Monday, May 19, 2014

Jay Z Associate Talked A Rod Out Of Retirement


Alex Rodriguez was said to be considering retirement rather than facing a lengthy steroid suspension and suspension appeal before an associate of Jay Z talked him out of it. Desiree Perez, a nightclub manager in New York and an associate of Jay Z, convinced A Rod to not only fight Major League Baseball but also take the Yankees to court. What could have been...

Reports say that A Rod wants to be a player agent, possibly for Roc Nation, and the speculation is that this is the reason he fought the suspension.

Banuelos May Be Headed To DL w/ Arm Fatigue

And another one down and another one down, another one bites the dust. One of the Yankees top pitching prospects Manny Banuelos may be headed to the disabled list with fatigue and soreness in his arm. The Yankees pitcher has not pitched for two seasons after Tommy John surgery so the fatigue is understandable, why the Yankees continue to baby him is not though.

Sabathia likely out until July

Things just keep getting worse.

According to the New York Post's Joel Sherman, Yankees Starting Pitcher CC Sabathia, despite the fact that he's just on the 15-Day DL, is now expected to be out until July. 

Sabathia, who's currently getting treatment on the injured knee he suffered in a recent loss to the Brewers, was said to be nowhere near returning this weekend, so really, this announcement isn't that surprising. 

As of now, the veteran lefty, as you all probably already know, has been replaced by minor-leaguer Chase Whitley in the rotation, although that could change with this announcement.

If it does, Cubs Right-Hander Jeff Samardzija is likely the guy the Bombers will go after, as he has just a 1.62 ERA in 9 starts so far this season. If they do decide to pursue him, nothing will be guaranteed though, as numerous teams, the Colorado Rockies included, appear to be wanting his services already. 

Interestingly, Samardzija is actually scheduled to start Wednesday's Yankees-Cubs game, so I guess we'll get an idea of how good he really is then. Obviously, right now he's just pitching in the NL Central, a division much weaker offensively than New York's AL East.

New York Yankees Leaders Through 43 Games


The New York Yankees played two games with the Pittsburgh Pirates yesterday and are enjoying a much needed day off before taking on the Chicago Cubs tomorrow. The Yankees have now played 43 games so here is a look at the leaders in the major categories. 

Games Played:

Three Yankees have played in 41 games, Jacoby Ellsbury, Alfonso Soriano, and Brett Gardner. 

At Bats:

Alfonso Soriano leads the team with 153 at bats.

Runs Scored:

Brett Gardner has scored 26 times. 

Hits:

Brett Gardner  leads the way with 44 hits 

Doubles:

Jacoby Ellsbury leads the team with 12 doubles

Home Runs:

I have received nine Teix messages from Mark Teixeira this season.

RBI's:

Yangervis Solarte leads the team with 24 RBI's.

AVG:

Yangervis Solarte leads the way for the Yankees regulars with a .313 average. No one is going to beat Chase Whitley's 1.000 average though, just a gut feeling. 






Wins:

Masahiro Tanaka is 6-0 and leads the staff in victories. 

Losses:

CC Sabathia, the ace of the staff, leads the way with four losses.

ERA:

Alfredo Aceves is someone I really went hard for the Yankees to bring up and has made me look bad with the worst Yankees ERA of any regular with a 6.35. The best ERA goes to Adam Warren with his 1.44 ERA. 

K's:

Masahrio Tanaka has a staggering 66 K's to start his major league career

Can't Predict Baseball: Buy Me Some Peanuts & Crunch 'n Munch?


On this day in 2004 the Yankees spokesman Jason Zillo announced that Cracker Jack, baseball's most famous snack for over 100 years, will not be sold at Yankee Stadium anymore. Instead the Yankees will sell Crunch 'n Munch, a change that the Yankee Stadium fans rejected, because it "tastes better." Long story short that didn't last long and you shouldn't mess with baseball history, especially Cracker Jacks.


Yankees Off Day Music Recommendation: Brett Gardner


One time last month on a Yankees off day we posted Jacoby Ellsbury's walk up music for this season and vowed to keep it going, and we haven't until today. We posted Ellsbury first because he was the Yankees leadoff hitter but with Carlos Beltran's injury Jacoby has been placed in the #3 hole and Brett Gardner is the new leadoff hitter for the team. Back to square one, here is Gardner's walk up music. Brantley Gilbert's country music song Hell on Wheels. Enjoy the day Yankees family.

Quick Hit: Yankees Finalists For Daniel Carbonell

The New York Yankees are said to be one of five finalists for Cuban defecting outfielder Daniel Carbonell according to Mr. Rosenthal's twitter feed, seen above. The Seattle Mariners are also said to be heavily interested in Carbonell which should be interesting to see the two teams go head to head for another free agent.

Carbonell has to sign before the new signing period for international players starts on July, 2nd and there is no speculation on what kind of contract he will command. If the Yankees are interested in the 23 year old and he has to sign before the Yankees big spending spree occurs then I would begin to speculate that the contract wouldn't be much. Remember that MLB changed the rules on Cuban defecting players making the 23 year old a true free agent this season, he has six professional seasons in Cuba, and still eligible for the cap next season.

Carbonell is a switch hitting speedy outfielder who hit .288/.378/.405 with two home runs, six steals, and ten walks last year in Cuba.

Charleston Riverdogs Game Recap 5/18

Andujar's Two Home Runs Key RiverDogs Win
Miguel Andujar drives in five runs on two blasts in Charleston's fourth straight road triumph

SAVANNAH, GA - Two home runs by Miguel Andujar powered the Charleston RiverDogs to a 10-3 victory against the Savannah Sand Gants on Sunday afternoon at Historic Grayson Stadium in South Atlantic League action. Andujar became the first RiverDog with a multi-home run game since last season when Reymond Nunez hit two shots in a win at Greenville on August 27, 2013.
Charleston has a 23-19 record and is now five games back of first-place Savannah, which is currently 28-14. The RiverDogs also hold a 2-0 lead in this four-game set and have won four consecutive road games dating back to a series win at Rome earlier in May.
Michael O'Neill gave the RiverDogs a 1-0 lead in the third inning. After a leadoff single and a one-out stolen base, O'Neill scored from second base on Mike Ford's double. Ford had also walked in the first, officially reaching a career-high and team-best 15-game on-base streak.
Luis Severino started for Charleston and tossed four long scoreless innings. Severino allowed three hits and left three runners in scoring position in a shutout start and a no-decision.
Andujar lifted the RiverDogs lead to 4-0 in the top of the fifth with his first home run. With two outs and two runners aboard, Chris Flexen's 1-2 pitch was hit over the left field wall by Andujar. Jose Rosario also added a run in the sixth, scoring on a force out that featured two throwing errors, which gave Charleston a 5-0 lead.
Angel Rincon had a perfect inning to open his RiverDogs debut before Savannah broke through in the sixth. Two runs scored on a bases-loaded single by Dominic Smith, cutting the gap to 5-2. Victor Cruzado followed with a single of his own that scored L.J. Mazzilli for a 5-3 deficit.
In the top of the seventh, Andujar's second blast to left field reinforced Charleston's lead. Ford was on base with a walk when Andujar homered off Dawrin Frias and boosted the RiverDogs to a 7-3 advantage. This was the first multi-home run game for Andujar, who also recorded a personal-best five runs batted in. Those two marks top all RiverDogs hitters in 2014.
More offense came for Charleston in the ninth inning to put the game further out of reach. Ford hit a leadoff double and was moved to third base on a single from Andujar. Ford scored on a wild pitch by Robert Coles for an 8-3 RiverDogs lead. Gosuke Katoh had a two-out single later in the frame that drove in two runs to push Charleston's lead to 10-3.
Philip Walby relieved Rincon with four strikeouts in two scoreless innings. Chris Smith pitched the ninth in a non-save situation, keeping Savannah off the scoreboard in the final inning.
Walby received credit for the win and is 2-1 for the RiverDogs. Flexen suffered his fourth consecutive loss to fall to 1-5 with Savannah. This was also the longest Charleston contest this season at three hours and 35 minutes.
COMING UP: Game three of this four-game series is on tap for 7:05pm on Monday. Charleston LHP Ian Clarkin (1-0, 1.15 ERA) will meet Savannah RHP Kevin McGowan (1-1, 2.25 ERA). The RiverDogs will follow this road stretch with an eight-game homestand at Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park. "Re-Opening Night" is scheduled for a May 27 doubleheader with the Greenville Drive while "Bark for Your Brew" on June 1 precedes the homestand finale against the Asheville Tourists. Tickets may be purchased at the Riley Park Box Office, (843) 577-DOGS (3647) or on-line at www.riverdogs.com. If fans cannot make it to the ballpark, they are encouraged to tune in to all the action this year both home and away worldwide on www.riverdogs.com and locally on 1250 WTMA, the new radio home for RiverDogs baseball.

Being posted with permission from the Charleston Riverdogs. The original post can be seen HERE

Trenton Thunder Game Recap 5/18

Thunder Drop Sixth Straight, 2-1 to Portland

PORTLAND, ME - The Trenton Thunder got 6.2 strong innings from Jeremy Bleich, but fell 2-1 to the Portland Sea Dogs for their sixth straight loss Sunday afternoon at Hadlock Field.
Before 7,368 fans on a clear day, the Thunder offense outhit the Sea Dogs 5-to-3 and Thunder pitching didn't allow a hit after a leadoff single in the third inning, but Portland scored an unearned run in the bottom of the 3rd for a 2-0 lead which was the difference in the ballgame.
Following a leadoff single, Mookie Betts advanced to second base with two outs against Bleich. Already leading 1-0 and cleanup hitter Stefan Welch at the plate, Betts stole third base for his league-leading 19th steal of the season. The throw down to third base went into left field and allowed Betts to score.
Trenton's lone run came in the fifth inning when Tyler Austin doubled and Rob Refsnyder followed with an RBI single but the Thunder wouldn't get a runner into scoring position over the final four innings.
The loss drops the Thunder to 4.5 games out of first place in the East Division after entering the series just 1.5 games behind the Sea Dogs for the division lead.
The Thunder return home following Sunday's game and begin a four-game series with the Harrisburg Senators Monday night at ARM & HAMMER Park. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. with a 6:45 pre-game show that can be found streaming on 91.3 FM, the TuneIn Radio app and on www.trentonthunder.com

Being posted with permission from the Trenton Thunder. The original post can be seen HERE

This Day In New York Yankees History 5/19


On this day in 1929 a 17 year old college sophomore and a 60 year old truck driver are trampled to death with another 75 fans injured when a violent storm causes the overcapacity bleacher crowd to run for cover at Yankee Stadium. The stampede happened in "Ruthville" and the game would be called with the Yankees ahead of the Red Sox 3-0 at the end of four and a half innings, an official game.


On this day in 1998 the Orioles Armando Benitez nails the Yankees Tino Martinez between the shoulder blades with a pitch and starts a brawl between the two clubs. This came after Benitez gave up a three run home run to Bernie Williams in that eight inning. Graeme Lloyd raced onto the field from the Yankees bullpen and punched Benitez in the face and Alan Mills bloodied Darryl Strawberry's face after he ended up in the Baltimore dugout going after Benitez.