First Wave of Yankees Spring Cuts Are In

I know we are a bit late to the party but we had a scheduled day off or two this weekend so we are just getting caught back up. The first wave of spring training cuts are in and some of the Yankees top prospects are being assigned to minor league camps, as expected and as predicted by yours truly here on the blog just last week.

The Yankees cut 11 players over the weekend and assigned them to minor league camps including left-hander Justus Sheffield, right-hander J.P Feyereisen, RHP Brady Lail, RHP Nick Rumbelow, LHP Joe Mantiply, LHP Evan Rutckyj, LHP Daniel Camarena, LHP James Reeves, C Jorge Saez, C Francisco Diaz and C Kellin Deglan. I had Sheffield, Saez, Diaz, Deglan and Rutckyj going down but I totally whiffed on Feyereisen, Lail, Mantiply, Rumbelow and Reeves. I am also shocked to see Clint Frazier, James Kaprielian, Gleyber Torres and Jorge Mateo still in Yankees camp. Maybe after the World Baseball Classic? Who knows?

More cuts will come as the Yankees try to dwindle their roster down to just 25 players so stay tuned. When those cuts and assignments are made we will have them here for you on the blog. Stay tuned.

Don’t Sleep on These Yankees Arms in 2017

The New York Yankees, much like every team at this point in the season, presumably feels pretty good about their starting rotation right now. Sure, they would have liked to have added more in terms of innings, stability and durability but if you look at things on paper the Yankees, remember that they are in a “rebuilding” year, are doing well. Luis Severino is working on his mechanics, Michael Pineda is in a contract year, CC Sabathia has shown an ability to pitch and not just throw, Masahiro Tanaka is pitching towards an opt-out clause in his contract, Chad Green should be back healthy and Luis Cessa was awfully effective last year for New York. The problem for the Yankees though is that these games are not played on paper and you always need a Plan B. Here are a few Plan B’s that the Yankees should not be sleeping on as we inch towards the 2017 regular season.

Brady Lail, for some odd reason, always reminds me of Rookie Davis (the prospect traded for Aroldis Chapman last spring) and for some odd reason Rookie Davis always reminded me of Adam Warren and David Phelps. None were aces but all are and/or have the potential to be solid MLB pitchers who can get MLB hitters out and give you five-or-six innings every fifth day. Lail, who was originally drafted in the 18^th round in 2012, has been a slow riser but he has been an impressive since reaching Double-A. Lail is not going to blow people away or strike out 10+ a game but where he lacks in velocity he more than makes up in command and finesse. Lail throws three offspeed pitches to compliment his low 90’s fastball and simply gets opposing batters out, period.

Nestor Cortes broke out in a big way in 2016 while down with the Charleston Riverdogs which propelled him through Tampa and Trenton all the way to Triple-A with the Scranton/Wilkes Barre RailRiders. Cortes, like Lail, is not going to throw 100 MPH or strike out 15 every single game but he simply pounds the strike zone and doesn’t beat himself. Cortes, like Lail, pitches rather than throws and they both do it exceptionally well.

James Kaprielian. I know what you’re thinking, no one is sleeping on Kaprielian. Well, you may be wrong. Kaprielian entered the 2016 season as the first in line to come out of the minor league system if the Yankees needed an arm but an injury later and most of the 2016 season lost to injury it’s hard to feel that confident in Kaprielian heading into this season. Kaprielian did pitch in the Arizona Fall League and seems healthy though so the sky is the limit for the right-hander in 2016. Cautiously anyway. 

Shock the World & Make THIS Trade

Hello again Yankees family. This morning we are coming to you live from the land of the crazies again as I bring you another trade that the Yankees could and possibly SHOULD make this offseason. Now remember when reading this that I was also “crazy” when I discussed the possibility of the Yankees making a huge splash this winter acquiring Mike Trout, well until Sweeny Murti “had the idea” and it was all of a sudden a great idea, and I’m back at it again with another off-the-wall trade proposal that would not only shock Major League Baseball and turn the game upside down but it also might just work for the New York Yankees.  

Brian Cashman, pick up the phone and ask the Arizona Diamondbacks what they want for Zack Greinke. The Arizona Diamondbacks almost need to trade Greinke this offseason in order to push the franchise forward and do really anything this winter. His contract is an organization buckling type deal for a team like the Diamondbacks and the team in the desert is already talking about trading him. Who could blame them, Zack Greinke is in no way, shape or form a $34 million pitcher in my opinion, especially through the 2021 season, but because of that not many teams besides the Yankees can and will take on a contract of that magnitude. For that reason the Yankees have their bargaining chip.

The Yankees have a ton of money coming off the books this season and next and while this could also hamper the Yankees for quite some time, especially if Masahiro Tanaka does not opt-out after this season, with the influx of youth the team could remain competitive while still getting under the luxury tax threshold. Remember, the team only has to get under the cap for one reason to reset all penalties which is something that can easily be done with the Gary Sanchez’s, Aaron Judge’s and Tyler Austin’s of the world on the roster. The Yankees have over $50 million coming off the books this season alone so $34 million for Greinke plus $16 million for Aroldis Chapman, for example, and the team adds minimal salary through arbitration while being better than their 2016 version tenfold. 

If the Yankees take on the entire contract the prospect demand would be minimal, extremely minimal. Greinke had a down season in 2016, and truth be told most free agents do after signing contracts like he did before last season, and should bounce back in 2017. He didn’t lose velocity on his fastball and he was relatively healthy last season, he just didn’t have the defense, the run support or whatever else he was missing from the Dodgers on the Diamondbacks last season. Simple as that, it happens. If the Yankees can get Arizona to pay down some of that deal and send a pitcher like Brady Lail, who was not protected from the Rule 5 Draft, Chad Green or Luis Cessa and a smaller prospect package I think the deal could ultimately get done. Quite easily actually. -

Oh and before anyone brings up his anxiety and inability to pitch in the big markets like New York let’s remember how long ago Greinke actually fought anxiety and depression and let’s remember how he has pitched on the biggest of stages, i.e. the playoffs, the All-Star Game etc. He’ll do fine. Trust me. Famous last words I know but do it anyway, Greinke will be fine in New York or wherever he goes. Let’s just hope Brian Cashman has the balls to make sure where he goes in 2017 is New York. 

Most Popular Article of the Week: Yankees Leave Several Good Prospects Available for Rule 5 Draft

The New York Yankees finalized their 40 man roster last week by adding six prospects to the 40 man roster and shuffling around a slew of others. Jorge Mateo, Miguel Andujar, Dietrich Enns, Ronald Herrera, Yefrey Ramirez and Giovanny Gallegos were added to the 40 man roster but there are a ton of talented players who were left unprotected from the Rule 5 Draft.


Jake Cave has been left unprotected once again after being taken with the second selection overall in the Rule 5 Draft last season by the Cincinnati Reds. Cave had another good season in Triple-A in 2016 and can play all three outfield positions so expect another team to take a waiver on him as their 4th or 5th outfielder this Rule 5 Draft as well.


Tyler Webb, I thought anyway, would be one of the reasons that James Pazos was traded this offseason but for whatever reason the Yankees have left Webb, another left-handed reliever, available to lose in the draft as well. Webb is 26-years old and has all but mastered Triple-A hitters pitching to a 3.59 ERA in 2016 so expect him to be in someone else’s bullpen in 2017.


The decision to leave Brady Lail out there also surprised me a little since Lail is one of the closest and better Yankees pitching prospects in the system. Lail is just 23-years old but he did struggle in Triple-A a bit this season so he is on the line of whether he will be chosen or not in my opinion.


Cale Coshow is one of the many Yankees pitchers that are drafted as relief pitchers only to be converted into a starting pitcher once in the Yankees system. For that reason Coshow is a bit behind on the curve reaching just Double-A this season. Coshow struggled some with the Trenton Thunder leading me to believe he will be with the Yankees in 2017 as well.





There are others but none of them, again in my opinion, has a shot at being taken and sticking on other roster. This is the list of potential Yankees prospects that could be taken this winter in the draft. Who do you see being taken? Leave it down below in the comments section. Thanks!

Yankees Leave Several Good Prospects Available for Rule 5 Draft

The New York Yankees finalized their 40 man roster last week by adding six prospects to the 40 man roster and shuffling around a slew of others. Jorge Mateo, Miguel Andujar, Dietrich Enns, Ronald Herrera, Yefrey Ramirez and Giovanny Gallegos were added to the 40 man roster but there are a ton of talented players who were left unprotected from the Rule 5 Draft.

Jake Cave has been left unprotected once again after being taken with the second selection overall in the Rule 5 Draft last season by the Cincinnati Reds. Cave had another good season in Triple-A in 2016 and can play all three outfield positions so expect another team to take a waiver on him as their 4^th or 5^th outfielder this Rule 5 Draft as well.

Tyler Webb, I thought anyway, would be one of the reasons that James Pazos was traded this offseason but for whatever reason the Yankees have left Webb, another left-handed reliever, available to lose in the draft as well. Webb is 26-years old and has all but mastered Triple-A hitters pitching to a 3.59 ERA in 2016 so expect him to be in someone else’s bullpen in 2017.

The decision to leave Brady Lail out there also surprised me a little since Lail is one of the closest and better Yankees pitching prospects in the system. Lail is just 23-years old but he did struggle in Triple-A a bit this season so he is on the line of whether he will be chosen or not in my opinion.

Cale Coshow is one of the many Yankees pitchers that are drafted as relief pitchers only to be converted into a starting pitcher once in the Yankees system. For that reason Coshow is a bit behind on the curve reaching just Double-A this season. Coshow struggled some with the Trenton Thunder leading me to believe he will be with the Yankees in 2017 as well.

There are others but none of them, again in my opinion, has a shot at being taken and sticking on other roster. This is the list of potential Yankees prospects that could be taken this winter in the draft. Who do you see being taken? Leave it down below in the comments section. Thanks!

Weekly Prospects Check In: Brady Lail

So normally this Monday morning slot is reserved for Clint Frazier but a pesky hamstring injury is keeping us from doing that in good conscience leaving us with an opportunity to check in with another key Yankees prospect. With Bryan Mitchell likely coming up this week to take Chad Green's rotation spot the Triple-A Scranton RailRiders will have to rely on the right arm of Brady Lail as they head towards the playoffs and beyond.

Let's see what Lail has been up to this season thus far across three MiLB levels:

Year	Age	Tm	W	L	ERA	G	GS	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	WHIP	H9	HR9	BB9	SO9
2016	22	3 Teams	8	8	4.62	24	24	126.2	133	74	65	13	42	75	1.382	9.4	0.9	3.0	5.3
2016	22	Yankees West	0	0	0.00	1	1	2.2	3	2	0	0	0	0	1.125	10.1	0.0	0.0	0.0
2016	22	Trenton	1	2	3.69	6	6	31.2	33	15	13	2	12	17	1.421	9.4	0.6	3.4	4.8
2016	22	Scranton/Wilkes-Barre	7	6	5.07	17	17	92.1	97	57	52	11	30	58	1.375	9.5	1.1	2.9	5.7

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

ICYMI: The Yankees & The 2017 Rule 5 Draft

EDIT: After being handed the smack down in the comments section and delving a little deeper into some stats and research I found that both Gio Gallegos and Dietrich Enns have done far better than I originally thought. I still don't think they are protected because of the 40 man crunch that is going on in the Bronx right now but I cannot say anymore that they are 100% locks to not be protected either. Hat tip to Jeff Levin from the comments sections for the heads up and the correction.

The New York Yankees youth movement is in full effect and with the excitement of seeing the likes of Tyler Austin, Gary Sanchez, Aaron Judge and others comes the tough decisions that come along with stockpiling talent down in the minor leagues. The toughest decision of all tends to always come down to who should you protect and who should you leave unprotected from the Rule 5 Draft every winter. The Yankees have quite a few notable prospects that could be up for grabs this winter so here is who they are and who I think the Yankees will and should protect. If you disagree or if I miss anyone please leave it below in the comments section.


The list of Rule 5 Draft eligible players this winter include Miguel Andujar, Jorge Mateo, Jake Cave, Kyle Higashioka, Dietrich Enns, Gio Gallegos, Brady Lail, Tyler Webb, Dante Bichette Jr., Rashad Crawford, Cale Coshow, Cito Culver, Ty Hensley, Mark Montgomery and Luis Torrens. It’s also worth mentioning that both Higashioka and Culver are set to become minor league free agents at the end of the season as well so the Yankees are at risk of losing them all together if they are not Rule 5 protected. So who gets protected and who doesn’t?


You have to think that both Andujar and Mateo are givens to be protected. I highly doubt either are technically MLB ready but they are also loaded with talents and I could see a team sacrificing their development for a year to keep them on the bench as a pinch hitter, pinch runner or defensive replacement just to keep them within their organization. Those are the easy ones. The list of players I don’t believe will be protected due to being at low risk of being taken are Bichette, Crawford, Coshow, Culver, Hensley and Montgomery. Those also seems close to being locks for me. Now for the hard part, the players stuck in the middle.


Cave was left unprotected last year and was taken by the Cincinnati Reds only to be handed back after spring training and with the absolute log jam in the Yankees outfield right now (barring an offseason trade) I can see him being left unprotected once again this offseason, and taken once again this offseason. Dietrich Enns, Gio Gallegos and Brady Lail remind me a lot of Rookie Davis who was protected last year and then traded. They aren’t blowing competitors away and knocking on the door in Triple-A but they are some of the best pitching prospects the Yankees have so any of the three could be protected, or maybe they won’t. I believe the toughest decision though will come down to the two Yankees catchers Luis Torrens and Kyle Higashioka.





Higashioka seems to be a late bloomer and has become a legitimate prospect for the Yankees while Torrens remains one of, if not the, top Yankees catching prospect in all of the farm affiliates. The problem with Torrens is that he is a good two or three years away from the Major Leagues. The talent is there, see what I said above about Andujar and Mateo, so he could be protected but I just can’t see it. I would personally protect Torrens and try to work out something on the side with Higashioka, see Mason Williams and Slade Heathcott for recent examples of this type of “release” then re-sign tactic the Yankees have employed to circumvent the 40 man roster, if at all possible. If not I think Higashioka will be protected and Torrens will be left out there for anyone to snatch up.

Weekly Prospects Check In: Brady Lail

Yesterday morning we learned who the New York Yankees will either have to protect or leave out there for anyone to grab up in the Rule 5 Draft this winter and one of those men is the showcase of the day here on the blog, Brady Lail. For whatever reason, because it’s definitely not the stuff, pitching repertoire, etc. Lail reminds me a lot of a pitcher who was protected and then ultimately traded last year in Rookie Davis. I guess the comparisons come to my mind because neither are going to blow you away with overpowering stuff and neither are probably going to strike out 200+ in a season or win 20+ games in a year but both just always seem to find a way to keep their team in the game, find a way to win and simply find a way to pitch in the purest sense of the word.

For these reasons alone I believe Lail will be left unprotected this winter and for these reasons I believe some team may take a waiver on him and give him all spring training to prove his worth. I mean what does the picking team have to lose in the grand scheme of things? So here is what Lail has done this season to date and here is what the Yankees are at risk of losing here this winter. One game at a time though, let’s worry about this winter in the winter. 

Year	Age	Lev	W	L	ERA	G	GS	CG	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	WHIP	H9	HR9	BB9	SO9
2016	22	AAA-AA-Rk	7	7	4.38	22	22	1	117.0	119	65	57	13	36	69	1.325	9.2	1.0	2.8	5.3
2016	22	Rk	0	0	0.00	1	1	0	2.2	3	2	0	0	0	0	1.125	10.1	0.0	0.0	0.0
2016	22	AA	1	2	3.69	6	6	1	31.2	33	15	13	2	12	17	1.421	9.4	0.6	3.4	4.8
2016	22	AAA	6	5	4.79	15	15	0	82.2	83	48	44	11	24	52	1.294	9.0	1.2	2.6	5.7

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

The Yankees & The 2017 Rule 5 Draft

The New York Yankees youth movement is in full effect and with the excitement of seeing the likes of Tyler Austin, Gary Sanchez, Aaron Judge and others comes the tough decisions that come along with stockpiling talent down in the minor leagues. The toughest decision of all tends to always come down to who should you protect and who should you leave unprotected from the Rule 5 Draft every winter. The Yankees have quite a few notable prospects that could be up for grabs this winter so here is who they are and who I think the Yankees will and should protect. If you disagree or if I miss anyone please leave it below in the comments section. 

The list of Rule 5 Draft eligible players this winter include Miguel Andujar, Jorge Mateo, Jake Cave, Kyle Higashioka, Dietrich Enns, Gio Gallegos, Brady Lail, Tyler Webb, Dante Bichette Jr., Rashad Crawford, Cale Coshow, Cito Culver, Ty Hensley, Mark Montgomery and Luis Torrens. It’s also worth mentioning that both Higashioka and Culver are set to become minor league free agents at the end of the season as well so the Yankees are at risk of losing them all together if they are not Rule 5 protected. So who gets protected and who doesn’t? 

You have to think that both Andujar and Mateo are givens to be protected. I highly doubt either are technically MLB ready but they are also loaded with talents and I could see a team sacrificing their development for a year to keep them on the bench as a pinch hitter, pinch runner or defensive replacement just to keep them within their organization. Those are the easy ones. The list of players I don’t believe will be protected due to being at low risk of being taken are Bichette, Crawford, Coshow, Culver, Hensley and Montgomery. Those also seems close to being locks for me. Now for the hard part, the players stuck in the middle. 

Cave was left unprotected last year and was taken by the Cincinnati Reds only to be handed back after spring training and with the absolute log jam in the Yankees outfield right now (barring an offseason trade) I can see him being left unprotected once again this offseason, and taken once again this offseason. Dietrich Enns, Gio Gallegos and Brady Lail remind me a lot of Rookie Davis who was protected last year and then traded. They aren’t blowing competitors away and knocking on the door in Triple-A but they are some of the best pitching prospects the Yankees have so any of the three could be protected, or maybe they won’t. I believe the toughest decision though will come down to the two Yankees catchers Luis Torrens and Kyle Higashioka. 

Higashioka seems to be a late bloomer and has become a legitimate prospect for the Yankees while Torrens remains one of, if not the, top Yankees catching prospect in all of the farm affiliates. The problem with Torrens is that he is a good two or three years away from the Major Leagues. The talent is there, see what I said above about Andujar and Mateo, so he could be protected but I just can’t see it. I would personally protect Torrens and try to work out something on the side with Higashioka, see Mason Williams and Slade Heathcott for recent examples of this type of “release” then re-sign tactic the Yankees have employed to circumvent the 40 man roster, if at all possible. If not I think Higashioka will be protected and Torrens will be left out there for anyone to snatch up.

Weekly Check In: Ian Clarkin

The New York Yankees may need Ian Clarkin to have a big and productive season more than ever after another Yankees prospect bit the dust recently. Brady Lail was added to the minor leagues 7-Day DL with an injury joining notable prospects such as Nick Rumbelow, Branden Pinder, James Kaprielian and others. Ian Clarkin, along with tomorrow’s check in Domingo Acevedo, may be the Yankees only hope for a big season from a pitching prospect in 2016 at this rate.

The problem for New York is both Clarkin and Acevedo are so far away from the Major Leagues and the Yankees need help now. Oh well, you have to take the good with the bad and ride the waves. Here’s what Clarkin has been up to this week and this season since we last checked in with him. 

Year	Age	Tm	W	L	ERA	G	GS	CG	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	WHIP	H9	HR9	BB9	SO9
2016	21	Tampa	5	6	3.30	13	13	2	73.2	76	33	27	3	22	51	1.330	9.3	0.4	2.7	6.2

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

Weekly Prospects Check In: Brady Lail

Until James Kaprielian comes back, and speaking of Kaprielian this elbow injury is scaring me more and more... does inflammation take this long to come back from usually?, the Yankees top prospect pitching prospect is there for the taking. Luis Severino is no longer prospect eligible despite the fact that he's in Triple-A with the RailRiders so could it be Ian Clarkin? Is it Domingo Acevedo? Or is it today's check in, Brady Lail?

Lail has been quietly following the same path that many Yankees prospects in front of him have followed including David Phelps, Adam Warren, Rookie Davis, Bryan Mitchell and others have. Climb the ladder in the minors without turning heads and continue to simply get guys out at the MLB level when you get there. Lail won't be an ace and he won't fetch you a top guy in a trade but he's solid and he knows how to get batters out.

Sometimes that's enough.

Year	Age	Lev	W	L	ERA	G	GS	CG	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	WHIP	H9	HR9	BB9	SO9
2016	22	AAA-AA	4	4	4.00	13	13	1	72.0	75	38	32	5	23	43	1.361	9.4	0.6	2.9	5.4
2016	22	AA	1	2	4.23	5	5	1	27.2	30	15	13	2	12	15	1.518	9.8	0.7	3.9	4.9
2016	22	AAA	3	2	3.86	8	8	0	44.1	45	23	19	3	11	28	1.263	9.1	0.6	2.2	5.7

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

Pineda Makes Start on Thursday, Why?

The New York Yankees have an odd way of going about things in my opinion when it comes to roster management and such. The Yankees will seemingly, and this is my opinion as a lifelong fan and as someone who watches almost every single game every single season, call up a young guy and wait on him to fail while they sign a veteran that stinks up the joint and keeps his job. Luis Severino is down and will likely stay down once he's healthy, my speculation as nothing has been confirmed, yet Michael Pineda (who has a minor league option remaining) and his almost 7.00 ERA will make his next scheduled start on Thursday against Toronto. Why?

Pineda has the worst ERA in all of Major League Baseball among qualified starters. The worst. Worse than Luis Severino and much worse than the whipping boy of the rotation heading into the season in Mr. CC Sabathia. The real answer to the question is this though, who would the Yankees call up to replace him?

Sure I realize that any of Luis Cessa, Chad Green, Brady Lail, Severino (who threw three scoreless innings in his first rehab start since a triceps injury), Layne Somsen, Anthony Swarzak or others could go out and post a 7.00 ERA or lower and technically make the Yankees better there are a few saving graces for Mr. Pineda. Pineda is actually striking out 10.0 batters per nine innings and his velocity is sitting right around where it always has been throughout his career. Pineda seems healthy he just needs to get out of his own way.

How does one get out of their own way? Trust Brian McCann and throw what he calls. Something is not right with Pineda. Usually a control freak, literally and figuratively, Pineda is walking 2.5 batters per nine this season while walking just 0.8 and 1.2 batters per nine in his previous two seasons in New York. Limiting base runners makes his 1.9 HR/9 ratio look a little better as well as that ugly 6.92 ERA.

So why won't the Yankees demote Pineda to figure it out in the minor leagues? Because they can't. They should, but they can't.