Sunday, June 3, 2012

Series Awards: @ Tigers, 6/1 - 6/3


Jake Taylor Award
Eric Chavez was 4-for-6 in the series, with a double, but I can't bring myself to give the guy this award. Not when he didn't even play in Game 1. I mean, this is a series award. If the guy doesn't play the entire series, then how can he win it? While 4-for-13 isn't a great batting average (.308), the fact that Alex Rodriguez hit two of those 4 over the fence makes me give him the nod. It would be nice if a two homer performance in a series is the start of something, as Alex didn't earn that 10 year contract thanks to hitting singles.

Gentry Award
For the same reason I couldn't give the Jake Taylor award to Eric Chavez, I can't give Raul Ibanez and his 0-for-9 performance the Gentry Award. I thought about Robinson Cano here, as going 2-for-12 will not get it done. But Robbie did hit a triple, so I'll cut him a bit of slack. But I can't cut Mark Teixeira any slack. Even though Mark had the same number of hits in as many at bats, hitting a couple of singles is not what we're looking for him to do.

Rick Vaughn Award
Phil Hughes. He threw a complete game in Game 3, while only giving up 4 hits (Fielder's HR was the only extra-base hit out of the 4) and walking 3. And Phil was able to get 8 Tigers to strike out. Although his outing before this one, against the Angels, didn't go so well (7 earned runs in 5.1 innings), Hughes has pitched pretty well as of late. He had an ERA of 7.48 going into that game against LA, and since then has dropped his ERA all the way down to 4.96.

Kelner Award
Clay Rapada had a rough outing Friday night, giving up a hit and 2 walks in only .1 innings, but it's too hard for me to give the guy this award. Especially when David Phelps gave up a run on two hits in the same number of innings (.1). So I'm going to give the pitching staff a break here, and not give the award to anybody.

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*The awards are named after one of the best baseball movies of all time... Major League.

Jake Taylor Award - Awarded to the most valuable position player. Named after the hard-nose veteran catcher that, despite making the league minimum, was the heart and soul of the 1989 American League East winning Cleveland Indians.

Gentry Award - Awarded to the least valuable position player. Named after the very first man cut from the 1989 Cleveland Indians, #47 Gentry. A man so insignificant he wasn't even given a first name.

Rick Vaughn - Awarded to the best pitcher in the series. This one is, of course, named after the "Wild Thing". The man that made Clu Haywood look silly in the division deciding game.

Kelner Award - Awarded to the worst pitcher in the series. Named after the Opening Day starter for the '89 Indians. Not a good game for Mr. Kelner, as Indians' announcer Harry Doyle famously quipped "thank God" after Kelner left the game. And yet another bad player without a first name.

Yankees Draft 2012 : Addison Russell


Being Borrowed From River Avenue Blues

The 2012 amateur draft is just about three weeks away, so between now and then I’m going to highlight some prospects individually rather than lump them together into larger posts.
Addison Russell | SS
Background
A shortstop at Pace High School in Pace, Florida — on the panhandle near the Alabama border — Russell has battled weight issues in the past but dropped at least 20 lbs. over the winter and muscled up considerably. He is a committed to Alabama and is advised by Scott Boras.
Scouting Report
Listed at 6-foot-0 and 215 lbs., Russell is a bat-first prospect with big raw power to the pull side and the ability to drive the ball to all fields. His approach is fine but still needs some refinement, though he has shown the ability to handle velocity and quality breaking balls in showcase events. He’s a man of a thousand stances, tinkering with his setup constantly. That will have to change at some point. Russell’s defensive skills are surprisingly strong for a kid his size, as he sports smooth hands, a strong and accurate arm, and a quick first step. The long-term concern is that he’ll outgrow shortstop and slide over to third, though the bat works fine there and he should be an above-average defender.
Miscellany
Keith Law has the Yankees selecting Russell with their first round pick in his latest mock draft, and I figured that was as good a place to start our individual profiles as any. Baseball America recently ranked him as the 28th best prospect in the draft, which is right in line with the team’s first selection (#30 overall). Scouting director Damon Oppenheimer loves his bat-first high school position players and Russell certainly qualifies. His potential as a hitter is a bit more obvious than Dante Bichette Jr.’s, who had to clean up his swing after the draft in order to take off as a prospect. I can only assume Boras will want the full $1.6M first round slot money and then some.

Yankees @ Tigers 6/3/12

UPDATE:

Derek Jeter leads the game off with a solo home run, his 6th of the season.  1-0 NYY

Mark Teixeira hits a sacrifice fly to give the Yanks a 2-0 lead. 

Alex Rodriguez hit an absolute bomb to left field to make it 3-0 Yanks. 

Phil Hughes gave up yet another home run in a start, this time to Prince Fielder. 


Cano with a triple and RBI and scores on a throwing error. 5-1 Yankees. 


Hughes goes into the 9th inning look for his first career 9 IP complete game and gets it!!!


Congrats Phil and Congrats to the Yankees!


5-1 Yankees Win!


Dont forget the draft is tomorrow here and on MLB Network! 

David Phelps? You Almost Had Me....

The Yankees and Phil Hughes will be facing the Detroit Tigers and Justin Verlander in the rubber match of a three game series in Comerica. The game will be televised at 1:05 pm ET on YES and TBS. The Yankees lineup:

Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Alex Rodriguez DH
Robinson Cano 2B
Mark Teixeira 1B
Raul Ibanez LF
Nick Swisher RF
Eric Chavez 3B
Russell Martin C 

LOL!


Yankees 2012 Draft : Mason Melotakis


Being Borrowed From River Avenue Blues

The 2012 amateur draft is just about two weeks away, so between now and then I’m going to highlight some prospects individually rather than lump them together into larger posts.
Mason Melotakis | LHP
Background
A Texas kid who wound up playing for Northwestern State in Louisiana, Melotakis has settled in as the Blue Demons’ relief ace over the last three years. His prospect stock really took off when he shined with the Bourn Braves of the Cape Cod League last summer, striking out 22 and walking just two in 18.2 IP across 14 appearances.
Scouting Report
Listed at 6-foot-3 and 205 lbs., Melotakis went undrafted out of high school because he was undersized and could barely crack 90 mph. He’s since gone through a growth spurt and has developed into a legitimate power arm from the left side, sitting 94-96 mph in relief. His power slider is a true put-way pitch. Melotakis doesn’t have a third offering and there is some effort in his delivery, which is why he’s shown the propensity to wear down after a few innings when working as a starter. He’s a true relief prospect with two strong pitches, exactly the kind of guy who could zoom up the ladder and contribute to the big league team sooner rather than later.
Miscellany
Keith Law and Baseball America recently ranked Melotakis as the 63rd and 88th best prospect in the draft, respectively. The Yankees have a pair of second round picks (#89 and #94 overall) and he’d fit best there, not as their first rounder (#30 overall). I’ve never been a fan of drafting relievers in the first round, feels like a waste. Anyway, the Yankees have done a splendid job of turning late-round picks into a valuable relief arms under Damon Oppenheimer, so drafting one relatively high seems to go against the grain. In fact, they’ve only drafted three pure relievers in the top five rounds since Oppenheimer took over in 2005: J.B. Cox in 2005, Scott Bittle in 2008, and Tommy Kahnle in 2010. Melotakis would be an atypical pick for New York but not a bad one after the first round.

Yankees 2012 Draft : Daniel Robertson


Being Borrowed From River Avenue Blues

The 2012 amateur draft is less than two weeks away, so between now and then I’m going to highlight some prospects individually rather than lump them together into larger posts.
Daniel Robertson | SS/3B
Background
A California kid from the Los Angeles suburbs, Robertson (no relation to David as far as I know) stars at Upland High School and is committed to UCLA. He was also heavily recruited by Georgia and Arizona, so some of the biggest baseball programs in the country had their eye on him.
Scouting Report
Robertson is listed at 6-foot-0 and 190 lbs. and although the consensus is that he won’t have the mobility to remain at shortstop, he has all the tools to develop into a standout defender at the hot corner thanks to his arm, instincts, and soft hands. He’s projected to be a high-average hitter from the right side thanks to his quick bat and innate ability to get the barrel on the ball. Most of his power is into the gaps but Robertson has hinted at future power potential, so there’s a chance he’ll turn into a complete all-around hitter. He’s earned the “gamer” tag for his all-out style of play and has drawn raves for his advanced approach, baseball acumen, and polish.
Miscellany
Both Baseball America (35th overall) and Keith Law (38th) recently ranked Robertson and a fringe first round talent while MLB.com has him a little further down the list at #58 overall. Chances are someone will like him enough to grab him before the Yankees’ two second round picks (#89 and #94 overall) come around, so they’d have to grab Robertson in the first round (#30 overall) if they want him. The Yankees have had no trouble bucking the consensus and reaching for players the last few years, and Robertson fits their mold as a polished high school player with strong makeup and two-way skills.