Friday, November 13, 2015

Staten Island Yankees Release 2016 Schedule



The Staten Island Yankees are excited to announce the team's 2016 season schedule. The Baby Bombers kick off another action-packed summer at home for a 15th summer at the Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George on Saturday, June 18, against cross-bridge rival the Brooklyn Cyclones.

Click here for a downloadable .pdf of the 2016 schedule!

After posting a 41-34 regular season record and winning the team's eighth McNamara Division title in 16 seasons, Staten Island seeks to bring home their seventh New York-Penn League Championship in 2016 following a loss in the league championship in September.

For the first time since 2012, the Yankees will open the season on the road on Friday, June 17, at the friendly confines of MCU Park in Brooklyn where the Baby Bombers posted a perfect 6-0 record in 2015. The team then returns to the Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George to begin a home-opening seven-game home stand from June 18 to June 24, including a NYPL Championship rematch with reigning title holder the West Virginia Black Bears (Pittsburgh Pirates) on June 22-24.

While fans will have to wait until early 2016 for the promotional calendar, dates such as July 4 vs. the Hudson Valley Renegades (Tampa Bay Rays) and the Labor Day season finale on Sept. 5 vs. Brooklyn should be games to mark in your calendar. See below for the whole 2016 home slate.

Fans can reserve season tickets and partial plans for the 2016 season by contacting a Staten Island Yankees ticket rep at (718) 720-9265 or by email at tickets@siyanks.com. Contact us today to reserve your tickets or for more information about the 2016 season.

DateOpponentAffiliate
June 18Brooklyn CyclonesNew York Mets
June 19-21Aberdeen IronBirdsBaltimore Orioles
June 22-24West Virginia Black BearsPittsburgh Pirates
June 29Hudson Valley RenegadesTampa Bay Rays
July 1-3Vermont Lake MonstersOakland Athletics
July 4 & 6Hudson Valley RenegadesTampa Bay Rays
July 8-10Mahoning Valley ScrappersCleveland Indians
July 14 & 16Hudson Valley RenegadesTampa Bay Rays
July 21-23Tri-City ValleyCatsHouston Astros
July 29Hudson Valley RenegadesTampa Bay Rays
July 31-Aug. 2Auburn DoubledaysWashington Nationals
Aug. 6-8Lowell SpinnersBoston Red Sox
Aug. 17-19Brooklyn CyclonesNew York Mets
Aug. 23-25Aberdeen IronBirdsBaltimore Orioles
Aug. 29-31Connecticut TigersDetroit Tigers
Sept. 5Brooklyn CyclonesNew York Mets

Mariano Rivera Honored by Latino U College Access


The former New York Yankees legend and long-time closer Mariano Rivera, along with his wife Clara, were honored this month by Latino U College Access. Latino U is a non-profit organization that provides guidance and services to Latin Students who are the first in their respective families to attend college. This was Latino U’s third annual event and benefit and the third time they handed out their Community Partner Award.

Here is a quote from the event by Latino U College Access founder Shirley Acevedo Buontempo:

"We are honored to present Mr. and Mrs. Rivera with the Community Partner award for their support of our scholars. The Mariano Rivera Foundation is dedicated to working today to build a better tomorrow, and that aligns beautifully with Latino U's mission to increase college enrollment and completion rates among Latino youth to ensure the success of future generations."


Visit www.latinoucollege.org for more information on Latino U. The Mariano Rivera Foundation website can be found at www.marianoriverafoundation.org.

The End of #TooManyDamnHrs Part II


The New York Yankees put an end to the #TooManyDamnHrs "problem" after the 2012 season and ultimately finished both the 2013 and 2014 seasons on the outside looking in when it came to the postseason. The Bronx Bombers returned in 2015 with the resurgence of Mark Teixeira and the return of Alex Rodriguez and the team finished with the second highest scoring offense and finished fourth in home runs in the league under new hitting coach Jeff Pentland and assistant hitting coach Alan Cockrell. Pentland is gone and Cockrell is in charge and he's already discussing potentially ending #TooManyDamnHrs again... kind of.

Cockrell, like many of the frustrated fans from 2015, wants the offense to be more multi-dimensional. New York hit 212 home runs in 2015 with 47 of them coming with runners on base. According to the YES Network a whopping 20% of the team's RBI came on the home run in 2015 but the problem was the situational hitting in 2015, not the home run ball. How many times did we see the Yankees needing to come up with the big hit or a the two-out hit and fail? I don't have a number but I can say with confidence that it was #TooDamnMany and Cockrell wants to fix that.

Cockrell wants to put an emphasis on getting on base, moving the runner from second to third base, giving yourself up with a groundball out for an RBI or to move a runner, etc. Good ole manufacturing runs when necessary. Cockrell doesn't want to ditch hitting home runs all together, especially during the 81 games the Yankees play inside Yankee Stadium every season, but Cockrell doesn't want to sit back and rely on in game in and game out... and I agree with him.

Carlos Quentin is the Ultimate Brian Cashman Signing


Carlos Quentin sat out the entire 2015 season and contemplated retirement before the 2016 season but apparently Quentin has got the itch to return and will attempt a comeback in 2016.

Quentin bounced around last year after being traded away from the San Diego Padres in the final season of his three-year deal with the club and never made it back to the Major Leagues. San Diego traded Quentin, Cameron Maybin and Matt Wisler to the Atlanta Braves for Craig Kimbrel and Melvin Upton and was immediately designated for assignment by his new team. Quentin signed a minor league deal with the Seattle Mariners and lasted just five games in Triple-A before deciding to retire.

Quentin is likely looking for a minor league deal for the 2016 season hoping to rebuild his value and has been reportedly working out at first base. Quentin was an outfielder and DH during his playing career and may interest an American League team. That American League team may be the New York Yankees as the team has a GM in Brian Cashman who loves deals that are high reward and low risk on veteran players past their primes.

Quentin is the right-handed power the Yankees are needing and fills two needs, a right-handed first basemen that can serve as depth in Triple-A now that Kyle Roller is gone and a fourth or fifth type outfielder that can play right field and hit for power off the bench. As a player Quentin averaged a .252/.346/.485 triple slash with 32 home runs per season mainly with the Chicago White Sox and the San Diego Padres.


There’s no such thing as a bad minor league deal and if Quentin is willing to sign one to play first base in Scranton with the RailRiders then Cashman needs to offer him one. Today. 

Cashman Giving Frustrated Yankees Fans Everywhere Hope


Depending on where you’re living across the country either winter seems to be in full effect or you’re still wearing your summer shorts. Fortunately for me, now an Atlanta residence myself, I am experiencing the latter but one thing is for certain in the Brian Cashman household, the Hot Stove is turned all the way up. Cashman is said to be one of the most aggressive GM’s working the phones and taking calls on essentially anyone and everyone on his team and Cashman, for the first time in I can’t really say for sure how long, is giving at least some of those frustrated Yankees fans a little bit of hope before the 2016 season.

Cashman especially gave some Yankees fans some hope, even if it’s just a false hope at this point, when he stated that no Yankees pitcher had their job etched in stone for 2016. That means Masahiro Tanaka (although his name is as closed to etched in stone as possible), Michael Pineda, Nathan Eovaldi, Ivan Nova, Luis Severino and yes even CC Sabathia may actually have to earn their spot on the team next season rather than have their contract or veteran presence dictate the roster manipulation. That alone would be a sight for sore eyes. I am a firm believer in the fact that the best 25 men should leave Tampa, Florida at the end of Spring Training camp and head north to the Bronx to play host to the Houston Astros on Opening Day 2016 and it seems, at least he’s saying the right things anyway, that Brian Cashman finally agrees with that.

I am a fan of CC Sabathia and I love it when he does well. Not only for the team but for his own piece of mind and mindset. I cannot pretend to sit here and know what it feels like to once be great at what you do and then fall off for three consecutive seasons due to diminished velocity and command. I’ve cheered for CC with every “comeback” start he made either off the DL or after a bad start and I’ve openly supported him not only for his on the field performance but for the fact that he is the first out of the dugout to protect his teammates and sources and reports all over the web tell you what kind of clubhouse presence he is, he’s a Yankee in every facet of the term. The fact of the matter is the Yankees have six or seven starters on their roster and CC may not be one of the better five at this point in his career. That’s tough to take, hell it’s tough for me to say, but the truth is the truth unfortunately.

If CC can earn his way on, or any of the Yankees starters for that matter, then more power to them and I will welcome them to the team with open arms. It’s just personal to me to see this team, my team, simply wait out contracts in lieu of winning when before the team would eat or move those contracts by any means necessary in order to win. We’re the Greedy Pinstripes and sometimes that line is tough to walk, but we’ll walk it. Especially if the front office gets the mindset back that the best 25 players go north and the performance, not the contract, dictates the roster. 

Weekly AFL Check In: Tyler Wade


Tyler Wade begins the Tyler Trio that the New York Yankees sent down to Arizona to play in the Arizona Fall League for the Surprise Saguaros. Wade is a shortstop and could potentially be moved to second base in the future after Didi Gregorius emerged as a viable Major League option, although Wade is playing shortstop in the AFL, but third base seems to be out of the question at this time. Wade is not tearing up the AFL, although he is relatively young for the affiliate, so the future is one big unknown for Wade and the Yankees at this time.


Tyler Wade:

Games: 13
At Bats: 41
AVG: .220
OBP: .298
SLG: .268
OPS: .566
H:9
HR: 0
RBI: 6
BB: 5
K: 7

This Day in New York Yankees History 11/13: Friday the 13th 2015


On this day in 2008 the Yankees landed right fielder Nick Swisher and AAA right handed pitcher Kaneoka Teixeira from the Chicago White Sox for pitching prospects Jeffrey Marquez and Johnny Nunez, as well as infielder Wilson Betemit.


Also on this day in 1998 the first home run ever hit in Yankees Stadium, thrown by Red Sox pitcher Howard Ehmke and hit by none other than Babe Ruth, was sold at auction for $126,500. Mark Scala was the seller after finding the historic ball in his grandmother’s attic.


Also on this day in 1978 the Yankees signed free agent pitcher Luis Tiant to a two year deal worth $875,000.


Finally on this day in 1931 the Yankees owner Jacob Ruppert would buy the International League's team out in Newark, New Jersey. The Newark Bears funneled many good players to the Yankees big league club while under Ruppert's watchful eye.