Farewell to Dellin Betances...

Photo Credit: Instagram @dellinbetances68

Reliever Signs with the NY Mets…

First of all and most importantly, MERRY CHRISTMAS!

That’s not meant to be a tie-in with the title of this post. Yesterday certainly was not a fun day for most Yankee fans. I wrote a post yesterday morning before the news broke and was still writing my hope for the Yankees to sign Dellin Betances. Sadly, it was not meant to be and he is now a member of the despised crosstown Mets. 

Photo Credit: Adam Hunger, Getty Images

I am disappointed, without a doubt, but there was never any indication the Yankees were going to try to bring him back. It hurts a little that both Didi Gregorius and Betances left for one-year deals. It seems like the Yankees could have matched those offers without breaking the bank. Betances’ contract has a player option for 2021 and a team option for 2022, but if he pitches like we know he can, he’ll most likely decline the player option. For 2020, Betances will receive a signing bonus of $5.3 million and a salary of $2.2 million. The player option is worth $6 million for 2021, but if he declines, he’ll receive a $3 million buyout. It’s not smooth sailing next off-season for Betances if he does decline the option, the Mets could apply the qualifying offer which would cause some market resistance. 

Oh well, he’s gone. Social media was littered with disparaging remarks by Yankee fans about Betances yesterday. Regardless of the reason(s) the Yankees chose not to aggressively try to retain Betances, he was a great Yankee. I felt he was one that I wanted to see stay in Pinstripes for the duration of his career. Frankly, I would have rather kept Betances and let Brett Gardner walk, primarily because I feel good outfielders are easier to come by than elite relievers.  If you believe that Betances has seen his better days, then the Yankees were right to let him go. Although I will never root for the Mets, I hope Betances is able to regain his prime form. He’ll be 32 next season, and this, potentially, is his last chance for a big payday. If Edwin Diaz is able to rebound from his disastrous 2019 and pitch like the elite closer he was with the Seattle Mariners in 2018, the Mets will have a very strong back end of their bullpen. Seth Lugo figures to join the mix making it a formidable group.

For Dellin, he gets to stay in New York City. As a native New Yorker, this is huge for him and his family. I probably would have preferred to see him join Didi Gregorius and Joe Girardi in Philadelphia but that would have meant uprooting his family and moving a few hours down I-95. So for Dellin’s sake, since he wanted to stay in NYC, I am glad he was able to. He’ll get to pitch for his friend and former teammate, new Mets manager Carlos Beltran.    

For his 8-year Yankees career, Dellin finished 21-22 with 2.36 ERA and 36 saves. In 381 2/3 innings, he struck out 621 batters. He pitched in 358 games after making his debut during the 2011 season. He’ll be missed, but we move on. 

The Yankees bullpen remains among the very best with Aroldis Chapman, Zack Britton, Adam Ottavino, and Tommy Kahnle. I’d say the group did fine in 2019 without Betances so there’s no reason to believe this group can’t be better in 2020 with baseball’s best starter sitting atop the rotation. With five effective starting pitchers, the Yankees will make less use of an opener in 2020 so it means Chad Green can return to the later stages of games. With more rest and options available to him, Aaron Boone can maximize the potential of the bullpen to its fullest capabilities.

Photo Credit: Thomas A Ferrera, Newsday

Among Yankee fans, speculation immediately centered on the Yankees “have to” acquire Josh Hader and saying maybe that was the end game. I don’t feel the Yankees have to make any moves. Sure, it would be nice to add another effective, elite reliever but I am not going to buy into the Josh Hader hype. As we all know, when Brian Cashman moves, he moves quietly and swiftly.  There’s been too much noise around Hader which makes me believe this is purely fan speculation run wild. Maybe Cashman does pull off a Hader trade, but the cost will be very high.  Contrary to fan belief, we can’t just dump excess baggage on Milwaukee and call it a day. They’ll want players of significant value for their premier reliever who has four years of control remaining…if they choose to deal him at all. 

Ken Giles was mentioned as a trade target last summer when it was reported the Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays did have talks at the trading deadline which almost brought Giles to the Bronx. The Yankees could revisit those talks, however, I am leery of giving Toronto anything of value. With their young core and improving starting rotation, they’ll be making some noise in the AL East in upcoming years. The last thing I’d want to see is former Yankees helping lead the charge. 

This probably makes Cleveland’s Brad Hand the most attractive option, in my opinion. If the Indians were to deal Francisco Lindor, it would be a clear signal they are entering rebuilding mode after the earlier trade which sent Corey Kluber to the Texas Rangers. At that point, Hand would seemingly become expendable, and from a trade standpoint, would be more reasonably priced than Hader. 

Photo Credit: Aaron Joseczyk, UPI

Other names that have been mentioned include Mychal Givens of the Baltimore Orioles and Tim Hill of the Kansas City Royals. 

Regardless of what happens, the Yankees will be alright. Ben Heller is healthy and ready to show he belongs in the Yankee bullpen.  I am optimistic for a rebound by Jonathan Holder. I think Jonathan Loaisiga, if he stays healthy, has a chance to be a very good reliever. Luis Cessa was better last year and could continue to improve. Let’s give Brian Cashman time to round out the bullpen. He has 49 days until pitchers and catchers report to Tampa. That’s not a hard stop but I have no doubt the best possible 25 men will take the field for the New York Yankees when they open the regular season on March 26^th at Camden Yards against the Baltimore Orioles. 

Enjoy your Christmas! We can worry about Yankees baseball tomorrow.

As always, Go Yankees!

Predicting the 2019 Season: The Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman Award Winners

The best relief pitcher in the American League is now awarded the Mariano Rivera Award, while the best relief pitcher in the National League is given the Trevor Hoffman Award. Who will win each prestigious award in 2019? Keep reading…

Brad Hand of the Cleveland Indians is my pick for the Mariano Rivera Award. No, I’m not picking Aroldis Chapman, but I did seriously consider it to be completely honest. I just feel like Hand pitched extremely well for Cleveland after being traded from the Padres last season and I think that will translate to a strong 2019 campaign. Hand was splitting the closing duties with Cody Allen in 2018, but Allen has since departed via free agency at the time of this writing and will leave all the save opportunities to Hand. Hand has struck out at least 100 batters in three consecutive seasons and will look to make it a four-peat here in 2019.

Jeremy Jeffress of the Milwaukee Brewers is my pick to win the Trevor Hoffman Award for the National League. I have the Brewers making it to the World Series in 2019 and that cannot be done without a strong bullpen. I know some probably expected me to pick Josh Hader, if I was going to pick a Brewers player, or Edwin Diaz of the Mets, but I just had a gut feeling with Jeffress that I simply cannot ignore.

Brad Hand, Adam Cimber, and Would You Have Given Up Estevan Florial to Have Acquired Them?

The Cleveland Indians shocked the league a bit on Thursday night when the team acquired not one, but two top relievers from the San Diego Padres for the low, low price of one of their top prospects in their farm system. The Indians acquired both closer Brad Hand and his setup man Adam Cimber from the Padres for their top prospect and one of the top prospects in all of Major League Baseball in Francisco Mejia. New York had been linked to Hand in recent weeks with varying degrees of interest, so I always wonder when a deal is made if the Yankees could have met or exceeded the prospects package that the receiving team had given up. The closest the Yankees could have come to matching this deal is if they offered their own top prospect in Estevan Florial, would you have made the move? Here is whether I would have made the deal or not if I were the Yankees GM.

Mejia is listed as a catcher and an outfielder on MLB Pipeline and is the 15^th best prospect in all of MLB. Mejia is also the top catching prospect in all of baseball with experience at both corner outfield spots and third base as well. Florial, meanwhile, is the 37^th best prospect in the game according to MLB Pipeline and the best prospect in the Yankees system. While the Yankees may have had to add another piece to sweeten the pot I truly think these two teams could have come to a deal, and both Hand and Cimber would have likely been worth the price, even at the cost of their top prospect.

Hand is on a very team-friendly deal that will keep him in Cleveland through the 2020 season, a deal that will earn him $3.5 million in 2018, $6.5 million in 2019 and $7.5 million in 2020. Hand also has a team option for the 2021 season with $10 million with a $1 million buyout. As a member of the Padres since 2016, Hand has put together a 2.66 ERA, 11.8 K/9, 3.0 BB/9, 0.9 HR/9 and a 46.5 percent groundball rate in 213 innings pitched, albeit inside the spacious Petco Park for his home games. Meanwhile Cimber is a 27-year old set-up man that has pitched to a 3.17 ERA, 9.5 K/9, 1.9 BB/9, and a 52.3 groundball percentage in 48.1 innings pitched with the Padres. Both men would have been a huge upgrade over Chasen Shreve, or possibly a lot of the Yankees bullpen right now not named Betances or Chapman. Cimber has held right-handed batters to a .207/.221/.261 triple slash this season which would immediately make him the Yankees left-handed specialist going forward if a deal was to be made.

Cimber and Hand would have been great for the Yankees, and I truly believe the team could have matched or exceeded the deal the Cleveland Indians gave San Diego before the end of the All-Star break. Oh well, while these posts are fun to look at an analyze, unfortunately they do not change a thing. Cashman, still waiting on you. You’re up.

Mission: Take Down Boston...

2nd Best Winning % in MLB but 2nd in the AL East...

It’s Friday and Baseball is back! Thanks to the All-Star Break, it’s been awhile since we’ve seen the Yankees on the field. Okay, any one not named Aaron Judge or Luis Severino. They’re back in the Bronx and ready to take on the not-so-high flyin’ Mets. One thing is sure, we’ll be seeing plenty of ink about Noah Syndergaard and Jacob deGrom and their potential connection to the Yankees over the next few days.  

Syndergaard takes the mound tonight against Domingo German, while deGrom matches up against Masahiro Tanaka on Sunday. As much as I’d love to have either pitcher, the realist in me knows that the likelihood either pitcher is traded to the Yankees is non-existent. The Mets are not going to send any of their top players to the Yankees regardless of the return.  

The Yankees begin the second half four-and-a-half games behind the Boston Red Sox in the AL East.  Hats off to the Red Sox for their brilliant first half.  They beat the teams they were supposed to. Mookie Betts has showed why he is one of the best players in Major League Baseball, and J.D. Martinez has proven to be the best off-season addition for any team (sorry, Giancarlo).  But it's a new day and plenty of time for the Yankees to catch the Red Sox and put them in their rearview mirror.  The Yankees have 67 games remaining or three more than the Red Sox.  I think as long as the Yankees can keep winning series, they'll be in great shape come September, or better yet, October.  The Red Sox have an easy start to the second half with the Detroit Tigers and Manny Machado-less Baltimore Orioles, a team that they already owned this season winning nine of ten games played.  However, there's a big showdown with the Yankees at Fenway Park looming the first week of August.  This is a great chance for the Yankees to keep it close for the next couple of weeks and then make a huge statement in Boston with hopefully a win of the four-game series.  

I think it was tough for Yankees fans to see Manny Machado traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers this week. Many of us, myself included, envisioned what it would look like to see Manny in pinstripes. I know, it was a 'want' and not a 'need' but how beautiful would it have looked to insert Machado's name into the Yankees lineup? It may still come to fruition after the season when Manny hits the open market, but of course that doesn’t help us today. The best part about Manny going to Los Angeles is that Yankees pitchers won’t have to face him again unless the Yankees and Dodgers meet in the World Series (a very nice problem to have). Manny destroyed the Yankees this year with six home runs. It’ll be nice to play the Baltimore Orioles for the remainder of the year without the  threat of Manny at bat. Hopefully the next home run he hits at Yankee Stadium will be while wearing Pinstripes. We’ll see.

Nice job by Machado in picking his new number for the Dodgers. His beloved #13 was already taken by this year’s breakout player, Max Muncy. Closer Kenley Jansen offered to pay Muncy to relinquish the number, but in the end, Manny chose a different number. Like Don Mattingly, who took #8 as a tribute for Yogi Berra when he joined the Dodgers coaching staff under Joe Torre a few years ago and later served as their manager, Machado has acquired the same number in honor of Orioles Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Jr. A very classy move by Machado and a gesture I am sure the heartbroken O's fans appreciate.  

The Yankees lost another trade target yesterday when the Cleveland Indians abruptly acquired San Diego closer Brad Hand yesterday. I was surprised at the high cost the Indians paid (top catching prospect Francisco Mejia) but Cleveland’s bullpen was a mess. Once they get Andrew Miller back on the field, the Indians bullpen, with Hand, Miller, closer Cody Allen, and newcomer Adam Cimber, appears to be very formidable, especially in the post-season. Former Yankees pitcher, and now Padres reliever, Phil Hughes had the best Twitter quote following the Hand trade:  "Just a few more trades and I'll be the closer. Too soon?"  Former Yankee Kirby Yates is expected to take Hand's place as San Diego's closer, but even he has been the subject of trade speculation. Hughes, while clearly jesting, may in fact get his wish.  

Photo Credit: The San Diego Union-Tribune (K.C. Alfred)

Yankees fans are growing impatient but we’re still eleven days away from the non-waiver trading deadline. There’s time. GM Brian Cashman and his staff are working diligently behind the scenes. At this point, I am not really expecting a big splash but I do fully anticipate reinforcements in the not-so-distant future.  It was a year ago yesterday the Yankees acquired relievers David Robertson and Tommy Kahnle and third baseman Todd Frazier from the Chicago White Sox. If I had my wish, I’d probably prefer the acquisition of Orioles reliever Zach Britton who seems to be rounding back into form after his recovery from injuries. It’s not that I don’t feel the Yankees shouldn’t acquire a starter but the names of Michael Fulmer, J.A. Happ, and Cole Hamels are not inspiring to me. Dan O'Dowd of the MLB Network feels that Hamels would be re-energized with the chance to play in a pennant race, but c'mon, he clearly is not the pitcher he once was. The Yankees had scouts at Wrigley Field in Chicago yesterday to watch St Louis Cardinals starter Carlos Martinez. I’d love to have Martinez, 26, but his Yankees audition didn’t go so well as he took the loss against the Cubs, giving up six runs (five earned) over five innings, in the 9-6 defeat. Still, Martinez would be an upgrade if the Yankees can entice the Cardinals to part with the talented righty.  

Photo Credit: AP (Charles Rex Arbogast)

The Yankees may have lost a valuable trading chip yesterday when outfielder Clint Frazier was pulled from a Scranton/Wilkes-Barre game for possible concussion symptoms after a failed diving attempt to catch a fly ball in the first inning. Frazier’s concussion in Spring Training cost him the first couple months of the season.  

There will be one “newcomer” when the Yankees take the field tonight. Well, he is not quite a newcomer but Gary Sanchez will be back in  action behind the plate following his activation off the disabled list yesterday. If El Gary starts to hit like he did last summer, it’s scary to think what the Yankees offense is capable of. With no offense to either Austin Romine or Kyle Higashioka, Sanchez’s presence improves the team. Higgy was optioned to Triple A to make room for Sanchez. Now, we just need to get Gleyber Torres back.

ESPN's Keith Law released his Mid-Season Top 50 Prospect Update yesterday and has Yankees LHP Justus Sheffield listed at #12.  I loved his last line about Top Sheff:  "He's very close to major league-ready, however, has all the elements of a future No. 2 starter".  I wouldn't want to put the pressure of a pennant chase on Sheff as a starter for the Yankees this year plus he'll be nearing an innings limit at some point, but you gotta love the thought of Sheffield pitching out of the pen, perhaps as soon as next month or September at the latest.  

Well, let's begin Operation Beat Boston.  Yankees, welcome back.  We've missed you.  Let's make this a victorious Friday.  Send Thor to the showers early, and bring us a win.  

Go Yankees!

Update:  At his press conference today with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Manny Machado indicated his choice to wear #8 was out of respect for Los Angeles Lakers great Kobe Bryant and new beginnings.  In other words, f**k you, Orioles fans!  ;)

Good Hitting or Good Pitching? I’ll Take Both, Please…

Photo Credit: Getty Images (Mike Stobe)

Yankees win again behind German…

The Yankees got off to a good start with their three-game series against the Seattle Mariners last night with a 7-2 win at Yankee Stadium.

Very nice pitching performance by young Domingo German. I wish Sonny Gray could take notes on how to pitch in the Bronx. The veteran could learn a thing or two from the rookie. German could have broken in the first inning when the Mariners had runners at the corners and no outs following a double and an error by Didi Gregorius. Sure, the M’s picked up a run on Mitch Haniger’s fielder’s choice to short but German shook it off and struck out Corey Seager’s brother Kyle to end the threat. From there, German shut down the Mariners, retiring 18 in a row, until Nelson Cruz did what he does best in the seventh inning, a dinger to left. You can’t really blame German for that one. Cruz does it to the best of 'em.

German’s final pitching line was something Sonny Gray can only dream about at Yankee Stadium. Seven very strong innings, two hits, two runs but only one earned, zero walks, and nine strikeouts.  German is pitching like he doesn’t want GM Brian Cashman to make any pitching acquisitions at the trading deadline. While I’d leave German in the rotation, I would still make a trade for a proven veteran starter. Nothing against Jonathan Loaisiga but I’d rather limit the rookies in the rotation for the stretch run to only one (German). 

I liked the tag line used by Mike Axisa of River Ave Blues:  Dominant Domingo and the Dingers. It was a very good description of the game. I can’t wait for the movie.

Photo Credit: NY Post (Charles Wenzelberg)

With German easing the Yankees’ desperation for starting pitching help, I hope it opens the possibility for a trade to acquire a shutdown arm for the bullpen. None better than San Diego’s LHP Brad Hand which would allow the Yankees to dump Chasen Shreve. I think it was Sweeny Murti who said the other day that he’d like for the Yankees to acquire the Padres closer for no other reason than to be able to say “Aloha, Mr Hand!”. Yes, that’s true. Good point. But Hand is also the most highly sought-after reliever now that former Kansas City Royals closer Kelvin Herrera resides in Washington, D.C. and he has drawn attention from many teams including the Boston Red Sox. I really would not want to see Hand go to Boston to help shore up their bullpen deficiencies. The move to acquire him by the Yankees would not be all about keeping him out Boston but rather give us a deadly bullpen that can shut down anyone, anytime, anywhere. 

Photo Credit: Getty Images (Denis Poroy)

If the Yankees make no moves for starting pitching, they should most certainly look to add additional bullpen pieces. I really don’t want to see Shreve as the top lefty come October. He’s too inconsistent for me and a few others on this site.

It was good to see the Yankees offense come to life last night. Marco Gonzales has pitched very well for the Mariners this year and he entered the game with a 7-3 record. I thought well enough of him to add him to my fantasy baseball team a few weeks ago. He killed my team last night with six runs allowed, including three home runs. But hey, it was worth it. I cut him after the game but there’s no way I can be disappointed with his dismal performance.

Photo Credit: Associated Press (Seth Wenig)

The homers were really fun to watch. Giancarlo Stanton’s shot to center in the first inning to tie the game, Miguel Andujar’s two-run homer to left in the bottom of the fifth to give the Yankees their first lead, Aaron Hicks’ two-run blast to left in the fifth after Clint Frazier had singled to increase the Yankees’ lead to 5-1, and the eighth inning ‘tack-on' homer to left by Gleyber Torres off former Yankees reliever Nick Rumbelow. If you saw only the homer and not the batter, you would have sworn that Gleyber’s shot was courtesy of Aaron Judge or Giancarlo Stanton. It was certainly worthy of the words “All Rise” or “a Stantonian blast” if it had been hit by #99 or #27 rather than #25. The ball traveled 446 feet, easily the longest hit of the night. After Torres hit his homer, I saw one Yankees tweet say only 38 more to go to the rookie record. Very funny even if impossible.  Still, I don’t think anyone in their wildest dreams could have forecasted 14 home runs, 35 RBI’s, and a slash line of .291/.346/.566 for Gleyber Torres on June 19^th. The guy is such a joy to watch game after game. Sure, he’ll have to continue to make adjustments as pitchers adjust but he’s shown us enough to be confident he will. 

Oh yeah, Aaron Judge had an RBI on single to left in the bottom of the seventh off Rumbelow with the run charged to Gonzales. A single. How pedestrian! Seriously, I love what Aaron Judge means to this team and how he is continually a difference-maker with both bat and glove. 

I was hopeful that Gary Sanchez was breaking out of his slump but he was 0-for-4 with a strikeout, dropping his season batting average back down to .191. 

It was a fun game. The Mariners are a very good club and this series could easily be a preview of October if the M’s continue to play well. They are currently 46-27 and sit just two games behind the World Champions in the AL West. I don’t expect the Yankees to sweep the series but I am hopeful they capture at least one of the next two games before hopping on a plane bound for Tampa, Florida. 

The Boston Red Sox, despite having their ace, Chris Sale, on the mound, lost 6-2 to the Minnesota Twins at Target Field in Minneapolis, MN so the Yankees (48-22) increased their AL East lead to one game. Credit to the third-place Tampa Bay Rays, the Yankees’ next opponent. They used Blake Snell (a pitcher that I’d love to see Brian Cashman acquire) to beat the Astros and Justin Verlander, snapping Houston’s 12-game winning streak.    

Congratulations to Brandon Drury for winning International League Player of the Week honors. The Major League player, who deserves better than Triple A, hit .471 with one home run and 11 RBI’s during the week of June 11^th through 17^th. He had 16 hits, 25 total bases, and 11 runs scored. In last night’s 7-5 loss by the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders to the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs (love that name!), Drury was 0-for-5 with a couple of strikeouts. It doesn’t deter me. I still want Drury back in Pinstripes where he belongs. With Ryan McBroom’s demotion to Double-A, I saw a quote by RailRiders manager Bobby Mitchell that the plan is to play Drury at first periodically. Operation Dump Neil Walker; Promote Brandon Drury is well underway. I liked Mitchell’s quote about Drury earlier this week: “He’s a big leaguer, you know? Just happens to be with us. He can play for a lot of teams, obviously, and even ours if they needed him.” 

Photo Credit: Todd Hiller

As for Chance Adams (the loser in the game), he is stepping dangerously into “Chance Adams Sucks!” Territory. Once considered the top pitching prospect in the organization, Adams gave up six runs in four innings (four earned) yesterday.  He walked four batters while striking out only one. Control continues to be his Achilles Heel. Suffice it to say that I don’t think we’ll be seeing Mr Adams (2-3, 5.21 ERA) in the Bronx anytime soon.

It’s Wednesday and an awesome day for Lasagna! It will be Old versus Young today as 32-year-old “King” Felix Hernandez takes on rookie 23-year-old Jonathan Loaisiga who was phenomenal in his debut appearance. When I looked up Hernandez, I was thinking he was older than he really is.  He seems to have aged prematurely and is certainly not the ace he once was. This season, he is 6-6 with 5.44 ERA and an unsightly 1.38 WHIP. For all the years the Yankees were linked to him in trade rumors, I am glad it was a trade never consummated.  Let’s get a win and take this series.

Go Yankees!

Yankees Potential Trade Partners This July

The heat has been turned up and the month of July is now beyond the halfway point meaning the July 31^st trading deadline is drawing closer and closer by the minute. Surely the New York Yankees have done their homework and have identified the potential sellers already at this year’s July 31^st trading deadline but just in case they haven’t I have compiled what is probably an incomplete list. Also, since some still wonder if the team will buy or sell before the deadline, I will also include some potential buyers for the team as well. You know, because they read my content and I know it. Enjoy Cash and make sure to bookmark this for safe keeping. 

If you need any more proof that the Chicago White Sox are sellers than the team unloading Jose Quintana to the Chicago Cubs for four prospects then I don’t know what to tell you. The White Sox have more they may unload including, but not limited to, third baseman Todd Frazier and first baseman Jose Abreu. The Detroit Tigers will also be sellers along with the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Oakland Athletics. Sonny Gray is still being seen as a gamble which is keeping his price tag low for the Athletics while the asking price for Gerrit Cole of the Pirates is said to be “enormous.” The San Diego Padres have a couple relief pitchers that are likely to be traded this July including Brad Hand while the San Francisco Giants are already said to be fielding calls for third baseman and former Yankee Eduardo Nunez. The Phillies will trade Pat Neshek before the end of the trading deadline while they may also trade first baseman Tommy Joseph to really jumpstart the rebuild in Philadelphia. 

The Chicago Cubs are obvious buyers after getting Jose Quintana from the Chicago White Sox but after the four prospect haul they already sent off they may not be serious buyers. The Cubs may buy-low on some players but I think their heavy lifting is done. The Washington Nationals also look to be buyers at this year’s trade deadline and will once again be in the market for a closer after losing Mark Melancon to the San Francisco Giants this offseason. Sean Kelley isn’t cutting it and I could have told you guys that was going to happen. The Miami Marlins have also told teams that they are open for business so expect Justin Bour and basically anyone not named Giancarlo Stanton to at least be available. 

The Yankees lead the “undecided” vote as the team may be waiting to see how this weekend series with the Boston Red Sox goes while the Milwaukee Brewers may also look to stand relatively still at the trade deadline despite their strong first half and lead in the NL Central Division. The Arizona Diamondbacks are also unlikely to do much as the team seems unwilling to trade key prospects out of the farm system while the Colorado Rockies may make a trade for the Reds Zack Cozart and call it a day. The Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Rays are unlikely to do much at this year’s trading deadline while I also, and this is my pure speculation, cannot see the Minnesota Twins dipping their feet into the deep end of the trade market either. 

The next couple weeks are going to be fun and I truly can’t wait to watch it all unfold. 

Solution: 15 K’s & Red Thunder…

Credit:  Al Bello-Getty Images

Yankees 5, Brewers 3…

Finally!  A fun and dramatic game.  Clint Frazier was the man of the hour with three hits.  The first hit broke up a no-hitter by Milwaukee starter Brent Suter in the fifth inning.  The second hit brought the Yankees within a run when the ball landed on top of the Stub Hub sign in left for a triple to score two runs.  The third hit was a game-winning walk-off home run to left as the Yankees overcame the Brewers on Saturday afternoon.  

The first inning didn’t get started on the right foot.  After Eric Thames looped a double to right field, Travis Shaw was awarded first base in a controversial “hit by pitch”.  The umpire didn’t react until Shaw said something which caused the ump to send Shaw to first base, drawing the ire of Manager Joe Girardi.  Girardi could be overheard saying “He called it, you didn’t call it”.  The TV replays, to me, were inconclusive.  If the ball hit Shaw, it was fabric only but even then, the jersey didn’t move as the ball passed through to the catcher’s mitt.  

Credit:  Julio Cortez-AP

Domingo Santana followed with a fly ball just over the right field wall which gave the Brewers an early 3-0 lead.  

Credit:  Getty Images

For the Brewers, it would be the end of their offensive show for the day.  Luis Severino made the necessary adjustments (I hope you were watching, Michael Pineda!) and shut the Brewers down for the next six innings.  By the time he departed, he had pitched 7 innings, allowing 6 hits and the 3 runs allowed via the first inning home run.  He walked two, both in the 6th inning, while striking out 10.  It was a no-decision for him but the Yankees do not win this game without Severino’s performance.

Credit:  Julio Cortez-AP

The Yankees had a scoring opportunity in the 2nd inning when Didi Gregorius lofted a fly ball to center.  Four Brewers converged at the same time and the ball fell between them for an error on Brewers shortstop Orlando Arcia.  But the Yankees were subsequently caught with awful base-running. Chase Headley hit a come-backer to the pitcher and the Brewers had Didi caught between second and third.  Didi didn’t try to extend the rundown and the Brewers were able to tag Didi out and nail Headley off first base for the double play.  If Didi had tried to evade the tag, it would have given Headley the time to get back to first.

The Yankee bats were silent until the fifth inning when Clint Frazier finally collected the Yankees’ first hit off Brent Suter, a two-out single to right.  The Yankees weren’t able to do anything with it but it was a start.

After Luis Severino struck out Eric Thames with a runner in scoring position to end the top of the 7th, the Yankees finally got some runs on the board.  Chase Headley hit a one-out ground rule double to center.  Jacoby Ellsbury singled to move Headley to third.  A failed pick-off attempt at first allowed Headley to score while Ellsbury moved to third.  Clint Frazier hit a fly ball that momentarily looked to be a home run but it bounced off the lower part of the left field wall for a triple which scored Ellsbury.  The Yankees had closed the gap to 3-2.  Ji-Man Choi, pinch hitting for Austin Romine, and Ronald Torreyes were unable to bring Frazier home.

Onto the 8th inning and it was time for the Yankees bullpen which has been an Achilles Heel in recent days.  Dellin Betances took the mound in relief of Severino.  It was a ‘hold your breath’ moment until Betances proved to be the All-Star that he is, allowing everyone to exhale.  He induced Ryan Braun to ground out and then struck out both Travis Shaw and Domingo Santana.  Whew...Welcome back, Dellin!

Credit:  Corey Sipkin-New York Post

The Yankees were unable to generate any offense in the bottom of the 8th.  Moving to the top of the 9th, Aroldis Chapman replaced Betances.  Chapman has struggled with his command in recent games, but not yesterday. Three strikeouts later, it was off the bottom of the 9th with the Yankees still trailing by one run.  The Brewers brought in their strong closer, Corey Knebel, who has been a very pleasant surprise for the Brewers this year.  Knebel has struck out 72 batters in 41 innings while saving 13 games for Milwaukee.  He came into the game having only allowed 5 runs in 41 games.  The only knock against him is a tendency to walk too many batters. The weakness appeared right away as Didi Gregorius walked to open the inning on four straight balls.  Chase Headley went down swinging but Jacoby Ellsbury, like Didi, also walked on four straight balls as Knebel continued to struggle with his control.  So, the Yankees had runners at first and second with one-out when Red Thunder strolled to the plate.  After a ball in the dirt, Knebel grooved a 97 mph four-seam fastball down the middle.  With his blazing bat speed, Frazier quickly blasted a shot into the left field stands for the game-winning three-run home run as the Yankees won the game, 5-3.  

Credit:  Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Aroldis Chapman (2-0) was the winner.  The Yankees (45-40) were able to pick up a game on the Boston Red Sox so they are 3.5 games out in the AL East.  The Tampa Bay Rays remain a game behind the Yankees, courtesy of their 1-0 victory over the Red Sox.  

Credit:  Julio Cortez-AP

The Yankees conclude the first half today when Masahiro Tanaka (7-7, 5.25 ERA) takes the mound against Milwaukee’s Jimmy Nelson (7-4, 3.20 ERA).  Hopefully, yesterday’s dramatic win and stellar bullpen work provide the momentum for a new surge by the home team.

Odds & Ends…

The rumor mill is certainly heating up.  Within the last 24 hours, it has been reported the Yankees have heavy interest in first baseman Justin Bour of the Miami Marlins and reliever Brad Hand of the San Diego Padres.  I am always a little suspect of the trade rumors you openly hear about as GM Brian Cashman generally plays his cards close to the vest.  The more likely trades are the ones that you never hear about in advance. I would love to have Hand in the bullpen but the issue is cost.  I’d hate to lose Chance Adams or Miguel Andujar (a couple of the names that have been mentioned). There would be a bit of irony with the Marlins (which includes Manager Don Mattingly) sending Bour to New York to be the Yankees first baseman.  Bour hit his 20th homer of the year yesterday in Miami’s 5-4 victory over the San Francisco Giants.  There’s no doubt he’d be an upgrade over Ji-Man Choi. 

Credit:  Ben Margot-AP

The YES Network’s Michael Kay mentioned an interesting stat during the telecast.  Yesterday was the 17-year anniversary of the Yankees’ double-header sweep over the New York Mets which featured games at both home parks.  Dwight Gooden and Roger Clemens were the winning pitchers in the subway double-header.  It’s hard to believe that it has been 17 years as I can clearly remember that day well.  It was a preview of the memorable Fall Classic that would pit the two teams against each other.

Matt Holliday was 2-for-4, both singles, with two runs scored in his rehab assignment for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.  The RailRiders won the game, 8-1, over the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs.  Jake Cave was 3-for-3 with 2 HR’s and 5 RBI’s.  Miguel Andujar also chipped in a home run.

Have a great Sunday!  I am looking forward to more Red Thunder! But, please, no Tyler Clippard. Let’s Go Yankees!

Padres Ask for Gleyber Torres, Give Them Jorge Mateo Instead

The San Diego Padres are looking for their shortstop of the future and in their journey the team has found themselves knocking on the door of the New York Yankees. The San Diego Padres have made it clear that they want New York’s top prospect Gleyber Torres but as of the time of this writing Yankees GM Brian Cashman has been reluctant to give up any of his top prospects in any deal, period, especially Torres. If the Padres want to make a deal and need a shortstop of the future could the Yankees give them Jorge Mateo instead of Torres, who is injured and technically cannot be traded although the “player to be named later” route is always possible, and land a guy like Brad Hand?

The Padres are high on Hand and they have absolutely no reason they “have” to trade him but for a rebuilding team like San Diego they may see it as a way to accelerate the rebuild. Trading Hand for Mateo and maybe another prospect or two works for both sides as San Diego gets their shortstop and the Yankees get some much needed bullpen help not only for 2017 but for years to come.

At the time of his injury Torres was hitting .309 with two home runs and 16 RBI in 23 games at Triple-A Scranton after playing 32 games in Double-A as well in 2017. Hand is great and has pitched extremely well in 2017 but in no way, shape or form is he worth Torres. Torres looks to be a perennial All-Star and absolute beast in the making, you don’t trade that for a relief pitcher. Period. Mateo’s spot on the team in the future is not as clear as Torres’ spot so moving him for something useful makes much more sense for the Yankees and for Mateo who is seemingly blocked at second base and shortstop.

The Padres have reportedly asked for Torres but I wonder if Cashman thought to counter with Mateo. If he didn’t then maybe he should because the Yankees could use a guy like Hand going forward. Hand is a serviceable reliever and is under team control on a team-friendly deal for a few years making him fit into the plan to get under the luxury tax threshold after the 2017 season.

Get it done Cash.

What the Yankees Can Do if “Tyler Clippard Sucks”

The whole “fill in the blank with the players name Sucks” campaign has really been a running joke here on the blog since the days of Stephen Drew manning second base in the Bronx. Then, admittedly, it was meant to be an insult because Drew was just absolutely terrible for New York but it has since evolved into more of a sarcastic way of saying that the player is struggling. Some players take these struggles and build on them and get better while others let the big lights, the media scrutiny and the fans get to them before folding under the pressure. Which one of these will Tyler Clippard be and what can the Yankees do if Tyler Clippard Sucks going forward? 

The Yankees have a few options, the first option should be to take Clippard out of these high-leverage situations. Let Clippard rebuild some of his confidence in the 6^th inning or with a huge lead or deficit and stop letting him enter in close games for a while. Let Adam Warren have those big innings when he returns from his injury or let Dellin Betances have more than one inning, just don’t let Clippard have them for a while. He needs a confidence boost and letting games get away like he did on Monday against the Angels isn’t helping. 

If you don’t trust Clippard and his track record, and just for the record I do but playing Devil’s Advocate helps write articles and can be fun sometimes, then there seems to be plenty of presumably available relievers out there on the trade market. When looking at who could potentially be available and who isn’t the first thing you look at is the team’s record which will usually tell you if the team will be a buyer or a seller at the deadline. Then you look at that particular team’s bullpen for standout arms with good statistics which brought me to this list of arms the Yankees could potentially look at.  

Pat Neshek of the Philadelphia Phillies will be moved because at the time of this writing he is pitching to a sub-1.00 ERA while the Phillies are on pace for their worst season in the history of Major League Baseball. Not far behind the Phillies are the San Diego Padres in terms of wins and losses despite the efforts of 27-year old left-hander Brad Hand. Hand is under team control until 2020 though so this would likely require a nice package of prospects if he were to be made available. The final arm that looks all but likely to be traded will be right-hander Ryan Madson of the Oakland Athletics who has been pitching well out in the Oakland Coliseum. Entering this week Madson had pitched to a 2.63 ERA and a WHIP under 1.00. 

The Miami Marlins could make or break the trade deadline this year as the team seems to be undecided on whether they will be buyers or sellers. If the team buys then there are at least two arms that come off the potential trade board but if the team decides to sell the Yankees could look at one or both of former Yankees right-hander David Phelps and AJ Ramos. Phelps, like he was with the Yankees, has been the swingman for the Marlins since the Martin Prado trade three seasons ago while Ramos has posted huge strikeout numbers (12.4 K/9) in 2017 despite having an ERA over 4.00.

Stay tuned.