The Atlanta Braves are Stockpiling Former Yankees Prospects

When the Yankees parted ways with former scout Gordon Blakely this offseason there wasn't much press about it. When I did a search on the blog to see if I even wrote about it I found just one article, not the article stating that he left but an article where I just lumped it into the Trey Hillman Hired by Houston article. This was not on anyone's radar but after an offseason where the Braves cherry picked and picked off many former Yankees prospects maybe it should be on our radar now.

Many former Yankees including Manny Banuelos, Chien-Ming Wang, Zoilo Almonte, Corban Joseph, Francisco Rondon, Jairo Heredia, Eury Perez and Jose Veras among others are currently in Atlanta Braves spring training camp. While there aren't any All Stars on this list and while I acknowledge that all of them but Banuelos were acquired because they were allowed to be free agents for good reason this may be the beginning of a trend in Atlanta.

Blakely was the man who signed Robinson Cano. What that means now doesn't mean what it mean't back about 10 years ago but I think the former Yankees scout is trying to find lightning in a bottle again at the Yankees expense. If any team can take a reclamation project and turn them into a serviceable MLB piece it's the Atlanta Braves so remember that list above. You may be seeing their names soon.

Expect Heathcott and Campos Back, Maybe Huff

I was shocked a bit when I heard the news that the Yankees had non-tendered outfielder Slade Heathcott and pitchers Jose Campos and David Huff but history got me thinking that we may see Heathcott and Campos back in Yankees camp soon. In recent years the Yankees have done the same to third baseman David Adams and to some extent Nik Turley, Francisco Rondon and Corban Joseph to get them off the 40 man roster but still with the organization.

New York quickly brought these players back on minor league deals without the 40 man roster obligation presumably on some kind of verbal agreement. I can only speculate here that a similar issue is going on with Heathcott and Campos this season. Both players have often been injured and run very little risk of being claimed on waivers by other teams or picked up by other teams. Huff on the other hand could be doing the same but after a strong second half with the Yankees may be looking to latch on elsewhere.

Don’t panic Yankees fans all this means is the team has three more open 40 man roster spots and could have all three back in Spring Training or back with the team in some capacity in 2015. 

Yankees Announce 12 Cuts From Spring Camp

The New York Yankees have announced 12 cuts from spring training camp today. The cuts include outfielders Ramon Flores, Tyler Austin, and Mason Williams, catchers Peter O'Brien and Francisco Arcia, RHP's Robert Coello, Bruce Billings, Brian Gordon, Mark Montgomery, and Chase Whitley, and infielders Jose Pirela and Corban Joseph.

Flores was the only man on the 40 man roster so he was technically assigned to Scranton Wilkes Barre with the RailRiders. None of these guys except for maybe Whitley or Montgomery had a legitimate shot at making the team so these cuts should not come as a surprise.

The real cuts will start coming later this week and next week as the roster continues to shrink to 25.

New York Yankees Spring Training News & Notes 3/9

Kelly Johnson has a total of 18 innings in his career at first base but will get the start their this afternoon when the Yankees host the Tampa Bay Rays in their latest spring training game. Manager Joe Girardi has officially named Johnson the backup first basemen for Mark Teixeira and his surgically repaired wrist.

Adam Warren is throwing a simulated game today getting ready for his start next Saturday down in Panama. Shawn Kelley threw a simulated game to Corban Joseph and Austin Romine.

Tomorrow is a true off day, no workouts or simulated games or anything like that.

Chad Jennings with the assignments as usual:

Today’s bullpen sessions:
Bryan Mitchell (to Roman Rodriguez)
Shane Greene (to Francisco Cervelli)
Jose Campos (to Gary Sanchez)
Vidal Nuno (to Jose Gil)
Jim Miller (to Austin Romine)
Dave Robertson (to Austin Romine)
Matt Thornton (to Francisco Arcia)
Hiroki Kuroda (to Roman Rodriguez)

· Batting practice groups:
Group 1: Derek Jeter, Brian Roberts, Alfonso Soriano, Ichiro Suzuki, Brian McCann
Group 2: Carlos Beltran, Jacoby Ellsbury, Brett Gardner, Kelly Johnson, Mark Teixiera
Group 3: Dean Anna, Russ Canzler, Yangervis Solarte, Zelous Wheeler, John Ryan Murphy
Group 4: Adonis Garcia, Ramon Flores, Jose Pirela, Mason Williams, Jose Gil
Group 5: Zoilo Almonte, Corban Joseph, Eduardo Nunez, Antoan Richardson, Scott Sizemore
Group 6: Francisco Arcia, Francisco Cervelli, Pete O’Brien, Austin Romine, Gary Sanchez

· Today’s second string: C John Ryan Murphy, 1B Russ Canzler, 2B Zelous Wheeler, SS Dean Anna, 3B Jose Pirela, LF Ramon Flores, CF Mason Williams, RF Adonis Garcia, DH Jose Gil

· Today’s scheduled relievers: Dellin Betances, Mark Montgomery, Bruce Billings, Danny Burawa, Matt Daley (with Preston Claiborne, Branden Pinder, Jeremy Bleich and Pat Venditte available if necessary)

· Travel squad for Vierra on Tuesday:
Pitchers: Dellin Betances, Danny Burawa, Cesar Cabral, Matt Daley, Brian Gordon, David Herndon, Fred Lewis, Jim Miller, Mark Montgomery, CC Sabathia, Chase Whitley
Catchers: Francisco Arcia, Francisco Cervelli, Jose Gil, Brian McCann, Austin Romine, Gary Sanchez
Infielders: Dean Anna, Corban Joseph, Eduardo Nunez, Jose Pirela, Scott Sizemore, Yangervis Solarte, Mark Teixeira, Zelous Wheeler
Outfielders: Zoilo Almonte, Jacoby Ellsbury, Ramon Flores, Adonis Garcia, Brett Gardner, Antoan Richardson, Mason Williams

New York Yankees Spring Training News & Notes 3/3

The New York Yankees ended the Washington Nationals perfect spring record this afternoon behind three strong innings of Ivan Nova baseball. The Yankees have won three straight games and have pitched well in all three contests. Here are a few news and notes from Yankees camp today.

David Robertson and Shawn Kelley both made their spring debuts for the Yankees today in the victory over the Washington Nationals. Robertson hit a batter but pitched a scoreless inning while Kelley gave up a long home run to center field. Interestingly Corban Joseph started at first base today, although it is spring training so it shouldn't be that odd. Another day and another catcher was showcased as the DH today as Francisco Cervelli was in the DH spot while Brian McCann was behind the plate.

Andy Pettitte arrived as a Yankees guest instructor at camp today. How cool does that have to be for the likes of Manny Banuelos, Vidal Nuno, and Cesar Cabral, fellow lefties.

Speaking of lefties Mark Teixeira took live batting practice for the first time since wrist surgery ended his 2013 season. He took BP off left handed pitcher Manny Banuelos and right handed pitcher Jose Campos. Teixeira called it "pretty uneventful" and if you ask me that means it was a success.

Derek Jeter will play again tomorrow since the Yankees have a night game, perfect time to see if he can play in back to back games. Jeter will be DH though so he will get a half a day off.

Joe Namath was at the game. I am a New York football Giants fan so I was not jumping up and down like some people were, prediction and all.

Chad Jennings with the assignments and bullpens and such like he has every day, and we thank him for them.

Morning bullpen sessions:
CC Sabathia (to Francisco Cervelli)
Masahiro Tanaka (to Austin Romine)
Dellin Betances (to Roman Rodriguez)

· Today’s second string: C John Ryan Murphy, 1B Jose Gil, 2B Zelous Wheeler, SS Addison Maruszak, 3B Jose Pirela, LF Ramon Flores, CF Mason Williams, RF Adonis Garcia

· Today’s scheduled relievers: Dave Robertson, Shawn Kelley, Dan Burawa, Yoshinori Tateyama, Robert Coello, Jim Miller (Chase Whitley, Mark Montgomery and Brian Gordon are listed as available if necessary)

· Batting practice groups:
Group 1: Derek Jeter, Brian Roberts, Ichiro Suzuki, Francisco Cervelli
Group 2: Brett Gardner, Kelly Johnson, Corban Joseph, Brian McCann
Group 3: Zoilo Almonte, Mason Williams, Jose Gil, John Ryan Murphy
Group 4: Ramon Flores, Adonis Garcia, Jose Pirela, Zelous Wheeler
Group 5: Carlos Beltran, Russ Canzler, Jacoby Ellsbury, Alfonso Soriano
Group 6: Eduardo Nunez, Brendan Ryan, Scott Sizemore, Mark Teixeira
Group 7: Dean Anna, Antoan Richardson, Yangervis Solarte, Austin Romine
Group 8: Addison Maruszak, Francisco Arcia, Pete O’Brien, Gary Sanchez

4-run second inning lifts Yankees past Nationals, 4-2

Thanks to 3 near-perfect innings from starter Ivan Nova (4 strikeouts, no walks, no hits, no runs), another scoreless frame from Closer David Robertson, and a four-run second inning performance (Johnson-RBI Double, Joseph-RBI Single, Ichiro-reached on error, credited with one RBI), the Yankees were able to beat the undefeated Nationals today at Steinbrenner Field, 4-2. Overall, this game was pretty boring, since the Yanks offense never did anything for seven of their 8 at-bats, but still, I'd say it was successful. I mean, Nova was terrible in his first start, so isn't the fact that he dominated today worth talking about?

Yankees Spring Training News & Notes For 2/21

The New York Yankees held their first full team workout today in spring training a day after all positional players joined the pitchers and catchers for Spring Training camps.

Adam Warren and Vidal Nuno threw live batting practice down at the Yankees minor league complex while Michael Pineda threw an early bullpen session.  Warren threw to catcher Jose Gil while Nuno threw to Francisco Arcia. Pineda threw to young Yankees catcher Peter O'Brien.

Corban Joseph took live batting practice today for the first time since a shoulder injury robbed him of his 2013 season. Joseph has been in Tampa since January finishing his rehab after playing through that shoulder pain for quite some time, maybe even before last season.

Derek Jeter took ground balls today with Brian Roberts. That could, if healthy, be a great middle of the infield and double play duo we have.

Alfonso Soriano is the first Yankee to miss time this season, it was just flu like symptoms though so don't worry. Soriano did not dress today but is expected to be back with the team tomorrow.

Once again Chad Jennings is Johnny on the spot with the assignments and stuff so a big thank you goes out to him:

Early live batting practice
Vidal Nuno (to Francisco Arcia)
Adam Warren (to Jose Gil)
Facing hitters Scott Sizemore, Corban Joseph and Tyler Austin

· Later live batting practice (begins at 12:05 p.m.):
Field 1
Preston Claiborne (to Brian McCann)
Jim Miller (to Francisco Cervelli)
Jose Ramirez (to Francisco Cervelli)
Dellin Betances (to John Ryan Murphy)
Dan Burawa (to John Ryan Murphy)
Nik Turley (to Austin Romine)

Field 2
Robert Coello (to Pete O’Brien)
Francisco Rondon (to Pete O’Brien)
Chase Whitley (to Gary Sanchez)
Fred Lewis (to Gary Sanchez)
Bryan Mitchell (to Jose Gil)
Shane Greene (to Jose Gil)

· Infield drill assignments
Group 1
Russ Canzlez (1B), Brian Roberts (2B), Derek Jeter (SS), Yangervis Solarte (2B/SS), Scott Sizemore (3B/2B), Dean Anna (3B/SS), Zealous Wheeler (3B/2B)
Group 2
Mark Teixeira (1B), Corban Joseph (2B/1B), Jose Pirela (2B/3B), Brendan Ryan (SS), Eduardo Nunez (3B/SS), Kelly Johnson (3B/2B)

· Batting practice groups
Group 1: Derek Jeter, Eduardo Nunez, Brian Roberts, Austin Romine
Group 2: Kelly Johnson, Brendan Ryan, Mark Teixeira, Brian McCann
Group 3: Dean Anna, Russ Canzler, Scott Sizemore, Francisco Cervelli
Group 4: Corban Joseph, Jose Pirela, Yangervis Solarte, Zealous Wheeler, John Ryan Murphy
Group 5: Carlos Beltran, Jacoby Ellsbury, Ichiro Suzuki, Jose Gil
Group 6: Zoilo Almonte, Brett Gardner, Alfonso Soriano, Francisco Arcia
Group 7: Tyler Austin, Antoan Richardson, Mason Williams, Pete O’Brien
Group 8: Ramon Flores, Adonis Garcia, Gary Sanchez

What I Am Thankful For: The Yankees Depth

Continuing our look at what we are thankful for we showcase the Yankees depth that is being addressed this offseason. The Yankees had no depth last year and it showed on the field and in the win column when half the team went down with injuries. This year the Yankees do not seem like they will be left flat footed if one or two of their infielders go down.

The Yankees have already traded for Dean Anna from the San Diego Padres who can play all over the infield and has played in the outfield as well. The Yankees also signed Yamaico Navarro who can also play the hot corner, short stop, and a few places out in the outfield. The Yankees have brought back Brendan Ryan and already have David Adams and Corban Joseph, among others, on the roster for back up. This is before we even mention guys like Jayson Nix and Eduardo Nunez who are both non tender candidates.

The Yankees have already brought back David Herndon for a shot at the bullpen and are not going to be quiet in the pitching department, whether it be for the starting rotation or the bullpen. The Yankees know they did not have the depth last year and they know they didn't have the impact type youth last year and this year they will not make the same mistake twice, and for that I am thankful.

The Yankees Finalize 40 Man Roster

Okay get ready and try to keep up here because things just got crazy in Yankees land. The Yankees had until midnight tonight to finalize these rosters before players would be eligible for the Rule 5 draft next month.

The Yankees acquires infielder Dean Anna from the San Diego Padres for A ball pitcher Ben Paullus.

Anna has been added to the 40 man roster as well as Gary Sanchez, Slade Heathcott, Jose Campos, Bryan Mitchell, and Shane Greene.

More to come but right now the first roster cut is Corban Joseph who has been outrighted off the 40 man roster.

New York Yankees Minor League Players Updates

The Yankees had another year of the injury in 2013 and it was not just limited to the major leagues, it happened in the minor leagues as well. The Yankees saw their players injured from the 2013 draft, from the lower levels of the system, and through the upper levels of the system as well including our former #1 prospect Manny Banuelos. Here is a ton of minor league injury updates.

Speaking of Manny Banuelos he missed the entire 2012 season after having Tommy John surgery but Banuelos has pitched at the Yankees minor league complex down in Tampa and some in the Instructional League. There are no plans to build arm strength or knock any rust off in the winter leagues or anything like that so Manny will be fresh for Spring Training in 2014.

Michael Pineda is not throwing this year in any kind of winter ball or anything like that after rehabbing his shoulder surgery that he got before the 2012 season. Pineda has been a Yankee for two seasons now and has not thrown a pitch for us yet so this is a very important season for the Yanks and for Pineda. Pineda was shut down with shoulder stiffness which was deemed normal for someone having a shoulder surgery like he did. Pineda was seen throwing 94-96 MPH on the fastball and worked off a lot of rust this season. Hopefully we can see Pineda contribute in 2014 for the Yankees and get past these injuries before he is donned the next Carl Pavano.

Aaron Judge missed the entire 2013 season after a quad pull but is expected to be ready for spring training this season. The injury was called precautionary as the Yankees wanted to make extra sure that the injury is fully healed so The Judge can make his professional debut without a hiccup.

Gosuke Katoh was also drafted this year like Judge and also has missed time due to injury. Katoh broke onto the scene in a big way with an amazing debut for the Gulf Coast Yankees before his season ended with a sprained finger ligament while in the instructional league. This is considered to be a very minor injury and another precautionary move to ensure that Katoh will be ready and healthy for the spring.

Mark Montgomery spent much of the season on the AAA disabled list and not on the RailRiders field after being donned the best Yankees relief prospect in their system with a back and a shoulder injury. The shoulder has been looked at multiple times and is said to be healthy so now the Yankees are letting Montgomery's back heal up for spring training.

Corban Joseph's season ended with the AAA Scranton Wilkes Barre after a cup of coffee in the majors on May 31st with a season ending shoulder surgery. He is throwing and rehabbing the shoulder now and also will be ready for spring training in 2014. With Joseph's spot on the 40 man he better hope and do everything that he can to ensure that the shoulder is healthy coming in.

Jose Ramirez was shut down with an oblique injury at the end of the 2013 season but is back to throwing and is in the Instructional League. Ramirez will be ready for spring training in 2014.

Slade Heathcott had offseason knee surgery after being shut down the last couple weeks of the AA Trenton Thunder's season. This procedure was considered to be very minor and just classified as a clean up type procedure and Slade should be ready for spring training.

Yankees Call Up Matt Daley, Add Him To Bullpen

The New York Yankees have announced that they have given relief pitcher Matt Daley a September call up and made him available in the bullpen tonight. To make room on the 40 man roster Corban Joseph was added to the 60 day DL after his season ending shoulder injury. Daley has major league experience with the Colorado Rockies and has had a Mariano Rivera type season in AAA posting a 0.87 WHIP with 53 strike outs in 39 innings for the RailRiders.

Rangers Release Manny Ramirez, Time To Get Greedy

As many of you probably do not know Manny Ramirez was the reason we started the "Get Greedy" campaign which eventually turned into The Greedy Pinstripes. It was the off season before the 2009 season and the Yankees had already signed Mark Teixeira, CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, and traded for Nick Swisher and were looking to reload. Enter Manny Ramirez who would have gave us a right handed power bat that we lacked other than Alex Rodriguez, who would have single handedly fixed our hitting with runners in scoring position and in clutch situations problem, and could have been hidden in left field in Yankees Stadium. I went hard after Manny Ramirez and spread my "Get Greedy, Get Manny" campaign all over the internet before he eventually decided to sign elsewhere but the Yankees may have a second chance now that he was released by the Texas Rangers yesterday.

The Yankees are probably too far out of the playoff race now with somewhere around a 2% chance of making the post season in 2013 for it to matter by why the hell not make the move at this point? We could easily sign Manny to a minor league deal and he is a Corban Joseph 60 day DL transfer away from being a September call up. Manny is in his age 41 season and has been hitting .259/.328/.370 with three home runs in the minors for the Rangers before his release. He drew some questions about his bat speed playing with Texas but absolutely annihilated Taiwanese pitching to the tune of .352 with eight home runs before coming back to the states so the bat is still there, in some capacity anyway, I would think.

Make a long time Yankees fan happy by finally completing the "Get Greedy, Get Manny" campaign by making this sign Brian Cashman and you may get some of the faith back that I used to have in you.

Derek Jeter To The DL & The Flurry Of Roster Moves

Derek Jeter has been placed on the 15 day DL for the 3rd time this season, retroactive to Friday August 2nd, with a grade 1 strain in his calf. With this move came a flurry of roster moves for the Yankees including activating Alex Rodriguez off of the 60 day disabled list, designating Brent Lillibridge for assignment, and calling up David Adams. Lillibridge getting the DFA cleared both a 25 and 40 man roster spot for A Rod and Adams came up to essentially replace Jeter.

I do not understand this as we could have simply added Corban Joseph, who is out with season ending shoulder surgery, to the 60 day DL and added Derek Jeter to the 15 day DL and have enough roster spots without losing anybody. We should have considered this especially since A Rod is playing on borrowed, and appealed, time with the Biogenesis suspension.

Brennan Boesch Has Been Released

Earlier we reported that Brent Lillibridge has been called up to the majors to replace Derek Jeter who is being placed on the 15 day DL. Jeter being DL'd was the 25 man roster move but the 40 man roster move remained unannounced until now. In what I consider to be a shocking, for lack of a better word, turn of events the Yankees have released Brennan Boesch to clear room for Lillibridge. Corban Joseph could have been transferred to the 60 day DL to make room but the Yankees decided to go with the Boesch release. Boesch has been fighting a nagging shoulder injury and has been on the AAA disabled list for what seems like forever now and will now find himself without a job temporarily. There is always the possibility of Boesch signing another minor league deal and getting healthy but we will just have to wait and see what Brennan Boesch  decides to do.

Yankees Call Up Brent Lillibridge

The Yankees have called up Brent Lillibridge to the majors to replace injured Derek Jeter in the infield. The move to the DL has cleared the 25 man roster spot for Lillibridge. The Yankees have yet to announce the corresponding 40 man roster move but moving Corban Joseph to the 60 day DL seems like the most logial choice to clear the spot. Lillibridge is in the lineup tonight for the Yankees as we face off with the Boston Red Sox.

New York Yankees Injury Updates 7/17

We already heard that Alex Rodriguez is set to join the Yankees on Monday if all goes well this week in Scranton so let's hear about the guys that we haven't heard about 1,000,000 times.

Derek Jeter will be evaluated Friday before the game with the Boston Red Sox and the team will make the decision then whether he will play, continue to rest, be integrated slowly as a bench player, or head to the disabled list. Hopefully it's not the later but at this point this season I would not be surprised by anything.

Curtis Granderson is taking batting practice in the underground batting cage at the Yankees minor league complex in Tampa. There is no timetable as to when he will start a rehab assignment or think about joining the Yankees but progress is progress.

David Phelps is throwing bullpen sessions and working out at the Yankees minor league complex. David said everything feels fine and is only expecting to miss one start for the Yankees with this forearm tightness.

The Yankees shut down Francisco Cervelli for two weeks after they discovered a stress reaction in his right elbow and he apparently is still shut down. We have not heard anything out of Cervelli on his Facebook fan page, his Twitter account, or God himself Brian Cashman but I figured that no news is not always good news when it comes to injury updates.

Jayson Nix is also down in the minor league complex rehabbing his hamstring injury that has sidelined him for nearly a month. No word yet on when a rehab assignment could start but he does not seem to be anywhere close to that kind of discussion yet.

Corban Joseph was told that he will miss the remainder of the 2013 season with a shoulder surgery. That's a shame since he is on the 40 man roster but he seems like the obvious transfer to the 60 day DL to make room for Alex Rodriguez on the 40 man roster.

Vidal Nuno and Brennan Boesch are both on the AAA disabled list with a groin injury and a shoulder injury respectably and neither are anywhere close to being on the call up radar. Neither are working out or doing any kind of rehab so the Yankees should not count on them any time soon, if at all this season.

Mark Montgomery has made two rehab appearances for the Gulf Coast Yankees while making a comeback from a throwing shoulder injury. His MRI has come back clean and he is back in live game action so I expect him back with the Railriders soon.

Ronnier Mustelier is also playing in rehab games for the Gulf Coast Yankees after spending a month or more on the AAA disabled list. He has been playing all over the field, something that the Yankees need, and seems to be the closest of any of our rehabbing guys not named Alex Rodriguez to be in line for a promotion to the Yankees.

Nunez To DL Alberto Gonzalez Called Up

The Yankees have announced that Eduardo Nunez has been placed on the 15 day DL with a strained rib cage muscle. The Yankees will call up Alberto Gonzalez to take his place on the 25 man roster. Mark Teixeira has been placed on the 60 day DL to make room on the 40 man roster for Gonzalez. Nunez's DL trip can be placed back to last Sunday since he has not played since then and Mark Teixeira's 60 day DL is retroactive to Opening Day. Kind of wondering why we don't see Corban Joseph in this situation but hey what do I know.

DL Trip Likely For Eduardo Nunez After Setback

Yet another Yankees player is bound for the disabled list as Eduardo Nunez had a set back while trying to return from a rib cage muscle strain. Nunez did fielding drills and hitting drills and still felt something in the rib muscle and Girardi says a DL trip is likely for Nunez. Nunez himself confirmed that he has been completely shut down and with the Yankees need for a back up infielder, especially with a double header on Monday, a DL trip is more and more likely. Corban Joseph is the only player on the 40 man roster so it seems likely that he would be the one to be called up until David Adams is ready.

Corban Joseph Sent Down To AAA For Chris Nelson

The Yankees have sent down Corban Joseph to AAA Scranton Wilkes-Barre to make room for newly acquired Chris Nelson on the major league roster. Chris will be active when the Yankees host the Oakland Athletics this weekend at Yankees Stadium.

Off-Day Notes: Chamberlain, Robertson, Rodriguez, Jeter, Teixeira, Pineda, Nelson, Granderson

Beauty comes with a price, doesn't it? On a day where it's 73 degrees in New York City...there had to be some news about the Yankees somewhere. Let's get to them.

Joba Chamberlain

-- Joba Chamberlain was placed on the 15-day disabled list due to a tight oblique. He said he felt something when he was warming up to pitch on Tuesday and complained of soreness when he arrived at the stadium yesterday. Brian Cashman said that the strain is "mild" and Joba should be back to pitch in two weeks. There wasn't a move on the roster to replace Chamberlain but Cashman did say that he had three names in mind when it came to taking that roster spot: Mark Montgomery, Preston Claiborne and Sam Demel.

David Robertson

-- David Robertson spent his off-day at the doctors office after feeling discomfort near his knee/hamstring. The doctors did an MRI and the diagnosis is a "cranky hamstring". Robertson won't have to go on the DL; instead he is day-to-day.

Alex Rodriguez

-- Alex Rodriguez posted on Facebook that he had been cleared to do baseball activities and that he will head to Tampa on Monday in order to join Curtis Granderson rehabbing their way back to the team. Rodriguez is still expected to be back after the All-Star break, along with Derek Jeter.

Derek Jeter

-- Derek Jeter is still in the walking boot, but he's able to remove it to do exercises. He's expected to be back after the All-Star Break.

Mark Teixeira

-- After doing tee and toss, Teixeira will stay with the Yankees until the end of the homestand, then head off to Florida to rehab with A-Rod and Granderson. Teixeira is expected to be back in June.

Michael Pineda

-- Michael Pineda is throwing to hitters down in Florida. He's reached 93-95 MPH on his fastball.

Chris Nelson

-- After being acquired by the Yankees late last night, he's officially been put on the 25-man roster and is activated for tomorrow. Corban Joseph was optioned to Triple-AAA to complete the roster move.

Curtis Granderson

-- Curtis Granderson is on the road back to the Yankees today. He took more at-bats in an extended Spring Training game. If all goes well, Granderson is slated to come back in about two weeks.