Meet a Prospect: Jon Niese

Over the weekend the New York Yankees added Jon Niese to their minor league camp after signing the former New York Mets product to a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training. The left-hander can start or he can relieve and will look to latch on in either spot in the Yankees starting rotation in 2017 so now is a good a time as any to meet him, don’t you say? This is Meet a Prospect: The Jon Niese Edition.

Jonathan Joseph Niese was born on October 27, 1986 to Jeffrey and Annette Niese in Lima, Ohio on the same day that the New York Mets won their second, and last to date, World Series. It only seemed like fate that Niese went on to later spend time with those same New York Mets as well as the Pittsburgh Pirates in his MLB career before recently joining the Yankees on his minor league deal.

Niese attended Defiance High School in Defiance, Ohio where he was brought up where he played soccer all four years as well as baseball. While at Defiance High the left-hander was teammates with former Los Angeles Dodgers starter Chad Billingsley before being drafted in the 2005 MLB First Year Players Draft by the New York Mets in the seventh round.

Niese began his professional career with the Gulf Coast League Mets that same year before getting all the way to Triple-A by the 2008 season pitching seven innings allowing just one run for the Zephyrs. Niese impressed so much in that start that he was promoted to the Major Leagues in September of 2008 and he even made his MLB debut on September, 2 against the Milwaukee Brewers. Niese promptly gave up a home run to the first batter that he faced, Rickie Weeks, becoming the first pitcher in Mets history to achieve the feat. Niese bounced back and forth between the minor leagues and the Major Leagues in 2009 before his first full season as a major league starter came during the 2010 season.

Niese finished his first campaign as a starter with a 9-10 record with a 4.20 ERA in 173.2 innings pitched. Niese’s best start came on June 10 against the San Diego Padres when he threw a complete game one-hit shutout in a Mets victory. Niese remained in the Mets rotation for the 2011 season where he finished with another unimpressive 11-11 record with a 4.40 ERA in just 157.1 innings pitched. Niese saw his season come to an end prematurely when a rib cage muscle ended his season on August 23^rd. That was enough for the Mets though as they signed Niese to a five-year deal worth $25.5 million on April 4^th of 2012. Niese would finish the season with his best performance to date posting a 13-9 record with a 3.40 ERA including his first season where he did not completely fall apart and break down once the calendar turned to September.

Niese was named the New York Mets Opening Day starter for the 2013 season after Johan Santana suffered an injury but Santana wasn’t the only Mets lefty to miss some time due to injury that season. Niese missed several starts in 2013 due to a rotator cuff injury and the 2014 season didn’t start out much better for him either. Niese began the 2014 season on the disabled list due to elbow inflammation in his pitching elbow. Niese would return from the injury only to last a whole 66 innings before being forced back on the disabled list later on in the season. Niese did finish the season with 30 starts and a 3.40 ERA but the injury bug had hit him multiple times that season leaving many inside the organization to wonder if this was a sign of what’s to come.

Niese has a relatively uneventful, although it was healthy after making adjustments to his pitching motion during spring training in order to take some of the strain off his pitching elbow, season in 2015 but that did not stop the Mets from trading him to the Pittsburgh Pirates on December 9^th for Neil Walker. Niese spent time in the Pirates rotation until the All Star Break when the Pirates placed Niese in their bullpen. Niese was not long for the Pirates though as the team then traded him back to the Mets on August 1^st in exchange for Antonio Bastardo. Niese lasted a whole one start before being placed back on the disabled list after undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his knee.

The Mets declined their option on the contract after the 2016 season paying him a $500,000 buyout and thus granting him free agency. Niese spent the winter looking for a guaranteed job and even told the New York Daily News that he was shocked he could not find a MLB guaranteed deal this offseason before he signed the minor league deal with the Yankees. It doesn’t matter how he got here or what happened before though, especially on a minor league deal, as long as he makes the most of the opportunity while he is here. So here’s our best wishes and hopes going out to Niese, I hope you make the team if you can truly help the team compete in 2017 and beyond.

Welcome to the organization and, more importantly, welcome to the family. 

If Watson Isn’t Available, What About Antonio Bastardo?

Hello again Yankees fans and welcome back! Earlier today we returned in a big way asking the New York Yankees organization to trade Michael Pineda to the Pittsburgh Pirates for left-handed reliever Tony Watson and once again we’re back with another idea. A Plan B of sorts because one always needs a Plan B. What if Tony Watson isn’t available? Who would the Yankees use in their seemingly depleted and thin middle relief core? What about Watson’s teammate and a target of the Yankees an offseason ago or two, Antonio Bastardo?

The New York Yankees were said to be interested in a Justin Wilson reunion earlier this offseason which brings me to one post I made which compared Wilson to Bastardo. The post in a nutshell showed comparable numbers across the board between the two players which means if Wilson was thought to be too rich for the Yankees blood that Bastardo could be a comparable, and arguably better, replacement for the Yankees middle relief in 2017.

Bastardo is a free agent to be at the end of the season meaning it likely wouldn’t cost much to acquire him and where the Pirates lack the most the Yankees may have a lot to give. Pittsburgh is severely lacking in the catching department meaning that a young catcher prospect with upside like a Donnie Sands could be used as trade bait for a season of Bastardo without the organization mission a beat. Sands was an 8^th round pick in 2015 and isn’t expected to be ready for the Major Leagues until around or after the time Francisco Cervelli becomes a free agent after the 2019 season.

The Pirates have a ton of left-handed bullpen depth and the Yankees would like some middle relief help heading into the season so it makes sense that these two teams could match up in a trade. Watson is the prize here but Bastardo wouldn’t make the world consolation prize the Yankees could fetch, and he’d cost a heck of a lot less too in the long run. Either way Cash, get one or both done. 

The Mets, Antonio Bastardo and Another Reason the Justin Wilson Trade was a Bad Idea

The New York Yankees traded away Justin Wilson to the Detroit Tigers this offseason for two starting pitching prospects Chad Green and Luis Cessa. The reasoning we the fans were given as a reason for it was so that the Yankees could have some depth at starting pitching in Scranton going forward and because Wilson was hitting the years of arbitration eligibility that tend to get a little expensive. Well the dust has settled and Wilson’s arbitration case has settled as well giving the Yankees a clear idea of just how expensive he is but the team also has an idea of just how much of a bargain he was as well. Let me explain.

All winter long I have compared free agent relief pitcher Antonio Bastardo to Wilson and used those comparisons to decide whether the move was a good one or not for the Yankees. If you look at their stats, ages and such they are almost an identical clone down to the fact that both even throw from the left side of the pitching rubber. The striking difference between these two pitchers though will be their salaries in 2016. Wilson agreed to a deal with the Tigers worth $1.5 million to avoid arbitration while Bastardo recently signed with the Mets, again with a comparable age, stats and track record, on a two-year deal worth $12 million.

So you have similar players statistically but you have a $4.5 million difference in salary, tell me why the Yankees traded him again? Oh yeah for a marginal starting pitching prospect and a guy that is considered to be an organizational prospect. How could I forget?

Bastardo heads into 2016 fresh off posting a 4-1 record with a 2.98 ERA and one save for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Bastardo struck out 64 batters and issued 26 walks in just 57.1 innings pitched while helping Pittsburgh claims their third consecutive playoff spot. 

What Would I Buy w/ Tonight’s Powerball Jackpot?

I don’t play the lottery, I think it’s a foolish waste of money and time… well unless it gets to above half a billion dollars like it is tonight with the Georgia Powerball. I’ll throw down a couple of bucks on that and put my ethics and belief aside for greed, I am the Greedy Pinstripes after all but I digress. Let’s just throw a nice round number out there, after taxes, and assume that if I won tonight’s drawing I would take home $500 million in cash. If I were running the Yankees what could I do with said winnings? And spoiler alert, you won’t be calling me the cheap owner when it’s all said and done.

$500 million can buy a lot but I would want to be smart with it. Justin Upton is smart money and is easily the best positional player and best fit left on the free agency market. I personally like him more than I did Jason Heyward so if Upton wants $200 million Upton gets $200 million from me. At 28-years old and with the stats he has put up in pitching friendly parks in Atlanta and San Diego I think he will live up to the contract and then some. Upton hits right-handed, hits for both power and average, will take a walk, steals bases and plays some stellar and underrated defense.

My next thing to do would be to eat the contracts of Jacoby Ellsbury and CC Sabathia. I am personally big fans of both but honestly there is just better ways of spending your money than on oft-injured and under-performing stars. As a fan that hurts but on the business side of things it simply makes sense. I am reluctant to eat the Ellsbury deal with a shade over $100 million left and the Sabathia deal with around $50 million left but that’s business. It’s six of one and a half dozen of the other if you’re paying them on the disabled list anyway. With my final $150 million I would throw a contract to a starting pitcher and/or a relief arm. Wei-Yin Chen and Antonio Bastardo maybe? Chen and Doug Fister? Who knows what it would take but I would improve the pitching in some way, shape or form.

Releasing Ellsbury allows Brett Gardner to slide back into center field and Upton to slide into left field. Releasing Ellsbury and adding Upton balances out a very left-handed heavy lineup and ultimately makes the lineup 100 times better in my opinion. Releasing Sabathia and adding a proven AL-East veteran and bullpen arm finishes out the roster and the pitching staff and all because I bought a stupid $2 lottery ticket and won the Georgia Powerball. You’re welcome Yankees family!

Antonio Bastardo Shows Why the Justin Wilson Trade Was Bad

The New York Yankees had one of the better bullpens in all of Major League Baseball in 2015. Andrew Miller closed games, Dellin Betances set up games and literally saved games in the 7th and 8th and Justin Wilson struck out batter after batter all season long. Despite Adam Warren being traded from the pen and Chasen Shreve's second half fall off New York decided to trade Wilson to the Detroit Tigers for two prospects. Neither prospects look to have high ceilings and the deal looks more and more like a money saver. Wilson was set to make a tad over a million dollars in 2016, Antonio Bastardo wants to make a little more.

Bastardo is one of the top relief pitchers left on the free agency market and is a relative Wilson clone. I mean it, their stats and projections for next season are almost identical. Wilson is just entering his arbitration years when things start to get expensive for the team. Bastardo on the other hand is in free agency and has asked for a deal similar to the deal that Tony Sipp, a left-handed reliever, struck with the Houston Astros.

Sipp signed a three-year deal worth $18 million with Houston and Bastardo, also a southpaw, wants a comparable deal. Bastardo, remember a Wilson clone, will presumably earn a $6 million AAV while Wilson will make a bit over $1 million and will likely never reach $6 million before free agency.

Bastardo gets left-handed and right-handed batters out equally as well and has posted a Justin Wilson esque 3.18 ERA with a 10.5 K/9 ratio.

This is all a moot point if Brian Cashman got a substantial haul for Wilson but he didn't. Chad Green is an organization prospect at best, and he was in a very weak Detroit Tigers system, and Luis Cessa is only the 18th best prospect in the Yankees system according to MLB Pipeline.

Yankees Edition:What I Want for Christmas, The Bullpen

To say that the bullpen was decimated by the recent trades done by Brian Cashman would likely be an extreme exaggeration but one must remember, I am a Yankees fan through and through. I am not paid by the Yankees, hell I'm not paid for my writing whatsoever, and this is a fan blog. Not a blog run by an insider or expert. I get emotional, I get worked up and sometimes I react from my heart and not my head. Sue me. I think many will agree though that regardless of their affiliations, jobs or fandom they will agree that the Yankees bullpen took a hit with the losses of Adam Warren and Justin Wilson. Maybe a bullpen arm or two will be under the Yankees tree this holiday season? One can hope so here are a couple suggestions.

First and foremost, and we've already covered this on the blog once so we won't spend too much time here, the Yankees can easily replace Justin Wilson. Antonio Bastardo is a Wilson clone in almost every sense of the word. He's 30-years old and he strikes out a ton of guys, although he does struggle with command from time to time. The redundancy here though is that New York didn't get anything special for Wilson via the trade and they sold it as a money saving, eventually, move. Why would they go out and sign a more expensive arm off the free agent market? They probably wouldn't truth be told but he would make sense for the team regardless.

Another arm I like, and I believe he is a bit underrated, is the right arm of Tommy Hunter. Hunter, for Chicago Cubs and Baltimore Orioles pitcher, has been delegated to the bullpen the last three seasons but made 20 starts as recently as the 2012 season. He didn't pitch great in Chicago, truth be told, but the sample size was small being in just 19 games. Hunter is AL East tested and proven and is a true power arm at just 30-years old. He could handle the 6th or 7th inning for the Yankees with ease and likely step into the rotation for two weeks to a month at a time if an injury were to occur.

I know these weren't the big names you all expected when you decided to give this a read but there just aren't that many game changing relief pitchers on the market right now. The Yankees will have to either fill the needs from within with another revolving door or the team is going to have to be smart about it, they absolutely cannot simply throw money at the issue this time around.

Santa, your move.

Antonio Bastardo the Next Justin Wilson?

The New York Yankees and their GM Brian Cashman have stated it many times, the team wants to emulate the Kansas City Royals in almost every way. The most obvious way New York wants to emulate the defending World Series Champions is to have what they are referring to as a "super bullpen." New York is already well on their way with Andrew Miller closing games in the Bronx, Dellin Betances setting up for Miller for anywhere from one out to two innings at a time, and Justin Wilson striking out guys no matter if they are left-handed or right-handed at an alarming rate. Wilson is one of many left-handed relief pitchers the Yankees have at their disposal next season, could they add another in Antonio Bastardo?

Many fans trusted Wilson in 2015 and he was one of the few that could be trusted. Chasen Shreve fell off at the end of the season, although there is evidence that it was fatigue that caused it, Adam Warren was bounced back and forth between the rotation and bullpen leading to some rust and inconsistency and the team had a new reliever every other day up from Triple-A Scranton. New York may turn to the trade market to acquire another reliable arm much like they acquired Wilson last season from the Pittsburgh Pirates for backup catcher Francisco Cervelli or they could simply turn to the free agent market and get an exact clone of Wilson in Bastardo.

According to Baseball Reference and their projections systems I mean it when I say CLONE:

Bastardo:

Year	Age	W	L	ERA	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	WHIP	H9	HR9	BB9	SO9	SO/W
2016	30	4	3	3.60	60.0	49	26	24	5	25	62	1.233	7.4	0.8	3.8	9.3	2.48

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

Wilson:

Tm	Age	W	L	ERA	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	WHIP	H9	HR9	BB9	SO9	SO/W
Proj.	28	4	2	3.54	61.0	53	26	24	5	22	58	1.230	7.8	0.7	3.2	8.6	2.64

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

That's an awful lot of left-handed relievers in one bullpen. Miller, Shreve, Wilson Bastardo and possibly Jacob Lindgren but if these pitchers can get batters on both sides of the plate out what does it matter? The Yankees also love having a LOOGY and Bastardo held left-handed batters to a .138 batting average against in 2015, how huge would that be late into games or inside Yankee Stadium? So huge it can't be put into words. Bastardo is 30-years old and will be likely to command a smaller contract in terms of years, maybe even one year, and dollars, the new Yankees way. Sign him?