September call ups are just around the corner in Major
League Baseball which means prospects, and for some teams reinforcements, are
on the way. The New York Yankees are one of those teams that can truly say that
reinforcements are on the way as there is a bunch of useful and talented
players down on the farm as we stand here a mere week and a half away from
September 1st. Let’s take a look at some of the potential September
call ups and see who will or can be most useful for the team as they push
towards the postseason.
Clint Frazier will be a day one call up for the Yankees if
his left oblique allows him to be healthy and on the field. Frazier was doing
well for the big league club before his injury and will definitely be in the
mix at all three outfield positions and at DH for the remainder of the 2017
season.
The Yankees love carrying three catchers or more in
September and Kyle Higashioka should be up on September 1 if his back and
shoulder allows. Higashioka has battled back injuries for much of this season
and went on the disabled list this past weekend with a shoulder injury. If
Higashioka is healthy he will be here, if not the Yankees may run with just two
catchers until he is healthy enough.
Miguel Andujar will likely be a day one call up as well
after a short, but impressive, stint with the Yankees at third base earlier
this season. Andujar won’t come up for his defense at third base, especially
with both Todd Frazier and Chase Headley healthy, but his bat could earn him a
few at-bats off the bench down the stretch.
Now is the part of the story where we talk about the
potential arms down on the Yankees farm and the part where Joe Girardi and his
binder turned iPad begin to salivate when thinking about the pitching matchups.
Domingo German could come up to take some of the pressure off Chad Green, Ben
Heller could be a guy to come into a game and get a strikeout or three when
necessary as he boasts a 13.3 K/9 ratio at Triple-A this season, and Jonathan
Holder could make his return to the Yankees bullpen after making the team out
of spring training camp.
Is there anyone the Yankees could make a 40 man roster spot
for? Nick Rumbelow missed the entire 2016 season with Tommy John surgery and
was optioned off the 40 man roster before getting healthy and dominating
Triple-A hitting in 2017. Rumbelow will be eligible for the Rule 5 Draft and/or
minor league free agency at the end of the season so if the team is keen on
keeping him they could add him sooner rather than later.
Frazier was hitting .243 at the time of his "injury" which coincidentally was when Hicks returned. He hit .256 in AAA. He can't play CF and displays balls that are routine to make them look like difficult plays. He may have this so called legendary bay speed but I'm not impressed yet.
ReplyDeleteFrazier was a center fielder when he was traded to the Yankees. He was moved to left to make room for Dustin Fowler. I never claimed Frazier would win a Gold Glove in center field but he can definitely man the position more than adequately.
DeleteAnd his bat will come around in my opinion. He's talented and the sample size you're basing stats on like average is extremely small. Bat speed, sure, I'll give you that one but the rest I feel like you're being a bit unfair about.
Cave is hitting .340 in AAA with 19 HR on season. He can play all 3 OF positions and scouts say he is MLB ready. Bring him and Andujar up to get them some time and a rest for starters to push for playoffs.
ReplyDeleteCave and Billy McKinney are far exceeding Frazier right now. The problem is neither of the two have 40 man roster spots where Frazier does. Now both need to be protected from the Rule 5 Draft next winter so it's conceivable that one or both could come up this September, I just can't bank on that just yet.
DeleteJake Cave, along with Miguel Andujar, are the ones who intrigue me the most right now. I'd like to see Chance Adams called up for no other reason than to give him exposure to the Major Leagues. He'll be part of the team in 2018 so it will be good to expose him now, even if he only gets limited bullpen action. I agree with both of the above comments.
ReplyDeleteI agree Scott. I'd love to see Chance called up even if he gets the Jorge Posada or Derek Jeter treatment where he never gets into a game. The problem, again as I alluded to above, is the 40 man roster spot. Chance doesn't have one and to the best of my knowledge doesn't need one next season.
DeleteThere's a bunch that do though which, without a few injuries, will likely keep Chance down in Triple-A this September.
Cave is no longer Rule 5 eligible. He was injured this past winter so he was not medically cleared to be picked. If the Yankees do not put him on their 40-man roster this off season he is a free agent to go anywhere and will be a complete loss to the organization after moving through their system and bringing it together with a very good AAA season.
ReplyDelete