Friday, January 15, 2016
Yankees Claim Lane Adams, Designate Ronald Torreyes
The New York Yankees continued their roster shuffling this week when the team claimed Lane Adams off waivers from the Kansas City Royals. Adams will be added to the 40 man roster and will presumably fight it out for a spot on the roster out of spring training while Ronald Torreyes was designated for assignment for the second time in a month.
We will meet Adams the way we like to later this weekend.
Yankees Avoid Arbitration w/ Michael Pineda and Dustin Ackley
The New York Yankees have avoided arbitration with two of their players that filed for arbitration today when they signed Michael Pineda and Dustin Ackley to new one-year deals. Michael Pineda will make $4.3 million in 2016 while Ackley will earn $3.2 million.
CONCUSSION: MLB Policy and Youth Sports Screening
Since the release of the movie Concussion starring Will Smith, some of the most frequent questions I am asked in my physical therapy practice are related to concussions.
therehabreport.blogspot.com
The Boring Winter Ahead: Watch the 2000 World Series Game Two HERE
Game Two of the 2000 World Series between the New York Yankees and the New York Mets.
Why no Game One? Can't find it on Youtube. Spoiler alert, Yankees won behind a Luis Vizcaino single and some strong defense from Derek Jeter and company.
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Imaging if Chasen Shreve Remembers How to Pitch in 2016
The New York Yankees bullpen has undergone a bit of a
makeover from the 2015 season to the 2016 season and here it is only
mid-January. A lot can change between now and April just like a lot has changed
from today since the Wild Card game against the Houston Astros. Adam Warren is
gone and so is Justin Wilson while Aroldis Chapman is in and so is a laundry
list of prospects headed by Jacob Lindgren, Nick Goody, Nick Rumbelow and James
Pazos looking to fill the void. We keep hearing the names of the big three at
the back end of the bullpen and the names of Bryan Mitchell and Ivan Nova
essentially replacing Warren and his role but what about Chasen Shreve? What if
Shreve actually remembers how to pitch well in 2016?
Shreve was an absolute monster for the Yankees in the first
half of 2015 before falling off drastically in the second half. Looking at
things in a simplistic view and on paper alone you would think that fatigue
would not be a factor. Shreve was a starter in the minor leagues for the
Atlanta Braves before the trade and had thrown 70.0 innings in 2011 before
throwing just 58.1 innings in 2015. This innings count means little when you
actually watch what Shreve was doing out there though as all signs of his
downfall pointed to fatigue. His arm angle changed a bit when it never used to
and so did his release point. Shreve was seen overthrowing the ball at one
point and under-throwing the ball at another. That’s not mechanical, that’s
fatigue.
So if Shreve can remember to pitch like he did in the first
half of the 2015 season the Yankees will add a fourth dominant relief pitcher
to their stable of bullpen arms. Instead of turning these games into a five or
six inning game for the starters, remember Dellin Betances can easily go
multiple innings three or four times a week, the Yankees may be able to turn it
into a four or five inning game. Anything else is gravy.
So while everyone is up in arms about the Yankees having
three guys capable of 100 strikeouts in a single season I’m over here wondering
about “The Forgotten One” Jacob Lindgren and the “All of a sudden underrated
one” Chasen Shreve.
The Greatest DH’s in MLB History
The Hall of Fame vote for the 2016 inductions are over but
that doesn’t mean the debate for 2016 and the speculation for the 2017 vote has
to end. It won’t end here anyway because I have a ton to say about it and the
free agency and trade markets aren’t doing us any favors to fill the time right
now. We have gone over the best catchers of all-time as we looked to shine some
light on the tremendous career of Mike Piazza and today we will look ahead to
not only the 2017 class but the 2021 class as well. That’s when presumably
David Ortiz will be eligible for the Hall of Fame with the five-year waiting
period and the DH debate can begin once again.
I am piggybacking Scott Chiusano of the New York Daily News
a bit as he released his own Top 5 DH’s of all-time by the numbers but I am
putting my own spin on things like I tend to do. First I changed around his
rankings a bit to fit my opinion and secondly I want to see how this list will
or could affect Oritz when he comes up for Hall of Fame voting in 2021. First
things first though, my list:
1.
Edgar Martinez
2.
David Ortiz
3.
Frank Thomas
4.
Harold Baines
5.
Paul Molitor
Paul Molitor was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2004 as a
player while Frank Thomas was elected in 2004 by the Baseball Writers
Association of America while the Internet Baseball Writers Association of
America, or the IBWAA, elected Edgar Martinez in 2016 to their Hall of Fame. Many
believe that Harold Baines belonged in the Hall of Fame and Baines was elected
to the Baltimore Orioles Hall of Fame in 2009. This leaves three of the Top 5
DH’s in MLB history in the Hall of Fame, one that many believe should be in the
Hall of Fame and one just awaiting his candidacy. A lot can change between now
and the 2021 Hall of Fame vote but by then, either because of the DH position
or the steroid era, David Ortiz will likely be in…. as much as that pains me to
say as a fan of the Yankees.
Defined Roles Won’t Matter in this Yankees Bullpen
Earlier this week Yankees manager Joe Girardi was interviewed and finally closed the door on a subject that was undoubtedly bothering many, whether Aroldis Chapman would be the Yankees closer or not. Many of us, myself included, thought that Chapman being the closer in a free agency walk year (suspension pending) was enough information to make the determination that he would be the closer but some would rather hear it from the horse’s mouth rather than speculate, and there’s nothing wrong with that. The horse has spoken and entering Spring Training camp this season Chapman will be the Yankees closer and the first question I got on twitter was whether Andrew Miller should pitch the 7th inning or the 8th inning in 2016? My response? What does it matter?
Defined roles are not going to be a thing in the Yankees
bullpen in 2016. Chapman is the closer on the depth chart and on Yankees.com,
sure, but that doesn’t mean he is necessarily going to close out every game
that he’s available to close in my opinion. Plus it doesn’t matter if Miller,
the reigning Mariano Rivera Award winner for being the best relief pitcher and
closer in the American League in 2015, pitches the 6th, the 7th,
the 8th or the 9th. It doesn’t matter to him, his words,
and it doesn’t matter to the team.
What does it matter that you’re stacking up left-handed arms
in the 8th and 9th or spreading them out in the 7th
and 9th with Dellin Betances sandwiched between when all three of
them can get left-handed hitters out as equally as they can right-handed
hitters out?
Dellin Betances:
Split | G | PA | R | H | 2B | HR | SB | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
vs RHB | 70 | 179 | 19 | 27 | 3 | 4 | 12 | 23 | 74 | .175 | .285 | .273 | .558 |
vs LHB | 71 | 153 | 7 | 18 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 17 | 57 | .135 | .243 | .211 | .454 |
Split | G | PA | R | H | 2B | HR | SB | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
vs RHB | 65 | 202 | 17 | 34 | 2 | 3 | 8 | 22 | 78 | .194 | .297 | .257 | .554 |
vs LHB | 49 | 76 | 2 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 38 | .143 | .276 | .175 | .451 |
Split | G | PA | R | H | 2B | HR | SB | BB | SO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
vs RHB | 60 | 199 | 11 | 23 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 17 | 79 | .131 | .227 | .217 | .444 |
vs LHB | 31 | 47 | 5 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 21 | .233 | .277 | .326 | .602 |
As you can see by the stats above it doesn’t matter who
pitches the 7th, who pitches the 8th and who pitches the
9th. The game, more times than not, is over either way. Personally
I’d like to see Miller pitch the 8th and Betances pitch the 7th
only because Betances can be a multiple-inning reliever. Limiting him to a
single inning in the 8th was fine last season when the Yankees
didn’t have a pitcher like Miller behind him but this season you may need to
see Dellin pitch the 6th and 7th while Miller and Chapman
knock down the 8th and 9th. There will be lots of mixing
and matching and frankly there should be, that’s what keeps the opposing team
and manager guessing.
It’s a game of cat and mouse and the Yankees have the cheese
to win. Cheesy analogy I know but it works in this situation for some odd
reason.
Starlin Castro Backs up Third Base Making Room for Robert Refsnyder?
I just refuse to let go, don’t I? I’m like an optimistic and
overly proud parent and I refuse to let things go when they don’t go my way, it
happens. In my head I keep trying to find ways for Robert Refsnyder to fit onto
the 2016 Yankees Opening Day squad and I think I may have done it, maybe. With
my brains and a little exploit of the Yankees lack of third base options I
think I have finally found a way to justify keeping Refsnyder on the MLB roster
and not ship him down to Triple-A again to start next season. Brian Cashman
announced that Starlin Castro would be the team’s backup third baseman heading
into next season leaving a potential gaping hole at second base… maybe?
Yes I realize that Dustin Ackley will likely be the Yankees
starting second baseman but unless the team brings a Donovan Solano or Pete
Kozma with them north from Tampa this spring the team may be thin at the middle
infield positions. If you think about it Castro is not only the starting second
baseman and the backup to third baseman Chase Headley but he is also the team’s
shortstop to Didi Gregorius. I hope Castro packed enough gloves and leather
with him on his trip from Chicago. Ackley can play second base and has dabbled
in the outfield but I’m not sure how much third base and shortstop he has
played (and when I say I’m not sure I was being polite, he has played a
combined 0 innings at both third base and shortstop in his career). The same
can be said for Refsnyder, yes, but Refsnyder is still young enough to be
molded into the Yankees own version of Ben Zobrist.
Refsnyder was drafted as an outfielder and was moved to
second base due to concerns with his throwing strength by the Yankees. He
played outfield at the collegiate level, and right field at that, so the arm
strength is there and he could likely get by at the position if need be. He
would also presumably have the arm to make the much shorter throw (from right
field anyway) from third base to first base with a little work. Sure the
Yankees would like to have a seasoned player at every position and would rather
a player not learn the position on the fly in the majors, well unless you’re
Stephen Drew of course, but sometimes you have to do what you have to do.
Is this going to happen? Lord no, the Yankees seemingly have
some vendetta against Refsnyder because he has pictures of someone doing
something somewhere they weren’t supposed to, but it should happen. It likely
makes the team better and it makes me happy and you just can’t put a price tag
on happiness.
Meet a Prospect: Jonathan Diaz
The New York Yankees are doing anything and everything they can to prepare for the 2016 season. New York's plan seems to be to have as much depth and insurance as possible in the minor leagues while relying on the farm system, finally, while waiting out these long and bulky contracts that have hampered the organization for so long. In just a couple years the contracts of Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira, Carlos Beltran and CC Sabathia will be gone and the names of Luis Severino, Greg Bird, Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez will be leading the next Yankees dynasty. That's the plan anyway and the best plans need Plan B and Plan C, one of those PLan B's or Plan C's include the latest minor league signing, Jonathan Diaz.
This is Meet a Prospect: The Jonathan Diaz Edition. Jonathan Diaz was born on April 10, 1985 and spent his High School years at Coral Gables High School. While at Coral Gables Diaz played aside fellow Major League players Yonder Alonso and Eddy Rodriguez who watched Diaz finish his High School career with a strong .323 average in his senior season with six doubles and a home run. Diaz went to NC State to continue his baseball career but struggled in his freshman year. Diaz improved during his sophomore and junior years at NC State and caught the eyes of the Toronto Blue Jays in the 12th round, 360 overall, in the 2006 MLB Draft.
Diaz moved on from Toronto after the 2012 season and moved to their AL East rival Boston Red Sox after signing a minor league deal on December 16, 2012. Another trip to spring training in 2013 and another late cut and assignment to the minor leagues. Boston did come calling on June 29, 2013 and promoted him to the Major Leagues to make his MLB debut against the team that drafted him, the Toronto Blue Jays. Diaz was called up because Brock Holt and Stephen Drew were injured while Will Middlebrooks was ineligible to get called back up due to the 10 day rule. Diaz lasted until July 6 of that season when Holt was ready to return and Diaz was sent back to Triple-A.
Diaz returned to Toronto for the 2014 and 2015 seasons and began the 2014 season with the big league club after a Jose Reyes injury gave him the opportunity. Diaz received his 2013 World Series ring during that 2014 season and was up and down between the minor leagues and major leagues before ultimately being designated for assignment. Diaz came back to the team in 2015 to give the team some insurance for Reyes and once again a Reyes injury allowed Diaz a trip back to the Major Leagues. Diaz appeared in just seven games in 2015 and batted .154 with two RBI before hitting free agency once again.
Diaz will now look to latch on with the New York Yankees during the 2015 season after signing a minor league deal with the club. Diaz will look to win a job in spring training or start the season in Triple-A with the Scranton/Wilkes Barre RailRiders. Welcome to the organization Jonathan and welcome to the family as well.
This Day in New York Yankees History 1/15: No Mas #UNTUCK
Also on this day in 1958 the Yankees announced that an unprecedented 140 games would be televised this season on local channel WPIX. You obviously had to buy a package and the deal for the Yankees was worth more than $1 million. The decision to televise so many games, including 63 road games, started when the Dodgers and the Giants high tailed it to California. Good call if you ask me.
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