Turn the Page to December, Please...

Credit:  David Dermer, AP

The Yankees continue to search for their new manager and Generalissimo Francisco Franco is still dead...

I think my stance against Carlos Beltran and his lack of coaching experience is weakening. After his post-interview comments, I felt that he provided the best responses of the candidates interviewed to date. You can find his words on other sites but in my opinion, he gave very knowledgeable and insightful answers for a guy who has never managed or coached in the Major Leagues. I am still not crazy about handing the keys to the kingdom to a "green" manager but if he proves to be the one, I'll get behind the choice.  Beltran clearly has much to offer any MLB team and I feel that he'd be a wonderful addition to the coaching staff. As manager, there's no doubt he'd need a very strong and seasoned former manager to assist as his bench coach. Beltran has the support of his former teammates and the local media plus it's apparent he has a good working relationship with GM Brian Cashman. There really isn't any candidate that stands head and shoulders above him.

Jennifer Lopez apparently feels strongly that Alex Rodriguez should be the next Yankees manager. She tweeted today:  "It couldn't be clearer...#arodforyankees manager" while forwarding an article written by Merritt Rohlfing for BTBS entitled "The best and only choice for Yankees manager is obvious".  While I personally would not want to see the circus that would ensue if A-Rod was named as the new manager, good for him that he got his girlfriend's endorsement. Maybe she just wants to get him out of the house more often.

I felt bad for managerial candidate Aaron Boone when his brother Bret came out with the jokes about sexual misconduct after NBC's dismissal of TODAY host Matt Lauer. Aaron quickly distanced himself from his brother but unfortunately the unwanted attention is hard to ignore. Bret's timing could not have been any worse. Still, I think Aaron and Carlos Beltran will make the cut to the next round for a visit to Tampa, Florida to meet with the Steinbrenner family. I don't always share my brothers' opinions and I am sure that holds true for Aaron and his brother.

I keep seeing the name of David Ross thrown around as someone the Yankees should talk to. Nothing against Ross (I personally think that he is a very knowledgeable and professional guy) but I don't really want to see a former Red Sock as Yankees manager.

Speaking of Red Socks...

Former Yankees Kevin Youkilis, Derek Lowe and Mike Lowell have been elected to the 2018 Red Sox Hall of Fame, along with John Frank "Buck" Freeman. Congrats to all of them. Lowell is the Yankee who should have never gotten away.  The 1999 trade that sent him to the then Florida Marlins for the forgettable trio of Todd Noel, Mark Johnson and Ed Yarnall felt like a huge mistake at the time of the trade.  

Youkilis and Lowe obviously came to the Yankees after they had finished their successful runs in Boston. Buck Freeman played for the Red Sox when they were known as the Boston Americans from 1901 to 1907.

The Van Dusen Bandwagon...

I keep trying to dismiss Bryan Van Dusen's continued pitch for Giancarlo Stanton under the primary assumption that there's no room for him in Hal Steinbrenner's 2018 Yankees Team Budget. But then I see reports like today (unsubstantiated or not) that state the Miami Marlins would accept second baseman Joe Panik and two prospects for Stanton if the San Francisco Giants are willing to pay $250 million (of $295 million) left on his contract.  That's a trade the Yankees could easily beat.  

I agree with Van Dusen that I'd hate to see Stanton go to the Red Sox but I am resigned to the fact the Red Sox will acquire another slugger this winter. It may not be Stanton but it will be someone like Jose Abreu or Eric Hosmer. Plus, it wouldn't surprise me if Dave Dombrowski swings a deal that is completely out of the blue as Boston tries to hold off the hard-charging Yankees. On the bright side, Dombrowski is ravaging Boston's farm system.

For as fearful as we are to see Stanton playing home games at Fenway Park, I'd love to see the Red Sox Nation watch Stanton join the Baby Bombers on the verge of a dynasty run...

Go Yankees!

Former Yankees Update: Derek Lowe

The Texas Rangers are reportedly close to a deal with long time Red Sox player and Yankees bullpen pitcher from 2012 Derek Lowe. Derek is entering his age 39 season and spent most of the winter looking for a job as a starting pitcher and a major league deal but now settles for a minor league deal with Texas. Lowe is a Scott Boras client but this late in the spring I guess Lowe went wherever the deal was I am just glad that deal did not come from the Yankees.

Postseason Bullpen

How many pitchers should the Yankees carry in the American League Divisional series?

Pick me!

I think the answer to that is fairly simple... they should only carry 11 pitchers. I don't see any reason to carry a 12th pitcher, because they really shouldn't be needed. Heck, I'm not even sure a 12th pitcher is needed in the ALCS or World Series. Especially with the bullpen the Yankees could bring with them, as it would carry two pitchers that could go three or more innings.

The way I see it, 10 of those 11 spots are set. The rotation will consist of four men... Sabathia, Pettitte, Kuroda, and Hughes. The bullpen will then have these 6 guys... Soriano (closer), Robertson (set-up), Chamberlain (righty), Logan (lefty), Rapada (lefty), and Phelps (long-man).

You're probably asking yourself, "so who is that other guy that can go 'three or more innings'"? Well, the team actually has three pitchers that could fill that spot.

Oh, man, I don't know.

Freddy Garcia is the first possibility. Sweaty's ERA has been an unimpressive 5.25 this year, to go along with a WHIP of 1.382. Even though he's walked a few more hitters than normal this season (BB/9 of 3.0 this season, opposed to a career mark of 2.8), Freddy has struck out quite a few more (7.3 K/9 as opposed to under 6 in each of the last 3 seasons). Even if we lower the sample size things don't look any better, since in the last 28 days (3 games against 32 batters) his batting line against is .267/.353/.667.

Then there's Derek Lowe. Since Derek debuted with the Yankees on August 13th against the Rangers, putting up a very nice line of 4IP, 2H, 0R, 0BB, 4K, his ERA and WHIP have been 3.04 and 1.268, respectively. And in his last 9 appearances, having faced 51 batters, Lowe's triple-slash against is also an impressive .149/.216/.149. One thing I noticed is that there's nothing totally out of the ordinary in terms of strikeouts, walks, or BABIP against. He's striking out less hitters than he has in his career (5.3 K/9 with the Yanks this season, versus 5.8 K/9 in his career), walking only slightly less hitters (2.3 BB/9 vs. 2.7), and his BABIP against is .289 vs. a career mark of .301.

And finally we come to Ivan Nova. It's insane that this is a guy that was thought to be entrenched in the middle of the rotation, thanks to a 2011 in which he had 16 wins with a 3.70 ERA. But thanks to an ERA this season of 5.02 and WHIP of 1.468... here we are. And it's not that he's striking out less hitters, or walking more of them. He's actually walking just as many hitters as last season (3.0 BB/9 in 2012, 3.1 BB/9 in 2011), while striking out a lot more (6.6 K/9 in 2012, 8.1 K/9 in 2012). The issue is more balls are being hit into play (.333 BABIP this year, .284 last), which hurts more when his line drive percentage against is significantly higher (22% this year, 17% last). And his triple-slash against of .283/.356/.547 in his last 3 starts doesn't help.

So the choice for that last bullpen spot is obvious to me... Derek Lowe.

"Hey, Cervelli, am I doing this 'fist pump' thing right?"

AAA Season Over.. Reinforcements On The Way?

With the AAA season over for the traveling band known as the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Empire State Yankees I wonder if any of those guys are on their way to the majors. Here is a list of the AAA players that are currently on the 40 man roster and eligible to come up without a roster move. All of these players would also be eligible for the post season roster if we got that far.

Melky Mesa OF
Corban Joseph 2B
Austin Romine C
Manny Banuelos - Injured

I would not have a problem calling any of the three up personally. The guy I would like to see called up is Ronnier Mustelier and even though he would require a roster move (see ya Derek Lowe) and would be ineligible for the playoffs if ANYONE deserves a call up right now it is Ronnier.

Brian Cashman 2012 GM Of The Year

Let's make one thing clear before I even begin writing. I do NOT think Brian Cashman is going to win the 2012 GM of the Year award and no I do not think he will even be in the conversation. If his name if brought up all you will hear is how anyone could win with a $200 million payroll, going over slot on the draft, buying International Free Agents, etc etc etc. All these "unbiased" news people and people with votes will ignore all the under the radar gems we continue to find year in and year out.

Eric Chavez

Eric Chavez was signed to give guys like Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira days off in the field. Chavez was a risky signing, especially last season, because of all the injuries but has managed to *knock on wood again* stay off the DL all season long. He has also filled in with great glove work, power shots, and a great presence in the clubhouse. All for under 1 million bucks (900K)

Raul Ibanez

Raul Ibanez, even at age 40, has been nothing more then stellar all things considered. Cashman signed Raul to split time against right handed pitching over Johnny Damon even though Damon had better splits against right handed pitching and was very familiar with New York and loved by the fans here. Granted Johnny Damon wanted more money then Raul Ibanez but Cashman did not falter. Raul has done nothing but come up with big hit after big hit and fill in for injured guys like Nick Swisher and Brett Gardner better then any of us could have hoped for or expected. All for $1.1 million bucks.

Chris Stewart

Chris Stewart, not fist pumping and energetic Francisco Cervelli, has been our back up catcher this season. Despite rumors and denials he has also pretty much been CC Sabathia's personal catcher all of this season. He has filled in admirably behind the dish calling games, throwing out runners, with the bat setting career highs almost all the way across the board, and even done some things on the base paths. All for George Kontos and $482K.

Derek Lowe

Yes I know it was one game so that is why I am listing him last but signing a guy on a pro rated league minimum salary and having the Braves and the Indians pay his salary for us while he pitches four shut out innings and gets a save while also saving our bullpen was ingenious. Do not get me wrong I was leading the "WTF" charge on twitter when we signed him but we all looked pretty dumb last night, including a prolific Texas Rangers offense, when Lowe walked off the mound with his shirt tucked in. If we can get any semblance of the guy that pitched last night then this bullpen just got all the more nastier and maybe even sealed the fate of Freddy Garcia... finally.



I think I have said enough here to show the value that Brian Cashman has brought us this season. I did not even mention the Clay Rapada and Cody Eppley signings that have really solidified our bullpen and made it once again a strength for us even without Mariano Rivera. I also have not mentioned the trade that brought us Ichiro and CASH for basically nothing useful or the Casey McGehee for nothing trade. Andruw Jones for $2 million was not the worst deal that we have ever signed either *cough Carl Pavano cough*. Bringing back Andy Pettitte seemed like a no brainer but Cashman could have said no I guess and NOT giving Russell Martin a big extension looks rather genius right now as well. Granted for every Ichiro trade there is a Michael Pineda trade that does not work out the way you liked it to but it is not like Jesus Montero or Hector Noesi are doing anything special anyway. Hell the Mariners already have Mike Zunino in AA because they are rushing him to the majors to be behind the plate but I digress.

Brian Cashman does have a $200 million payroll, we all know that, but it is the little things that he has done that have kept this team together. It is the minor little signings and such that kept our heads above water while we have $100 million bucks or more (slight exaggeration but with Arod and CC on the DL making around $50 million combined you get my point) sitting on the disabled list. I know Brian Cashman will not even be considered for GM of the Year and that is a damn shame in my very humble and biased opinion but you have our appreciate Brian. Thank you Ninja Cash!

So Far So Good For Yankees Derek Lowe

Everyone on twitter was almost making fun of the Brian Cashman signing of veteran sinker baller Derek Lowe, myself included, but he made us all look foolish if only for a night. Lowe pitched four innings of shut out baseball and got the save in an 8-2 Yankees victory. Unfortunately, no, he did not untuck his shirt when he got the save but maybe next time. 

Rangers @ Yankees 8/13/12

Yankees win 8-2

David Phelps first career win as a starter

Derek Lowe 4 shut out IP and a save

Swisher Slam

Yankees Win

Tonight the Yankees will begin hosting the first of a four game set at home against the AL West leading Texas Rangers. Tonight on the mound  for the Yankees, in place of CC Sabathia, will be rookie David Phelps. Facing off against the Yankees is newly acquired Ryan Dempster for the Texas Rangers. Derek Lowe will be in uniform today and available out of the bullpen in long relief. Ryoto Igarashi will be sent back down to AAA to make room for Derek on the 25 man roster. The game will be televised at 7:05 pm ET on ESPN 2 and YES Network.

Lineups

Derek Jeter SS
Nick Swisher DH
Robinson Cano 2B
Mark Teixeira 1B
Eric Chavez 3B
Curtis Granderson CF
Russell Martin C
Raul Ibanez LF
Ichiro Suzuki RF

Go Yankees!!

Yankees Acquire Derek Lowe

According to Marc Carig's twitter, among other tweets, the Yankees have acquired Derek Lowe off the scrap heap. MLB Trade Rumors is now reporting this too. Now River Avenue Blues is reporting it so this bad dream is now a reality unfortunately.

Apparently the Yankees believe that Derek Lowe throws enough strikes and ground balls to replace CC Sabathia, not David Phelps, for the next two starts.

UPDATE: Joel Sherman, on twitter, is reporting that he was signed because he is willing to pitch out of the pen. David Phelps will in fact be starting Monday in place of CC Sabathia on Monday.

The Yankees will call up Ryoto Igarashi to be in the bullpen tomorrow until Lowe gets here on Monday.