jeter broke his ankle in the ALCS, let’s be clear this happened because he played through the pain his ankle had been bothering him all September and instead of resting he got a cortisone shot to keep playing because the Yankees needed him too. Derek said he would be back by opening day and that seemed unlikely because he was coming off a BROKEN ANKLE, and sure enough despite the possibility being raised during spring training Derek wasn’t ready. Then it turned out that he had fractured his ankle in his attempt to be ready and now will be out until at least the all-star break but no return date has been set.
 There are a huge number of problems with this injury beyond the fact that Derek Jeter is not playing with the Yankees and they really could use his bat right now. The biggest problem that comes up is “Can he play Short stop?” I mean Derek hasn’t had good range in years and it’s been especially bad the last three years and now he has a broken ankle on top of that. It would be one thing if Nunez was still throwing the ball away every other play, but his fielding has been pretty good and if we are being honest definitely better than Jeter’s. It’s a monument to Jeter that he has been able to play Short stop for 18 years and it’s the only place he has ever fielded, but I honestly do not think that he can play there on that ankle. The Yankees will probably try him out at Short a bit but I expect that he will mostly DH when he returns, but what about next year? I don’t know if Derek will pick up his player option for next season and it is technically possible that Derek could retire at the end of the year, I expect that he will want to play more after the season and what if he doesn’t want to DH 100 games or if the Yankees say he needs to change positions and he won’t do it, what happens then?  In 2014 the Yankees cannot have the left side of their infield feature a shortstop with a broken ankle and a 3rd baseman who has had two hip surgeries and both Jeter and A-Rod will likely need to DH frequently anyway. Also Jeter’s speed will likely be completely gone, it happens to most people who break an ankle and it does make me wonder how well Jeter will be in taking the extra base, I expect that he will push himself to do it but it’s very possible that he just won’t be able to anymore.  As of right now this doesn’t impact the Yankees as they need to actually be close to getting The Captain back before we can truly wonder where he will play and what his impact will be, but it’s still in the back of my mind.This off season contract negotiations could end up being a lot more stressful than the one that caused so much controversy in the 2010 off season.

Friday, May 3, 2013

Preston Claiborne called up

Well with Joba Chamberlain going on the Disabled list with an oblique injury the Yankees decided to call up Preston Claiborne and designated Cody Eppley for Assignment to clear a 40 man spot.
Some people were surprised that  top relief prospect Mark Montgomery but apparently the Yankees liked the fact that Claiborne has some more experience in AAA. I don't expect that Claiborne will be anything important, his 10.1 Strike out to walk number is great but its way above his career norm and his overall numbers aren't exactly eye popping. He will likely only be with the team until Joba is back, but its possible that if he impresses he could stay on the roster over somone like Adam Warren or Vidal Nuno.
Eppley's Designation for Assignment isn't a huge surprise as he was not mentioned as an option to be called up by Brian Cashman and unfortunately he is just not a great bullpen piece, as he is a side arming right hander which limits his usefulness to right handers. I wrote this piece last year about Eppley who ended up having a pretty good year with the Yankees last year, mostly paired up with  Clay Rapada. Eppley was great to get ground balls but he really had no future as anything other than an up and down guy. He actually broke camp with the team pitching in two games before being sent down for Phil Hughes, but he was pretty awful in the small sample size. Its possible that Eppley will clear waivers and remain with the Yankees, but having previously proved himself as a useful bullpen piece some team will likely pick him up even if its just to try and put him right back onto waivers to keep him in their system. Best of luck to Claiborne who will apparently wear number 38, which had been Eppleys number

Thursday, May 2, 2013



On the newest Podcast we talk about Yankees who did well in April, Yankees who struggled and those who we are still waiting to see how they turn out. Also how the Yankees have exceeded expectations in April and how the league looks so far and the Trade for Chris Nelson. Right after we did this Joba was put on the DL and it sounds like Preston Caliborne will be called up. I don't know the corresponding 40 man move but probably Cody Epply considering that they didn't call him up. Also we specifically talk about Pineda in the podcast and it was reported that he was around 93-95 in his rehab.

Yankees acquire Chris Nelson

The Yankees acquired Infielder Chris Nelson from the Colorado Rockies for cash considerations or a player to be named later. Corban Joseph was sent down to AAA and Francisco Cervelli was placed on the 60 day Disabled List. I had mentioned the possible trade earlier as the Yankees really needed to make a move because the timing meant they did not have a viable third base option to call up in the wake of Kevin Youkillis going on the DL. Apparently the Yankees had interest in acquiring in acquiring him during the winter meetings after Nelson he hit .301/.352/.458 (105 wRC+) in 377 plate appearances in 2012 . He can play Third, Second and short and I expect that he will be the everyday third baseman over Jayson Nix,he also bats right handed. He hit .242/.282/.318 (51 wRC+) in 71 plate appearances before the Rockies took him off the roster, but Nelson is a career .279/.322/.416 (86 wRC+) hitter over the length of  four big league seasons, and the right-handed bat doesn’t have a massive left/right (84/87 wRC+) or home/road (97/72) split.

Nelson was once the 26th best prospect in the game according to Baseball America as a Shortstop in 2005, but he never lived up to the hype. He is a pretty average fielder and does not steal or run bases particularly well, he is also out of minor league options but the Yankees need somebody who can play the infield and Nelson is exactly that. Nelson fits the roster better than Joseph but I do not know how long he will be on the roster as it is possible that the Yankees will give Ronnie Mustelier a shot after he finishes rehabbing.

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

The unfortunate third base situation

Yesterday the Yankees placed Kevin Youkilis on the 15 day Disabled list and called up Corban Joseph. There are however several problems with this promotion:


• Joseph is a left handed batter so he does not help the Yankees loss of Youkillis against left handed pitchers and will now force Overbay to play against lefties.

• Jospeh cannot play third base as he cannot make the throw across the diamond, if you recall he displayed this in spring training. He is listed as a third baseman but you need to be able to make that throw and he cannot, he could probably play third in an emergency but I do not have a lot of faith in him at third.

• Brian Cashman said that he can only play the right side of the infield, meaning that he can only play second and first. Keep in mind that Jospeh has only played a handful of games at first ever, all of which came this season.

The reason why Jospeh was called up for Youkilis is simply that the Yankees do not have a viable choice for third base other than him. Ronnie Mustillier impressed in spring training but he just had his first rehab game in Tampa as he is coming back from a Spring Training injury. David Adams is also a better option at third base than Jospeh but he cannot be called up until May 15th because he was released by the Yankees, not Designated for assignment, and then resigned to a minor league deal and players who are released and re-sign minor league contracts with the same team have to wait 30 days before they can be called up. The timing of this injury is very unfortunate because as of right now there is no backup for Nix and Nunez because they are the backups themselves. I guess the Yankees could have called up Dan Johnson, but they would have needed to add him to the 40 man roster and his display at third base in Spring left a lot to be desired and he is only hitting .171 in AAA. CoJo is a borderline prospect as he cannot defend very well anywhere on the field and while he can hit enough to be useful, he won’t hit well enough to be a starter. Honestly if I was the Yankees I would try and trade and acquire Chris Nelson who was recently DFA by the Colorado Rockies. The Yankees have reportedly been talking to Colorado about a trade but they will reportedly try to get him after he clears waivers.