Monday, October 6, 2014

Aaron Judge 15th Best Prospect In Florida State League


Baseball America continued their look at every league in the minor leagues and ranked the Florida State League this week. The New York Yankees had one player make the list and that was outfielder Aaron Judge who was ranked 15th. In case you were wondering the High-A Tampa Yankees play in the Florida State League. Also Luis Severino did not throw enough innings to qualify for the list or would have been a slam dunk at or near the top of the list.

Eric Jagielo, Greg Bird, and Jake Cave were notable Yankee omissions from the list. The Pirates RHP Tyler Glasnow took home the top spot honors while Phillies shortstop JP Crawford was second and the Blue Jays LHP Daniel Norris was third on the list.

Japanese Stud Maeda Wants to Sign With Yankees or Red Sox

Hiroshima Toyo Carp Pitcher Kenta Maeda wants to join either the Yankees or Red Sox when he moves to MLB next season, The Boston Globe reports.

Maeda, who's pitched for the Toyo Carp in Japan since 2008, went 11-8 with a 2.56 ERA this year, striking out an average of 7.7 hitters per nine frames during that time. As for his whole career with the club, Maeka's gone an impressive 82-58 with a 2.43 ERA, numbers that obviously call for a lot of money.

Indeed, according to the Globe, Maeda is expected to get a 6-year/$120-$130 million deal when he gets posted this offseason, an amount that may seem a little high due to his good-but-not-amazing record and his recent evalutation as a #4 starter. Nonetheless, since guys like CC Sabathia and Ivan Nova are mysteries going into 2015 it'd be strange if the Yankees didn't at least give this guy a look, as signing him doesn't look like something that could go wrong.

Also, considering acquiring Masahiro Tanaka for more cash last winter worked about as well as it could one can't help but see this deal happening as possible. Still, due to the fact that the Red Sox were also mentioned in Maeda's list of potential suitors the Yanks must make sure to not get too ahead of themselves here, even if doing so right now is hard to say the least.

Possible 40 Man Cuts for the Yankees


We looked at the Yankees Rule 5 Draft eligible players that will need to be protected by being added to the 40 man rosters and we looked at potential impact players off the 40 man roster but we haven't mentioned the players that could be non-tendered contracts or ultimately cut,released, or designated for assignment off the 40 man roster. Until today, anyway.

I believe Ivan Nova will start the season on the 60 day DL as he continues to rehab his Tommy John surgery so there is an immediate open roster spot until at least May or June at the best.

Preston Claiborne struggled in 2014 and fell out of Joe Girardi's circle of trust. He also missed much of the 2014 season battling a shoulder injury. He will be there for the Yankees if a batter option does not present itself but could easily be one of the first to go if the team decided to break camp with a Tyler Webb or Jacob Lindgren. Esmil Rogers and David Huff fall into the same category as Claiborne in my opinion although Rogers comes with a much heftier price tag than Claiborne does.

With the Yankees carrying five catchers on their 40 man roster and Gary Sanchez sniffing Triple-A one of the catchers is likely to be moved or traded. When I say I moved I mean, for example, moving Austin Romine to first base to act as a backup for Mark Teixeira. Obviously he or John Ryan Murphy could be traded as well as Francisco Cervelli. I cannot see a scenario where the Yankees carry five catchers again with such a 40 man roster crunch this season.

Zelous Wheeler seemed like a lock to at least attend spring training with the Yankees in 2015 before Jose Pirela made an immediate impact in the majors. Now Wheeler could easily be released for DFA'd to make room for the soon to be minor league free agent Pirela.

Eury Perez, Antoan Richardson, and Ramon Flores all fall into the light hitting speedy outfielder that come into games to steal bases and play defense category. Why keep all three? Or any of them to be honest? We have Jacoby Ellsbury and Brett Gardner and could retain Ichiro Suzuki if we chose to. I don't personally see a need, or not a bigger need than a right handed power bat off the bench.



Derek Jeter Should Sign Alex Rodriguez


This post was written by my very good friend Mr. Robert Casey over at BleedingYankeeBlue. If you want to read the entire post you will have to click over on the link HERE and read it so he gets his well deserved clicks and views but I will share an excerpt here with you guys. Derek Jeter is a leader and will ultimately change the sports world in my opinion and I feel the same about Mr. Casey (he hates it when I call him that but I have THAT much respect for him that I can't not do it) and the blogging world. Check it out and check out BYB who put out great content on a daily basis. Thanks guys.

You want to truly forgive? You want to truly have an open dialog about loss and mistakes and how to better ones self and express it player to fan? Derek Jeter should think about this one; Sign Alex Rodriguez to Players' Tribune.

Have Alex speak to the fans directly. Have Alex tell them that whatever mistakes he made are now passed him, and that he's ready to turn the page. But most importantly, tell the fans, the young kids like my son that the mistakes he made should be life lessons for those children and their own future.  If Derek Jeter could do that, I believe his leadership role will become even stronger, and more memorable than many amazing role models in sports history.


We already love Derek Jeter, but can you imagine if he opens his house to someone like Alex? Can you imagine if Alex opens up to the fans and suggests that he regrets what he did? I mean, shouldn't the punishment be over? Shouldn't the time be now? After all, this isn't about friendship, I don't know if Derek and Alex are close at all. I only read what the media puts out. What I do believe in though is human interaction, respect, forgiveness, second chances, pride and professionalism.  This would be a business move, yes, but it would also help a guy like Alex and for Derek, well, I believe it would show true heart for a fellow Yankee who had a few missteps.  It's true leadership. It also fits in perfectly with what Derek wants to accomplish with the Players' Tribune.  We're waiting for a new writer, just look at this portion of their homepage:

It's not a challenge I'm sending Derek Jeter's way, it's a suggestion.  The idea that people on the Internet literally hate ARod, and in association, spew hate toward ARod fans, is ridiculous.  I wrote I DON'T CARE IF YOU HATE AROD. IT'S JUST BASEBALL. I got a lot of heat for it... I don't even know why. Maybe it was because I was calling out the haters... but truth be told, I don't hate anyone. I was merely making a point. ARod fans can root for whomever they want to. It's called fan choice ladies and gentlemen, and that goes for ARod haters as well.  Just stop being nasty human beings toward each other because that player screwed up.  We get it, he blew his career and is an embarrassment to the Yankees.  You don't think the Yankees know that?



Looking at the 40 man Roster for 2015 Help


When you take just a quick look at the 40 man roster you see that the New York Yankees could potentially fill more than one slot this season with homegrown talent from the minor leagues. This is not to say that I think the Yankees should fill these slots with these players this was more of a post to show that the lack of Yankees depth from the minor leagues may finally be over. Let's take a look.

Pitching:

Manny Banuelos seems healthy, stretched out, and finally rehabbed and ready to start pitching after his Tommy John surgery. While I think New York will give the lefty every chance in the world to be a starter the bullpen is always a viable backup option for the southpaw.

Bryan Mitchell falls into that same category as Banuelos as he can start or head to the bullpen. Mitchell did both for the Yankees in 2014 in limited opportunities and pitched extremely well when given the chance. Mitchell could be the next David Phelps, Shane Greene, or Adam Warren.

Chase Whitley finishes out the "could be a starter, could be a reliever" category as he also did both for the Triple-A team and the big league Yankees in 2014. Whitley was impressive as a starter for the Yankees before seemingly hitting an innings wall on his arm. Whitley will build arm strength all season long I'm sure and be back better in 2015.

Jose Ramirez is a relief pitcher only these days and has struggled to stay healthy in his minor league career but I remain optimistic that he will put it all together before long, maybe next season. Ramirez could become especially important if David Robertson leaves via free agency.



Infielders:

Francisco Cervelli/John Ryan Murphy/Austin Romine one of these three men will be the Yankees backup catcher for Brian McCann, one will head to Triple-A, and one is very likely to be traded. If I had to guess Cervelli would backup McCann, Romine would head to Scranton, and Murphy would be traded since he seemingly has the most value.

Jose Pirela is a minor league free agent but he could be back and in the major leagues after his short audition in the Bronx in September. Martin Prado's flexibility will give GM Brian Cashman plenty of options for the infield and Pirela may squeak into the fold with a strong spring training.



Outfielders:

Ramon Flores/Eury Perez/Antoan Richardson the Yankees will need a fourth outfielder, and even carried five in 2014, in 2015 and one of these three men could be good off the bench. All three have a lot of speed but the problem is none of them can hit much, Flores being the best hitter of the three by a lot. Flores does have the fact that he is left handed working against him in an already lefty heavy outfield.

All these spots could conceivably be filled from within and I didn't even mention the players off the 40 man roster in Jacob Lindgren, Tyler Webb, James Pazos, Danny Burawa, Kyle Roller, and Robert Refsnyder to name a few.


ICYMI: Halladay Throws Second Postseason No-Hitter


It was on this day in 2010 that Philadelphia Phillies right handed ace Roy Halladay became only the second pitcher to ever throw a no-hitter in a postseason game, the first was the Yankees Don Larsen when he threw a perfect game in the 1956 World Series. Halladay blanked the Cincinnati Reds by the score of 4-0 in Game One of the 2010 NLDS.


TGP Daily Poll: My New World Series Predictions


After a week of postseason baseball my original Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim vs. Washington Nationals World Series prediction looks like it may be in a bit of trouble, whoops. My new predicts are that I refuse to pick against the San Francisco Giants in the postseason ever, ever again.

Vote in our poll.

This Day In New York Yankees History 10/6: Midges Attack!


The New York Yankees made the postseason once again in 2007 extending the team's consecutive streak of making the playoffs to 13 straight seasons as they drew the Cleveland Indians in the ALDS. On this day in 2007 the Yankees and Indians played in Game 2 of the ALDS at Jacobs Field in a game that the Yankees had in hand before the eight inning. Joba Chamberlain came in to try and hold the lead and hand the ball to Mariano Rivera but a rare infestation of insects, or midges, appeared and took over the pitchers mound and the field. Joba threw a wild pitch that allowed the tying run to score in Joba's first blown save of the season.

Also on this day in 2005 the Yankees first baseman Jason Giambi won the American League Comeback Player of the Year award. Ken Griffey Jr. won the award for the National League in the first time that the award was given out by the fans vote on MLB.com. Giambi finished the season with a .271 average with 32 home runs and 87 RBI.

Also on this day in 1995 Bernie Williams set one of his many records in postseason history as he became the first player to hit a home run from both sides of the plate in the same postseason game. The Mariners fan who caught the eight inning blast was unaware of the milestone and foolishly threw the ball back onto the field.

Finally on this day in 1985 the Yankees Phil Niekro became the 18th and oldest player in major league history to win 300 games when he shut out the Toronto Blue Jays on the final game of the season. Niekro was 46 years old and 188 days and would ultimately finish with 318 victories.