So Much For Your Promises...

As Jordan Blackmon Montgomery prepares for his first Major League start later today, the Shattered Dreams Award must reside with reliever Tyler Webb.  Webb had been selected in the Rule 5 Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates last December.  As a lefty, he stood a decent chance of making the Pirates roster.   His Spring numbers for the Pirates were legit.  In 13 innings pitched over the course of 8 games, he did allow 13 hits and 4 runs (2.77 ERA), but he walked only one and struck out 11.  However, he lost the roster battle to former Yankee (and fellow left-hander) Wade LeBlanc and was returned to the Yankees organization. 

Back with the Yankees and not on the 40-man roster, Webb was assigned to AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

On Sunday, in the second game of a double header with the Buffalo Bisons, Webb replaced starter Joe Mantiply for the RailRiders with two outs and two on in the bottom of third inning.  He struck out Rowdy Tellez to end the threat.  So far, so good.  The next inning started nicely, with the RailRiders nursing a 3-0 lead, as Webb struck out the first batter.  Then, unfortunately, the wheels came off.  When Webb was pulled from the game after two outs in the bottom of the fourth, he had allowed six singles and a double.  The Rail Riders had scored 6 runs to take the lead.  Webb did strike out the last batter he faced (Rudy Tellez for a second time).  So, for one inning of work, recording all outs by strikeout, the 6 runs left Webb with an ERA of 54.00.  Oddly enough, he wasn’t the loser as the RailRiders tied the game in the top of the fifth.  His replacement, Tyler Jones, took the loss by allowing three Bison runs over the next couple of innings.  It must be a horrible feeling to stand on the cusp of making a Major League roster, only to see your dream die and then you subsequently get shellacked in the minor leagues. At 26 going on 27, Webb is not going to get too many more opportunities.  Performances like Sunday will not exactly open any doors, except for the one leading out of baseball.  Hopefully, he’ll be more effective next time around and will be ready the next time he gets the call to The Show.  Otherwise, it's nothing but shattered dreams, shattered dreams...

Credit:  Pete G. Wilcox, Times Leader

So far, the only quality starts thrown by Yankees pitchers are pitchers who stand tall on the mound (6’6” or greater).  We’re on a roll with two consecutive quality  “tall” starts.  Sunday belonged to CC Sabathia (6’6”) with 6 innings of work and two earned runs (three total) even if he didn’t get the decision, and Monday featured the near perfect game by Michael Pineda (6’7”).  He went 7 2/3 innings, allowing only one run.  Jordan Montgomery (6’6”) looks to continue the “basketball pitcher” streak today.  If Montgomery struggles, perhaps Dellin Betances (6’8”) steps in to assist.  I have to admit that I kinda feel like Ronald Torreyes trying to high five Aaron Judge with this pitching staff.  When Aroldis Chapman is brought in behind these guys, it must seem like Tyrion Lannister following Jamie Lannister.  Or me chasing after Aroldis.

I am all for whatever edge the “downward angle” brings for Montgomery.  This is an exciting start and it is one that I am hopeful is very successful.  I don’t think I’ve been this excited about a Yankee-born pitcher since Andy Pettitte. 

According to Forbes Magazine, the New York Yankees are the most valuable MLB franchise, worth an estimated $3.7 billion.  The Los Angeles Dodgers are second, trailing the Yankees by nearly a billion dollars ($2.75 billion).  The others in the “billion dollars behind” category are the Boston Red Sox ($2.7 billion), Chicago Cubs ($2.675 billion), and the San Francisco Giants ($2.65 billion).  I have no problem thinking of a billion reasons why the Yankees are better than the rest of Baseball.  Now the proof is in the pudding.  But as much as I love the Yankees, I would seriously have to consider selling the team if my name was Steinbrenner.  

Happy Retirement to former Yankees outfielder Brennan Boesch.  Boesch was a decent platoon outfielder for a few seasons with the Detroit Tigers at the start of his career.  He played in 23 games with the Yankees during the 2013 season until his release in July of that year.  During his brief Yankees career, he batted .275 (14-for-51) with 3 HR's and 8 RBI's.  After his release by the Yankees, he subsequently played for the Los Angeles Angels and Cincinnati Reds.  Last year, he was in the Boston Red Sox organization at the AAA Level, but missed the majority of the season with a broken wrist.  He was unable to get a spring invite from a Major League team this year.  Boesch is a player I liked and hoped would succeed but it wasn't meant to be.  I wish him the very best in his post-playing career.  

Credit:  David Richard, USA TODAY Sports

Happy Wednesday!  Let’s get a win today!

Brennan Boesch Has Been Released

Earlier we reported that Brent Lillibridge has been called up to the majors to replace Derek Jeter who is being placed on the 15 day DL. Jeter being DL'd was the 25 man roster move but the 40 man roster move remained unannounced until now. In what I consider to be a shocking, for lack of a better word, turn of events the Yankees have released Brennan Boesch to clear room for Lillibridge. Corban Joseph could have been transferred to the 60 day DL to make room but the Yankees decided to go with the Boesch release. Boesch has been fighting a nagging shoulder injury and has been on the AAA disabled list for what seems like forever now and will now find himself without a job temporarily. There is always the possibility of Boesch signing another minor league deal and getting healthy but we will just have to wait and see what Brennan Boesch  decides to do.

New York Yankees Injury Updates 7/17

We already heard that Alex Rodriguez is set to join the Yankees on Monday if all goes well this week in Scranton so let's hear about the guys that we haven't heard about 1,000,000 times.

Derek Jeter will be evaluated Friday before the game with the Boston Red Sox and the team will make the decision then whether he will play, continue to rest, be integrated slowly as a bench player, or head to the disabled list. Hopefully it's not the later but at this point this season I would not be surprised by anything.

Curtis Granderson is taking batting practice in the underground batting cage at the Yankees minor league complex in Tampa. There is no timetable as to when he will start a rehab assignment or think about joining the Yankees but progress is progress.

David Phelps is throwing bullpen sessions and working out at the Yankees minor league complex. David said everything feels fine and is only expecting to miss one start for the Yankees with this forearm tightness.

The Yankees shut down Francisco Cervelli for two weeks after they discovered a stress reaction in his right elbow and he apparently is still shut down. We have not heard anything out of Cervelli on his Facebook fan page, his Twitter account, or God himself Brian Cashman but I figured that no news is not always good news when it comes to injury updates.

Jayson Nix is also down in the minor league complex rehabbing his hamstring injury that has sidelined him for nearly a month. No word yet on when a rehab assignment could start but he does not seem to be anywhere close to that kind of discussion yet.

Corban Joseph was told that he will miss the remainder of the 2013 season with a shoulder surgery. That's a shame since he is on the 40 man roster but he seems like the obvious transfer to the 60 day DL to make room for Alex Rodriguez on the 40 man roster.

Vidal Nuno and Brennan Boesch are both on the AAA disabled list with a groin injury and a shoulder injury respectably and neither are anywhere close to being on the call up radar. Neither are working out or doing any kind of rehab so the Yankees should not count on them any time soon, if at all this season.

Mark Montgomery has made two rehab appearances for the Gulf Coast Yankees while making a comeback from a throwing shoulder injury. His MRI has come back clean and he is back in live game action so I expect him back with the Railriders soon.

Ronnier Mustelier is also playing in rehab games for the Gulf Coast Yankees after spending a month or more on the AAA disabled list. He has been playing all over the field, something that the Yankees need, and seems to be the closest of any of our rehabbing guys not named Alex Rodriguez to be in line for a promotion to the Yankees.

What If The Yankees Were Sellers?

Being posted as a part of Syndicated Sunday from Pinstripe Bible/Alley

The New York Yankees are in a strange situation at the moment. They're 42-38, which isn't bad at all. They're 5.5 games back of first, which isn't awful since it's just the end of June (and would put them either in the lead or under two games back in a pair of other divisions). The pitching hasn't been awful all the time, but not all that great either outside of Hiroko Kuroda and a few guys in the bullpen.

Everyone assumes, and usually rightfully so, that the Yankees will try to acquire talent before the trade deadline to bolster the roster for the inevitable playoff push.

Why?

Yes, the Yanks are getting a lot of people off the disabled list eventually (more on that in a minute). Yes, they've got more money than all of sports and Exxon combined. Yes, they're still competitive in a hotly contested division that is easily the best in MLB.

So what?

At this point, what will the trio of Curtis Granderson, Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeterreally be able to provide that will get the Yankees over the hump and into first?

A-Rod was worth 2.3 bWAR over 122 games last year (all references to WAR will be to Baseball Reference's version). Let's say he comes back in a month at the end of July and plays for ~55 some games, providing oh... 1.5 wins to be on the generous side. In fact, I'll kick in another fraction because the people that have played 3B for the NYY this year have accumulated negative numbers, so lets say 1.8.

El Capitan was worth 2.2 over an almost full season. Let's call his return as three weeks away, so we'll go with 60 games for one win and another fraction because the current options suck. 1.4 for arguments sake.

Grandy provided 3 WAR on a full season, but is probably not coming back until after the All-Star break as well. Three weeks it is, so that'll be um... 1.3 but no "bonus" because Vernon Wells has actually provided a positive WAR this year. That's 4.5 wins better, which is certainly nice, but not enough to mean anything, assuming current trends stay true.

You can't predict baseball, Suzyn, so perhaps one of those folks returns to their previous form (or perhaps the 39 and 38 year old infielders don't produce like they did a decade ago). Perhaps the Red Sox stumble back to earth, and none of the other teams in the AL East (all at .500 or more) ascend the ladder (or they just keep playing well but maybe one of the other teams plays well, too). But let's just say current trends hold, which is certainly another option, and they do improve a bit from the end of July onward.

It still wouldn't be enough to get a wild card berth.

Let's say the Yankees take a different tack, and try to sell off some pieces to acquire some prospects and depth. What's sellable?

Going off the 40-man roster, there's a few pieces big and small that might entice someone to send over someone with a bit of potential:

Brennan Boesch - Had a 2.5 WAR season just a couple years ago, had a 121 OPS+ this year in a small sample size and makes next to nothing - he could easily be a piece in a trade.

Joba Chamberlain - Lord, please take this man from our team. He strikes people out. He also pitches with little movement and gets blasted when those strikeouts don't happen - 25 hits (4 HRs) and 9 walks in just 19 innings this year.We'll take a used wad of chew.

Brett Gardner - This pains me, because we all like GGBG. However, his game is based on speed, and speed is usually the first thing to go. The man turns 30 in a couple months and will probably start to decline soon. If the Yankees really want to blow stuff up, Gardner would get quite a bit back - one of the best defensive outfielders in the game and some pop at the plate? He's got one more arbitration year left, so teams won't be too shy about looking at him, and he could easily get a top 5 prospect out of a lot of teams. Perhaps Carlos Martinez from St. Louis or Michael Choice from Oakland.

Curtis Granderson - Pop in his bat, strikeouts everywhere. While they might not get Zack Wheeler for him, a healthy Granderson at the trade deadline could certainly haul in someone who has some baseball ability. Maybe the Diamonbacks want to add some pop to an outfield without a lot of it and would give up Matt Davidson if the Yanks threw in someone else?

Phil Hughes - Get the guy out of Yankees Stadium and he's good. Get him into a pitcher's park and he'll be a decent acquisition. Any of the NL West teams that might need another arm should look into acquiring Hughes.

Hiroki Kuroda - Ace for sale! Ace for sale! Who wants a guy with a 149 ERA+? Who wants a guy who doesn't get hurt and has a sub-3 ERA? Let's talk turkey.

Boone Logan - Boone's good. Having a strong bullpen is nice. Having a good bullpen is fairly easy to replicate. Some teams have been willing to overpay for bullpen arms. If someone's willing to give up something hot in let's say a trade for Boesch and Boone, then fare thee well, LOOGY.

David Robertson - Remember what I just said about Logan? Same thing applies. A good bullpen is pretty easy to get. People overpay. Mike Napoli was traded for Frank Francisco. If there's any person out here who wouldn't take Napoli over the drek masquerading as catchers on the team now, raise your hand so you make better targets to have shit thrown at you.

Ichiro Suzuki - More of a fill-in at this point given his salary and mere adequacy with a bat at this point in his career, he's still a player that a lot of teams wouldn't mind having on their roster.

Basically, should Brian Cashman et al decide to go in a direction they haven't been in before, there's a lot of movable parts on this ship. Let's go hog wild and say they trade all nine of the people I just listed - can you imagine what our suddenly below-average minor league system might look like? Can you imagine the organizational depth we might have without having to rely on people like Ben Francisco, Reid Brignac and Alberto Gonzalez? They're probably stuck with the terrible contracts, but that's still over 20 million coming off the books in 2014 - allowing the sudden penny-pinchers to come in under budget while positioning the club for a resurgence for the rest of the decade.

Flurry Of Minor League Roster Moves Announced

The Yankees announced a flurry of roster moves last night that I apparently missed so I will share them with you now.

Corey Patterson has signed a minor league deal with the Yankees and has been assigned to AAA Scranton Wilkes Barre Railriders. I cannot see him as anything other than minor league depth to replace the promotion of Zoilo Almonte and the injuries to Brennan Boesch and Melky Mesa.

Zach Nuding and Fred Lewis, both right handed pitchers from the Trenton Thunder, have been promoted to Scranton to play for the Railriders. Zach was brought up to make a spot start for Ivan Nova after he was scratched, presumably to make a start for the big league Yankees.

Caleb Cotham and Jose Ramirez, both right handed pitchers from the Scranton team, have been sent down to the AA Trenton Thunder. Both were presumed to be there temporarily, especially Ramirez, and are now sent back down to AA. I do not expect Jose to be down there much longer but the log jam is growing more and more in Scranton so who knows.

Infielder Josh Bell has been placed on the disabled list retroactive to June 19th. No word just yet on what is wrong with him.

Brennan Boesch Added To AAA DL

Brennan Boesch left the game for the AAA Scranton Wilkes-Barre Railriders way back on June 5th with some discomfort in his shoulder. Boesch says he had been playing with it for some time and headed to get an MRI by the team. I have not read anywhere what the MRI itself said but it could not be good news as Boesch, along with teammate Vidal Nuno, has been added to the AAA disabled list. Boesch described it as just tightness and just a nuisance and not a problem but the issue kept getting worse and he finally spoke up to team officials and is now on the DL. With him and Nuno down the Yankees took a severe hit in the 25 man roster depth department.

Brennan Boesch Sent Down To AAA

Joe Girardi has confirmed that it is indeed Brennan Boesch that has been sent down to make room for Andy Pettitte. Andy is officially activated off the DL and Brennan has been transferred to Scranton with the Railriders. Lyle Overbay is our new 4th outfielder. 

Lyle Overbay Starts In Right Field Tonight

Does this spell the end of Brennan Boesch? The Yankees have a roster decision to make in order to activate Andy Pettitte off the DL tonight and while many of us thought that Lyle Overbay may get the axe to make room for Andy that may not be the case. Lyle is supposed to start in right field which shows me that an outfielder is going to make room for Andy. Obviously that outfielder is not going to be Ichiro Suzuki, Brett Gardner, or Vernon Wells so it must be Brennan Boesch right? Stay tuned..

Teixeira and Youkilis Desperately Needed

Mark Teixeira and Kevin Youkilis began their rehab assigment in Double A Trenton this morning and it could not come at a better time for the Yankees. When the Yankees were playing great baseball behind great pitching and newcomers like Vernon Wells, Travis Hafner, and Lyle Overbay getting the job done, many Yankees fans were saying how they did not want veterans like Mark Texiera, Kevin Youkilis, Curtis Granderson and Alex Rodriguez to come back.  That was an insane notion then and it is proving true right now.

The Yankees are now 6-7 in their last 13 games and have scored four or fewer runs in nine of those 13 games, including less than two runs in five of those games. The Yankees have averaged a pitiful 3.7 runs per game in May. You can only ask your starters to pitch great under those circumstances for so long and expect your bullpen to hold every one run lead you give them. Obviously, over the last two games David Robertson and Mariano Rivera each blew a game, but those losses were on the offense for only scoring a combined two runs in those games.

The middle of the order for the Yankees struggling has been the main reason for their terrible offensive output in May. Robinson Cano is only hitting .247/.311/.464/.775 in May and the Yankees need him to carry them like he did in April. Cano is hitting .328/.403/.672/1.075 with 11 home runs in Yankee wins and .235/.261/.341/.603 with two home runs in Yankee losses. That tells you all you need to know. Cano has not gotten much support in May either, as Vernon Wells (.229/.260/.375/.635 in May) and Travis Hafner (.190/.309/.328/.636 in May) have cooled off considerably. When you combine those players not playing well with the black holes the Yankees have at catcher, shortstop and right field, you are not going to score many runs.

It  is obvious that Teixeira and Youkilis are needed. However, as Mike Axisa of River Ave Blues points out, they are coming back at postions where the Yankees have gotten good production. Lyle Overbay and David Adams have held up very well at first and third base. Texiera and Youkilis will be upgrades over them, but their real issues are at shortstop, catcher, and the outfield.

However, they will not be getting reinforcements at those positions anytime soon. Curtis Granderson will be inactive for at least four weeks and will probably take about two more weeks to rehab. Derek Jeter is nowhere near returning and Francisco Cervelli just got the pins out of his hand and has not started to rehab yet. The Yankees made their own bed at these positions in the offseason, as they willing let Russell Martin and Nick Swisher go and did not adequately replace them. Also, they did nothing to upgrade at utility infielder when they knew Jeter was an injury question mark.

The Yankees have a tough roster conundrum with Teixeira and Youkilis coming back. The Yankees are short on outfielders and it will be hard to carry Overbay and Hafner, since between them both they can only play one position. Ivan Nova will probably be the pitcher out of the bullpen sent to Triple A, but who goes with him is the question. The options are to send Brennan Boesch or Adams to Triple A or DFA Overbay. Sending Adams down would be the easy call, since you can always bring him back up, but he would be the best option as a DH against righties at the moment. Boesch is easily the worst player out of the three, but if you send him down than Jayson Nix is your fourth outfielder. You can probably get by like that for a little while, but long term having Nix as your fourth outfielder will not work. That is why Overbay may not be on this team for much longer.

This is not meant to discredit Overbay at all, as he has filled in better than anybody could have hoped for, but people need to pump the brakes on him a little bit. He is only hitting .251/.295/.468/.763, which is not great for a first baseman. Teixeira at his worst does much better than that. Overbay has been a great clutch player for the Yankees this season, but you cannot rely on that to continue. Good “clutch” hitting is more statistical randomness than anything sustainable because it is not really a skill.

For people who say Teixeira isn’t clutch he hit .390/.466/.932/1.398 in late and close games last year, .289/.360./.578/938 in high leverage situations and .285/.370/.646/1.016 in innings 7-9, so that is just a narrative and a fallacy that he doesn’t get any big hits. Unfortunately, if Teixeira starts out slow he will hear about it, but that is just silliness, as Overbay is nowhere near the player Teixeira is and there is a reason he was released by Boston three days before the end of spring training. Once Teixeira proves he is healthy there is not really room for Overbay on the team anymore. Obviously, that is not fair to him, but unfortunately it’s the business and the reality of the situation.  Overbay would be a great option to pinch hit late in games for the catcher, shortstop or Ichiro, but again can you really afford to have Nix as your fourth outfielder for six weeks?

I am really excited to get Teixeira and Youkilis back. It has been frustrating watching bad hitters take bad at bats lately. Unfortunately, like I said before you will still have three terrible hitters batting seventh, eighth and ninth but at least the middle of the order will be more intimidating.  People telling themselves that the Yankees are better off without the veterans hopefullt have seen over the last few weeks why they are dead wrong. What do you guys think should happen when Teixeira and Youkilis come back? What would your roster moves be?

Brennan Boesch To Be Called Up For Granderson

Brennan Boesch was seen packing his bags last night in Scranton while playing for the Yankees AAA roster the Railriders and seems like he will be the one to replace the injured Curtis Granderson. Boesch's final option was used up and he is already on the 40 man roster so he seems like the obvious one to come up to the majors and go down all season long when necessary on that option. Ichiro Suzuki has to have a little relief now because he was on the verge of becoming a fourth outfielder and is now an every day guy again.

Boesch Down. Granderson Returning?

What do you know? Daniel was right.

This morning Burch pointed out that Brennan Boesch, not Ben Francisco, could get demoted when Curtis Granderson returns. The reason, along with Boesch being another unneeded left-handed bat, was that Brennan also has an option remaining.

Sure enough, Boesch was sent down. For the time being it was for an extra pitcher, but it's likely that after the double-header today Granderson will be ready to return.

Curtis has been doing well in his rehab appearances at AAA Scranton, as he's batting .412 with a home run.

The outfield may not need any help right now, but it will be nice having Grandy's bat back in the lineup.

Ben Francisco May Be Safe After All, For Now

I was thinking about what the Yankees are going to do when the plethora of players on the disabled list start getting healthy and return to the Bronx. Some are obvious as Chris Nelson is probably gone when Kevin Youkilis comes back, some are not so obvious like what we will do with the rotation when Michael Pineda comes back, and some are not as obvious as I once thought they were. Originally I thought that when Curtis Granderson came back we would see the end of Ben Francisco but on second thought that may not exactly be the case. The Yankees outfield is very left handed hitting heavy so it makes sense to keep Ben Francisco on the bench over left hander Brennan Boesch. The difference between Francisco and Boesch, besides the obvious sides of the plate that they both hit from, is that Brennan has a minor league option remaining that Francisco does not. This would make the Yankees more flexible with two right handed outfielder and three left handed outfielders and all of them can play multiple outfield positions, which always helps. As much as I hate to see Ben Francisco continue to stay on this team it makes too much sense to get rid of him for nothing when we can stash Brennan in the minors for the time being.

These Yankees Are From The Island Of Misfit Toys

Being Posted From Pinstripe Bible As A Part Of Syndicated Sunday

Sometimes you see a lineup like the Yankees last night and just wonder how they are doing it. After last night they are one game back for the best record in the American League. We’re barely past a month into the season, but things looked pretty bleak not too long ago. I tried to answer this question last week in a more traditional article, but then it hit me a few days ago: This team might be the physical manifestation of the Island of Misfit Toys.

If you don’t know what I’m talking about then I’m sorry you’ve been neglected from one of the true social gems television has ever provided. Hear me out, though, because the more I thought about it, the more sense it made. Either that or it’s the nasal decongestant I’ve been using talking, but I haven’t been having any visual hallucinations yet. I take that as a green light.

In TV land, our heroes arrive at the island and are greeted by one of the most important misfit toys. He looks normal, but upon further investigation we learn that he’s been mislabeled. He’s, in fact, a Charlie-in-the-Box. In reality, I believe this to be none other than Vernon Wells. Who has been the most important misfit to date for the Yankees.He’s second on the team in total WAR (1.0) through 126 plate appearances. With the Toronto Blue Jays, he was an albatross of a contract producing .1 WAR in 2009 before rebounding in 2010. On the Angels he was a fourth outfielder with a bloated contract that couldn’t deliver even .5 WAR. With the Yankees he’s Charlie-in-the-Box. He’s one of King Moonracer’s Sargent-at-Arms and he’ll even fill in at third base in a pinch. I don’t know why Charlie couldn’t just call himself Jack, and I don’t know why Vernon fell off such a steep cliff after age 27.

Our next member from the island is Travis Hafner. He’s generated .8 WAR so far in only 98 plate appearances, and that’s all offensively since his legs might fall off if he ever wears a mitt again. This clearly makes Hafner the incarnation of the Bird-that-Swims.Yes, Hafner might not be able to move very well, but his stick still talks. With a limited bench, it’s not easy to find spots for him to pinch hit, but thankfully there’s the DH spot usually available for him to swim in. What’s the big deal anyway? Penguins are birds, and have you ever seen those guys swim? They’re real fast.

Next up is Francisco Cervelli and his .6 WAR produced to date in just 61 plate appearances. Currently back at the workshop for repairs, Cervelli brings a certain type of spunk with a taste of vinegar to his play. He must be the Water-Pistol-that-Shoots-Jelly.I don’t know how he does it. He can’t really do anything very well. He can’t throw, catch, or hit for power. He usually strikes out at almost twice the rate he walks. Heck, even the Yankees didn’t want him last year. Yet there he is, giving you nothing but jam to butter your toast with.

Add in Chris Stewart with his .4 WAR, and you’ve got a back stop that has produced at the same rate as Charlie-in-the-Box! Stewart is more of the traditional back stop, so he must be the Train-with-Square-Wheels. This WAR metric might need a lot of work, but it suggests the combined efforts behind the plate have been only usurped by our King Moonracer.

As lord over the island, King Moonracer searches the earth every night looking for abandoned and unloved toys. While that might sound like a title more fitting for Brian Cashman, I’m going with Robinson Cano and his team leading 1.3 WAR. We need a leader on the field, and he's our King Moonracer. He’s a good King to give a home to all of these misfit ballplayers and the guy is a lion that can fly. Seriously, that’s pretty cool. No wonder he’s going to get paid like a king. Cashman suffered a broken leg while skydiving.That doesn’t sound like a King Moonracer to me. That’s a pretty awesome name too: Moonracer. King Moonracer and the Misfits would be a decent band name. Don’t steal that it’s mine!

With my thesis thoroughly proven by this point, here’s the quick list of the rest of the misfits. May all live in happiness, and with someone who loves them forever.

King Moonracer	Robinson Cano, 1.3 WAR
Charlie in the Box	Vernon Wells, 1.0 WAR
Bird that Swims	Travis Hafner, .8 WAR
Water Pistol Shoots Jelly	Francisco Cervelli, .6 WAR
Train with Square Wheels	Chris Stewart, .4 WAR

Spotted Elephant

Lyle Overbay, .3 WAR

The current prototype of a defensive first baseman (which is usually an offensive description for that position), Overbay has still been able to reach a positive WAR to this point. Not bad for someone released just a few days before the start of the season. He’s our Spotted Elephant for sure.

Cowboy Rides an Ostrich

Brennan Boesch, (.5) WAR

You know, Ostriches are really fast as they can run up to 40 MPH. That’s as fast as the fastest horses, but I’m not sure how you get a cowboy on one. Likewise, Boesch has shown flashes of power in his short career, but with only 40 plate appearances so far, Girardi is having trouble finding opportunities for him.

Sinking Boat

Kevin Youkilis, (.1) WAR

It looked so promising at the very beginning, but his bad back as usual has been sinking his playing time and career.

Plane that Can’t Fly

Ben Francisco, (.3) WAR

No more Francisco bashing here. He hasn’t produced a positive WAR since 2010, and he hasn’t produced over 1 WAR since 2008. There is no discernible split to take advantage of in a platoon. This plane just can’t fly.

Doll with Psychological Disorder

Cody Eppley, 0 WAR

While this doll’s misfit status was not explained in the show, it was apparently revealed years later on an NPR broadcast that the doll was abandoned and suffered from depression from being unloved. Nobody loved him, so he was DFA’d.

Scooter with Unexplained Flaw

Shawn Kelley, (.1) WAR

He’s the only pitcher with a negative WAR. Yet he has a 32.7% K rate, a 7.3% BB rate, and an xFIP of 2.81. What gives? Well four homers has led to a 64.5% strand rate, but maybe we just haven’t learned what his flaw is yet. You’re the Scooter, Kelley.

Behind the music: The 2013 Yankees walk-up songs

When the baseball season starts, fans usually go to the ball park in order to take in nine innings of glorious baseball. As much as I enjoy going to the ball park to hear the crack of the bat, the fans cheering loudly and the food, I usually love going to the ball park in order to listen to the walk-up music of the Yankees. Music is one of my biggest passions, and to me the Yankees have done more than play great baseball over the years; they've also introduced me to new music and have filled up my iTunes with songs that I listen to on a consistent basis. Since Opening Day for the Yankees is tomorrow, I went on the Yankees website, found the list to some of the Yankees walk-up songs and took a listen to them, introducing myself to the different types of music that our players listen to.

1. Brennan Boesch: Brennan Boesch didn't waste any time in choosing his songs for the 2013 season as he went and chose two songs for his walk-up music. The first song was "Sail" by Awolnation. When I first took  a listen to the song, I found it intimidating in a good way. It's not as intimidating as Evan Longoria's walk-up song (which is arguably one of the best walk-up songs in the Major Leagues), but it makes you think that something big is coming. The second song that Boesch chose was "We'll Be Fine" by Drake. This is one of those songs that has you nodding your head while Boesch comes to the plate. Boesch hasn't played a real game for the Yankees yet, but if I must applaud him on one thing, it's his good taste in music.

2. Brett Gardner: I have to admit that before I started watching Gardner play baseball, I did not listen to country music; at all. But in 2011, Gardner had "Dirt Road Anthem" by Jason Aldean as one of his walk-up songs and ever since then, half my iTunes is consumed with country music. This year, Gardner went with "Hell On Wheels" by Brantely Gilbert which is another great country song. Now, let's hope that Gardner's 2013 season is as dynamite as his walk-up song choice.

3. Chris Stewart: Chris Stewart is close to having one of the best walk-up songs on the Yankees if he only played the first twenty seconds of the song over the P.A. Stewart's song choice is "Forsaken" by Skillet and if there's one thing I must say, is that the guitar riffs were amazing. I wouldn't normally listen to music like this, but after today now I would. Now, all he has to do is play on a consistent basis so I could heart this song over and over at the ball park. I wouldn't mind paying money for that.

4. Curtis Granderson: We all remember the famous video where Curtis Granderson was picking his at-bat music and then almost cried when he chose "Friday." Well, maybe all those hours of going through his laptop did the Grandy Man some good. His walk-up song (when he comes back) is none other than "Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Can See (Instrumental)" by Busta Rhymes. Not too fond of the lyrics, but I do love the beat, so a smart move by Granderson in just using the instrumental.

5. David Robertson: We all know that David Robertson is an Alabama boy. He was born in Tuscaloosa and he is constantly helping his hometown with High Socks For Hope. So it doesn't surprise me that his walk-up song is the awesome "Sweet Home Alabama" by Lynyrd Skynyrd. It's actually a good thing I know about this now because I made a deadly mistake in asking my Twitter followers last season what D-Rob's walk-up song was. Let's just say they weren't too happy with me during the game when they found out I seriously didn't know. Well, I know now and it's an awesome song. I'm looking forward to the 8th inning where I could sit back and listen to the tune that introduces us to the Yankees favorite set-up man.

6. Derek Jeter: The Captain won't be there on Opening Day for us to hear his walk-up music but he made sure that he chose a song. I'm not too fond of rap music but, "Otis" by Jay-Z and Kanye West was a decent choice by Jeter. It would be nice to hear it at Yankee Stadium when The Captain returns, but in the meantime I guess the closest we can hear this song is on Youtube (and on iTunes if you have it already).

7. Hiroki Kuroda: Hiroki Kuroda has some great taste in music! Kuroda's walk-up music is "The Whip" by Locksley and when I heard it for the first time, I heard some influence of 'The Beatles' in the chorus of the song. It's nice that Kuroda was able to take us back to the good music--without actually taking us all the way back to the 1960's.

8. Ivan Nova: Ah, is there nothing better than listening to some awesome Spanish music at Yankee Stadium? That's what Ivan Nova introduced to the fans when he made his walk-up choice "Marta La Reina" by Antony Santos. This is one of those songs where you can't help but get up from your seat and start dancing. According to the Yankees website, I don't think it's available for purchase but they have the song on Youtube where you can hear it over and over and over. It's actually a great song to hear on a Sunday morning (with your headphones on).

9. Mariano Rivera: Mariano Rivera's song choice is as fitting as his role on the Yankees. When the Yankees have a lead and they go to the 9th inning, Mariano Rivera comes in the game and puts it to bed, dubbing him "The Sandman." Rivera's song choice is the best song choice by far on the Yankees with "Enter Sandman" by Metallica. The guitar riffs in the song are simply amazing and when Yankees fans hear it, they can't help but get excited, knowing that the greatest closer of all time is coming in to make the opposing team's offense go to sleep. Yankees fans better soak in all of "Enter Sandman" that they can this season, since Rivera plans on retiring at the end of the season. I know I'll soak up every moment.

10. Mark Teixeira: If there's anyone that we can count on to take us back to when rap music was at it's best, it's Mark Teixeira. His song choice "It's Tricky" by Run D.M.C  is a great way to pay a homage to rap at it's finest. Of course, we expect nothing less of Teixeira since he has been famously known of using classics from the Twisted Sisters in the past. But Teixeira didn't stop there. His second song choice was "This Town" by O.A.R. which is one of my favorite songs. Teixeira hit a home run with his song choices and I can't wait until he gets back on the field so we can hear it blaring from the P.A speakers.

11. Phil Hughes: Phil Hughes's walk-up song is pretty vague. There's no artist next to his song choice "Tomorrowland" so I did a search on Youtube and it sounds more like Hughes is ready for summer in a club than ready to play baseball. If this is his song, I'm not too fond of the techno-beat, but I can see it getting fans excited.

12. Robinson Cano: Robinson Cano simply outdid everyone when it came to choosing songs. He didn't choose two songs, he went the extra mile and chose three! His first song was "El Que No Aguante La Presion" by Secreto El Biberon which is a great song choice. It reminds me of summer like Hughes's song choice, but Cano's song reminds me more of running through fire hydrants that have water coming out of them than the club. Cano's second song choice was "Me Kitee" by Black Point. Again, it reminded me of  summer. Cano's last song was "Te Prendo" by Chimbala. As far as Spanish songs go, all three of Cano's song choices hit it out of the ball park. Simply great. If his goal was to get Yankees fans on their feet while he comes to bat, he succeeded.

13. Vernon Wells: I'm not a fan of rap music, but if you choose a song with Dr. Dre and Eminem, then you are in my good graces for the entire season. And that's exactly what Vernon Wells did by choosing "Forgot About Dre" by Dr. Dre & Eminem. The beat is fantastic and this was when rap was still at it is greatest. It's great that someone chose a throwback song, and now I will await his arrival to the plate just to hear this awesome song.

The Yankees choosing their own walk-up music is a way for them to connect to their fans. It shows fans what kind of music their idols like and in their own way, they introduce you to music you may have never heard of before. The Yankees are always winners in the fans eyes, but they've become more than. They're role models with impeccable taste in music. So the next time you go to the ball park, open your ears when your favorite Yankee goes to the plate. You just might have a new favorite song that you'll want as soon as you get home.

Some notes to end the Spring: Hafner, Eppley, Warren, Boesch, Rodriguez, Gardner

Spring Training officially came to a close today after an exciting day with the Yankees playing (and winning) against Army. Here were some final notes from the Spring Training front on who got the last three roster spots for the Yankees.

1. Brennan Boesch made the team as the player on the bench but Boesch is the only player who doesn't really have a specific role. Girardi could DH him, start him in the outfield, pinch hit him. The possibilities for the Yankees and Boesch are endless.

2. Cody Eppley and Adam Warren both got the final two spots on the roster. The Yankees gave Eppley the benefit of the doubt after a bad Spring, but he looked sharp in his final outing, getting all four hitters he faced.

3. Travis Hafner was scratched from the lineup today due to some stiffness but it's nothing to worry about. The Yankees simply said Hafner didn't have enough time to loosen up. He should be fine for Monday's opener.

4. Alex Rodriguez is expected to be with the team on Monday for the Opening Day festivities.  Yankees however aren't sure if he'll address the media or not.

5. An interesting fact that I got from YES today. The only player that had actually faced Army (However, not the current 2013 team) was Brett Gardner. In 2005 he was apart of the NCAA with the College of Charleston and one of their opponents was Army.

6. One final note: the Yankees start the home opener on Monday, but there are only two players that are expected to start Opening Day that played last season: Brett Gardner and Robinson Cano. So we lost 7 of the guys to either the DL or to other teams.

Enjoy your night everyone and I will see you back here Monday morning where I will be blogging (and tweeting) about the home opener with the Yankees against the Red Sox!