Meet the 2019 Yankees: Phil Nevin

The New York Yankees saw much of their coaching staff leave when Joe Girardi was asked not to return to his managerial position in 2018, and that included their bench coach, first base coach, hitting coach and their third base coach. The Yankees sought to promote from within at a lot of these positions, but one man opened enough eyes outside the Yankees organization to garner an interview, and eventually a job with the team. Phil Nevin was named to manager Aaron Boone’s staff in 2018 and will return to the same position as the team’s third base coach in 2019, so let’s meet the man with the thankless job of sending and holding runners at third base all season long. This is Meet a Coach: The Phil Nevin Edition.


Phillip Joseph Nevin was born on January 19, 1971 in California where the right-hander attended El Dorado High School in Placentia, California. After graduating from high school the Los Angeles Dodgers took a waiver on the infielder by selecting him in the third round of the 1989 MLB First Year Players Draft. The Dodgers were prepared to give Nevin a $100,000 signing bonus to forego his college commitment and to begin his professional career, but in the end Nevin decided he would attend California State University, Fullerton, better known as Cal State Fullerton. As a two-sport star at Cal State Fullerton, Nevin played both baseball and football, Nevin represented both teams to the fullest as a kicker and as a third baseman. Nevin led the Titans to the College World Series final as a Junior, although his team did lose to the eventual champion Pepperdine Waves baseball team and won the CWS Most Outstanding Player award. Nevin’s contributions to the Titans led the the Houston Astros to take Nevin with the first overall pick in the 1992 MLB First Year Players Draft. Much controversy was had after Nevin, and not eventual New York Yankees legend Derek Jeter, was taken first overall, especially by Houston Astros scout Hal Newhouser.

Newhouser was a scout for the Astros who had evaluated Jeter extensively prior to the Draft and had lobbied team management to select Jeter. When the Astros decided to pick Nevin instead Newhouser quit in protest over the decision. The Astros were worried that Jeter would want a signing bonus in excess of $1 million to sign with them and forego his college commitment, while the team thought the team could sign Nevin, a college Junior, for significantly less. When all he negotiations were complete the Astros thought they had their third baseman of the future after signing Nevin in June of 1992 for just $700,000.


Nevin traveled with the Astros at the end of the 1992 season despite being on the team’s active roster as the team prepared their third baseman to go to the Arizona Fall League. Nevin showed he needed little work in the Minor Leagues during the Fall League of 1992 and during Spring Training camp in 1993 where he hit .350 and showed tremendous power for the Astros. The team considered letting him skip the Minor Leagues all together and even considered letting him immediately start in the Major Leagues on Opening Day 1993, but the team ultimately decided to start him down at Triple-A with the Tucson Toros due to the fact that the team already had a third baseman in Ken Caminiti manning the position. While in Triple-A the Astros tried to get Nevin to learn left field so both he and Caminiti could be on the field at the same time, but Nevin began the season with a .247 batting average quelling any decisions to immediately promote him to the Major Leagues, at least for a little while. Nevin ultimately ended the 1993 season with a .286 batting average, 10 home runs and 91 RBI, but it was not enough to warrant a trip to the Major Leagues that season. Nevin was back in Triple-A to begin the 1994 season as well and this time he had a new position to learn, the first base position.


Nevin’s MLB debut was delayed due to less-than-stellar defense, Nevin committed 61 errors in his first two seasons, and the MLB work stoppage in 1994 that cancelled the World Series and delayed the opening of the 1995 season. Before the 1995 season the San Diego Padres had seen enough of Nevin down in Triple-A and decided to trade Caminiti to the San Diego Padres, thus opening the door for Nevin to play third base for the team. Nevin, in a bit of a head scratcher, was not invited to the team’s spring training camp for the 1995 season. Nevin and teammate Billy Wagner had previously refused to play with replacement players at the Major League level which many attributed to why Nevin was not invited to camp that season. Nevin started the 1995 season back down in Triple-A, but eventually he did too much with the bat to warrant being down there and the Astros finally promoted him to the Major Leagues on June 10 of that season. Nevin played in just 18 games that season, struggling with a .117 batting average and no home runs before being demoted back to Triple-A. Nevin, when learning of the news, cursed at Astros General Manager Bob Watson and their manager Terry Collins, an incident he would later have to apologize for.

Before the 1996 season the Houston Astros traded Nevin and his presumed bad attitude to the Detroit Tigers for pitcher Mike Henneman. Nevin was assigned to the Tigers Double-A team where he was converted into a catcher. After the 1997 season Nevin was traded once again alongside catcher Matt Walbeck to the Anaheim Angels, where former manager Terry Collins was now managing, for minor leaguer Nick Skuse. Nevin could never seemingly stay in one place for long at the beginning of his career and he was on the move again before the 1999 season after the Angels traded Nevin and minor league player Keith Volkman to the San Diego Padres. With the Padres in 1999 Nevin appeared in 100 games for the first time during his Major League career. Nevin seemingly found his way while out in San Diego enjoying a productive 2000 season before being named to the National League All-Star team in 2001 after hitting 41 home runs and knocking in 126 RBI. Nevin did lead the league in errors at third base with 27, but his offensive production more than made up for that for the Padres.


Nevin was converted back to first base for the 2002 season, his strongest defensively by many metrics and stats, but injuries would tell the tales of his 2002 and 2003 seasons, and not his defense or offensive production. In 2002 Nevin strained his elbow, then three games after returning from the elbow injury he broke his arm diving for a ground ball missing six additional weeks. In 2003 Nevin dislocated his shoulder in spring training and did not return until the month of June after left shoulder surgery. By July Nevin was back under the knife after undergoing arthroscopic surgery to repair torn cartilage in his right knee in July. In Nevin’s absence the Padres acquired Rondell White to replace Nevin in the outfield while allowing Ryan Klesko to play first base and rookie Sean Burroughs to man the hot corner at third base, pushing Nevin to a utility role.

Nevin and Padres GM Kevin Towers were said to have a “love-hate” relationship and that relationship was almost severed on July 25, 2005 after the Padres agreed to trade Nevin to the Baltimore Orioles for RHP Sidney Ponson. Nevin exercised a clause in his contract that allowed him to block a trade to one of eight teams, one of those franchises being the Baltimore Orioles, but was ultimately traded five days later on July 30, 2005 to the Texas Rangers for Chan Ho Park. Nevin slumped while with the Rangers, and so did Texas who went 1-12 in Nevin’s first 13 games, which ultimately ended in him being benched after the team was eliminated from playoff contention.


Nevin had one year left on his contract for the 2006 season and he hoped that playing DH for the Rangers would revitalize his game and put to rest any rumors of him losing bat speed as he aged. Nevin continued to struggle in 2006 batting just .216 with nine home runs and 31 RBI in 46 games which prompted the team to call up rookie Jason Botts, who received the bulk of Nevin’s playing time. The Rangers ultimately traded Nevin to the Chicago Cubs who needed a first baseman to replace the injured Derrick Lee on May 31, 2006 for Jerry Hairston, Jr. Three months later Nevin was traded once again on August 31, 2006 to the Minnesota Twins for cash and a player to be named later. Nevin appeared in the postseason for the first time that season with the Twins, although Minnesota was ultimately swept by the Oakland Athletics in three games. Nevin appeared in just one of those games, batting 0-for-3.


That would be Nevin’s final game as the former third baseman and utility player announced his retirement prior to the 2007 season. Nevin played 12 seasons at the Major League level hitting 208 home runs and driving in 743 RBI with a career .270 batting average. Nevin spent the 2007 season as a member of the Padres’ pre-game radio show and as an analyst for ESPN during the college baseball regionals during the annual College World Series.


Nevin returned to baseball as a manager in 2008 after being named the manager of the Orange County Flyers in the Independent Golden Baseball League. Nevin managed the Flyers in 2008 and 2009, and planned to do so again in 2010, but after attending the winter meetings in 2010 the former MLB player was named the manager of the Erie SeaWolves, the Class-AA minor league affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, replacing former manager Tom Brookens after Brookens was promoted to first base coach at the Major League level. Nevin spent one season with the SeaWlves before being promoted to Triple-A with the Tigers AAA team, the Toledo Mud Hens before the 2011 season. Nevin lasted two seasons with Toledo before being fired on August 31, 2013 after managing to a 192-238 record over his three seasons.

Nevin bounced back for the 2014 season finding a job with the Arizona Diamondbacks managing their Triple-A team, the Reno Aces. In his first season with the Aces, Nevin led the team to the best record in the Pacific Coast League, 81-63, and an eventual Pacific Coast League Championship Series berth. Nevin remained with the organization for the 2015 and 2016 season before the San Francisco Giants named Nevin their third-base coach for the 2017, replacing Roberto Kelly. After the 2017 season the New York Yankees and new manager Aaron Boone came calling in hopes that Nevin would accept the same position with their team in the Bronx for 2018. Nevin ultimately decided to make the move to the Bronx and will return to the same position here in 2019. Nevin will now be sending players home with an exaggerated windmill type arm motion all season long. It’s a thankless job, Phil. Especially in the Bronx. I hope you’re ready. Good luck, welcome back to the organization, and more importantly welcome back to the family. Do us proud.

Meet the 2019 Yankees: Marcus Thames

The New York Yankees are expecting to have an offensive juggernaut take the field day in and day out throughout the 2019 season with nine-or-ten guys that are capable of coming up with a big hit, drawing a big walk, and keeping the line moving on any given night. With a lineup that will consist of some combination of Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, Luke Voit, Didi Gregorius (eventually), DJ LeMahieu, Gary Sanchez, Brett Gardner, Aaron Hicks, Troy Tulowitzki, and Gleyber Torres you have to think the easiest job in all of baseball here in 2019 has to belong to the Yankees hitting coach, Marcus Thames. Now while I exaggerate just a tad about his job being easy, I don’t exaggerate at all when I say that his job has to be one of the more fun jobs to possess here this season working with that cast of guys. Let’s meet the man in charge of keeping the Yankees offense up to the task of putting up crooked numbers in any inning of any game this season. This is Meet a Coach: The Marcus Thames Edition.


Marcus Markley Thames, born March 6, 1977, played with four different teams including the New York Yankees three separate times during his playing career from 2002 to 2011 and has since spent his time in the minor leagues with the club as a coach. During the 2013 season Thames was the hitting coach for the High-A Tampa Yankees and was promoted to the Trenton Thunder in the same position for the 2014 season drawing rave reviews from one of the then Yankees top prospects Robert Refsnyder and others.


Thames was originally drafted by the New York Yankees in the 30th round of the 1996 MLB Draft but did not make a true impact in the minor leagues until 2001. Thames was with the Double-A Norwich Navigators that season, and he batted .321 with 31 home runs and 97 RBI where he was named to Baseball America’s minor league All-Star team and where he put himself on the map for the Yankees. New York was so impressed with Thames that they called him up before a June 10 game in 2002 and Thames responded immediately. Thames, facing the Arizona Diamondbacks big left-hander Randy Johnson, hit the first home run of his career on his first at bat becoming just the 80th player in MLB history to do so. Thames earned his first curtain call from the Bronx faithful, what a moment if you were fortunate enough to see it live.

Thames’ tenure with the Yankees ended on June 6, 2003 when he was traded to the Texas Rangers for Ruben Sierra. Thames went on to hit a home run in his first at bat with the Rangers as well before moving on to the Detroit Tigers for the 2006 season. For the 2006 and 2007 seasons Thames spent time with Detroit and their Triple-A affiliate the Toledo Mud Hens due to the plethora of talent in the Detroit outfield. After injuries to Dmitri Young, Craig Monroe and others Thames worked his way into the rotation of outfielders and set career highs in every offensive category including a .256 average, 26 home runs and 60 RBI in just 348 at bats along the way. The Tigers tried to find at bats for Thames anyway they could in 2007 and had the lifetime outfielder learn first base in spring training and the team was rewarded in 2007 and in 2008 when Thames continued to impress with his power. Thames hit eight home runs in seven consecutive games from June 11 to June 17, 2008 becoming the first member of the Detroit Tigers to achieve the feat.




Thames spent the 2009 season in Detroit as well without any notable achievements but was back in the New York groove in 2010 when he signed a minor league deal with the club. Thames made the Opening Day roster and was set to be a platoon partner with Brett Gardner in left field before his defense forced him to accept a bench role. Thames was delegated to the bench behind Gardner, Curtis Granderson, Nick Swisher and Austin Kearns who was traded for before the trade deadline and ended up playing in just 82 games that season. In half of a season Kearns hit .288 with 12 home runs, mainly against left-handed pitching.

Thames elected free agency in November of 2010 but was right back with the team on July 22, 2011 after New York signed him to another minor league deal. Thames never played a game for the Yankees at any level that season and would retire from the game a member of the New York Yankees before pursuing his career in coaching with the ball club. Thames has continuously defied the odds and had defied the odds once again with his promotion to assistant hitting coach with the club before the 2016 season. Thames has continued to impress with the Yankees young hitters and has worked his way all the way to Yankees hitting coach for the 2018 season. Congratulations to him, his family and all the young Yankees hitters that he once mentored when they were in the various Yankees Minor League affiliates. Thames will return to the position in 2019 under Aaron Boone and along with assistant hitting coach P.J. Pillitiere. It should be a fun season to watch, and you would have to think that Thames will be the envy of all hitting coaches around the league here in 2019.


I mean, come on. Who doesn’t want to coach the Yankees potential offense this coming season? I know I would if Thames doesn’t want to. Just let me know. Thanks in advance.

Meet the 2019 Yankees: Kyle Higashioka

Every team has three catchers, whether they are all on the 40-man roster or whether they stash one down in Triple-A just to be sure, and that is especially true for the New York Yankees. The Bronx Bombers actually have some serious depth at the catcher position and that depth begins and ends with the man that will likely begin the season receiving down in Triple-A Scranton with the RailRiders, Mr. Kyle Higashioka. Let’s meet the Yankees 3^rd catcher that has arrived with their spring training pitchers and catchers this week down in Tampa.

Kyle Higashioka, 28-years old, is a right-handed hitting and throwing catcher from the New York Yankees system. Higashioka stands 6’1” tall and weighs in at 205 lbs. Higashioka is a steady hitter that doesn’t have a huge swing and miss ratio, but he doesn’t make enough contact to ever progress from a backup catcher at the Major League level in my opinion.

Kyle Harris Higashioka was born on April 20, 1990 in Huntington Beach, California where he attended Edison High School. Higashioka played for the school’s baseball team and committed to the University of California, Berkley to play college baseball for the California Golden Bears. Before playing for the Cal Golden Bears he caught the attention of the New York Yankees and their scouts, who subsequently selected Higashioka in the seventh round of the 2008 MLB First Year Players Draft. Higashioka signed with the Yankees for $500,000 rather than attend college and immediately began his professional career.

Higashioka’s climb through the Yankees system was a slow one, especially after missing all but 13 games combined in 2013 and 2014 after undergoing Tommy John surgery and suffering a broken thumb. Higashioka became a minor league free agent after the 2015 season, but ultimately decided to re-sign with the organization for the 2016 season. Kyle started the 2016 season in Double-A Trenton and finished the season in Triple-A with the RailRiders, finding himself just one step away from the Major League level. The Yankees added Higashioka to their 40-man roster following the 2016 season and optioned him to AAA to begin the 2017 season.

Following an injury to Gary Sanchez in 2017 the New York Yankees selected the contract of Higashioka and promoted him to the Major League level. Higashioka started his MLB career 0-for-18 before being optioned back down to Triple-A when Sanchez was activated off of the disabled list. Kyle was back in the majors by June 16, again following an injury to Gary Sanchez, and was returned to Scranton once the Yankees starting catcher returned from the DL. Higashioka suffered an injury of his own once returning to the minors in 2017, limiting the Yankees catcher to just eight comes during the months of August and September.

Higashioka got called back up to the Major Leagues on June 27 of 2018, following another injury to Sanchez, and had another sluggish start with the bat. After starting his MLB career 0-for-22, he had his first major league hit, a home run off Boston Red Sox starter David Price. His next two MLB hits, one on July 3^rd and another on July 4^th, were also home runs, making him the ninth player since 1920 to have three home runs for their first three hits of their career.

Kyle will likely start the 2019 season, barring injuries, back in Scranton, but the New York Yankees know that he is just one phone call (and a Scranton Shuttle) away from being back in the Bronx. We look forward to seeing you this season, Kyle. Good luck!

Meet a Prospect: Reid Anderson

With their 40^th round pick, 1207^th overall, in the 2018 MLB First Year Players Draft the New York Yankees selected Reid Anderson, a right-handed pitcher out of Brown University. Let’s meet the man that concluded the Yankees 2018 Draft when he was selected. This is Meet a Prospect: The Reid Anderson Edition.

Anderson, an Aledo, Texas native, was a starter for Brown University all four years while at the school pitching in a total of 31 games, 26 as a starting pitcher. Along the way Anderson racked up 130 strikeouts over 143 innings across four seasons including a team-high 41 K’s as a junior in 2017. Anderson did pitch to a 5.98 ERA while at Brown University, but the right-hander was much stronger in High School pitching to a 12-1 record with a 0.72 ERA with 80 strikeouts in 70 innings.

The Yankees have signed their 40th round pick so let us be one of the first to welcome him not only to the Yankees organization, but to the Yankees family as well. You can follow Reid on Twitter by following @YouKnowTaco , one of the best Twitter handles in all of baseball in my opinion.

Meet a Prospect: Sincere Smith

With their 32^nd round pick, 967^th overall, in the 2018 MLB First Year Players Draft the New York Yankees selected Sincere Smith, a shortstop out of East Bladen High School in North Carolina. Sincere is a versatile athlete that played both baseball and football in high school, playing shortstop and pitching for the baseball team while playing quarterback, wide receiver and cornerback as a member of the school’s football team. Wow. Let’s meet this young man. This is Meet a Prospect: The Sincere Smith Edition.

Smith stands at 5’11” and weighs in at 170 lbs. while throwing and batting from the right side. Smith was a Four County (NC) All-Conference First Team selection and was also named the East Bladen High School’s team MVP in 2018. Smith’s speed and arm strength will be on full display at the lowest levels of the Yankees minor league system, but something tells me that with a little hard work from Sincere that he won’t be down there for long.

Sincere has sincerely enjoyed the whole MLB Draft has experience and has already signed a deal with the New York Yankees, let’s welcome him not only to the organization but to the family as well. Unfortunately, we will have to do that the old-fashioned way as Sincere does not have any known Twitter or social media accounts as of the time of this writing.

Meet a Prospect: Max Burt

With their 28^th round pick, 847^th overall, in the 2018 MLB First Year Players Draft the New York Yankees selected Max Burt, a third baseman out of Northeastern University in Massachusetts. Burt was a senior at Northeastern and had not been previously drafted, let’s meet him. This is Meet a Prospect: The Max Burt Edition.

Burt stands 6’2” and weighs in at 185 lbs. as he bats and throws from the right side. Burt has four years of college under his belt at Northeastern where he played shortstop and served as the team captain for the Huskies while leading the team to an NCAA tournament appearance in 2018. Burt also helped Northeastern become a perennial contender in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) showing that his leader skills and maturity may become an invaluable tool for him going forward as he begins his professional career. 

Burt is defensive player more so than an offensive player and he even won the CAA Defensive Player of the Year Award in 2017. Burt has a strong throwing arm and can man the third base position with ease, but his offense and lack of power may not translate to him sticking there if he were to reach the Major League level. Burt had just 12 home runs in his four years with the Huskies and another three home runs while playing in the Cape Cod League for two seasons.

Burt has experience as an amateur at shortstop, third base and as catcher so he may become one of those versatile players that the Yankees love so much, and the type of player that every team covets. Stay tuned. Burt has already agreed to sign with the club so let’s welcome him not only to the Yankees organization, but to the family as well. You can follow Max on twitter by following @MaxBurt14.

Meet a Prospect: Mickey Gasper

With their 27^th round pick, 817^th overall, in the 2018 MLB First Year Players Draft the New York Yankees selected Mickey Gasper, a first baseman out of Bryant University in Rhode Island. Surprisingly, Gasper was the first, first baseman to be drafted by the Yankees in the 2018 Draft, so let’s meet him. This is Meet a Prospect: The Mickey Gasper Edition.

Gasper stands 5’10” and weighs in at 190 lbs. as he throws right-handed and bats from both sides of the plate. Gasper was originally listed as a catcher at the time of him being drafted, but the Yankees requested that he be listed as a first baseman going forward. Gasper is a four-year college senior that slashed .344/.469/.524 with 119 RBI while playing at Bryant University. As a senior Gasper slashed .340/.468/.539 with just 20 strikeouts in over 200 at-bats.

Gasper is a power hitter and the Yankees are hoping that some of his doubles turn into home runs as he matures and fills into his body going forward. Gasper has played in the Cape Cod League in 2016 and 2017 meaning he knows his way around a wooden bat, an important aspect as he begins his professional career with the Yankees.

Mickey has already decided to sign with the club so let’s welcome him not only to the organization, but to the Yankees family as well. You can follow Mickey on Twitter by giving @_Mick_the_Kid_ a follow.

Meet a Prospect: Alex Junior

With their 19^th round pick, 577^th overall, in the 2018 MLB First Year Players Draft the New York Yankees selected Alex Junior, an outfielder out of Tennessee Tech University. Alex reminds me a lot of Brett Gardner in a way, so let’s meet the man who suddenly has a huge comparison to live up to. This is Meet a Prospect: The Alex Junior Edition.

Junior stands just 5’10” and weighs in at just 188 lbs. which make the comparisons to Gardner obvious right away, but it isn’t just his size that leads me to believe that he plays the game like the Yankees current left fielder. Junior is also a speedy leadoff type hitter that slashed .326/.458/.494 in 250 at-bats this season as a redshirt junior. Junior also walked 49 times this season with only 50 strikeouts showing a patience and plate discipline that I also compare to Gardner’s approach at the plate. Junior also plays a good center field, the position that Gardner came up playing before shifting to left field when the team acquired Jacoby Ellsbury and Johnny Damon in recent years to play center.

Junior prioritizes getting on base as an important aspect of his game, which he explained in an interview with Baseball America before the Draft:

“I FEEL PRETTY CONFIDENT. MY ONE TRUE GOAL IS JUST TO GET ON BECAUSE I KNOW I HAVE THE BIG DONKEYS BEHIND ME TO GET ME IN, WHETHER I’M AT FIRST OR SECOND. I FEEL LIKE THEY HAVE A CHANCE TO GET ME IN NO MATTER WHERE I AM. IT SORT OF TAKES OFF THE PRESSURE WITH ME. SOMETIMES THERE’S RUNNERS IN SCORING POSITION THAT I’VE GOT TO GET IN, BUT FOR THE MOST PART I’M JUST TRYING TO GET ON SO THOSE GUYS CAN HIT ME AROUND. I KNOW THEY CAN AND I KNOW THEY WILL.”

Alex has already signed with the club after the draft so let’s welcome him not only to the Yankees organization, but to the Yankees family as well. You can follow Alex on Twitter by following @JuniorCloud9.

Meet a Prospect: Alex Guerrero

With their 18^th round pick, 547^th overall, in the 2018 MLB First Year Players Draft the New York Yankees selected Alex Guerrero, a catcher from Eagle High School in Idaho. Guerrero, in an interesting stat, did not have a stolen base during his entire High School baseball career, so let’s meet the man who far from threatens starting pitching while on the base paths. This is Meet a Prospect: The Alex Guerrero Edition.

Alex stands 6’0” and weighs in at 185 lbs. batting from the left side but throwing from the right. I joked about his lack of stolen bases while in High School and mentioned that he did not threaten starting pitchers while on the bases, but he definitely threatened them as a senior at Eagles High School with his bat. Guerrero batted .413 with three home runs, 16 RBI and eight doubles which was good for a .532 OBP and .682 slugging percentage.

Here is what PerfectGame.org had to say about Guerrero prior to the Draft:

“GUERRERO IS SOLID BEHIND THE PLATE DEFENSIVELY BUT HIS BEST TOOL IS HIS STRONG LEFTHANDED BAT. HE HAS QUICK HANDS AND A SHORT AND DIRECT SWING AND HAS SHOWN THE ABILITY TO DRIVE THE BALL WITH CARRY TO ALL FIELDS. GUERRERO HIT .452-3-24 AS A JUNIOR AT EAGLE HIGH SCHOOL, AND AT WASHINGTON, WHERE HE IS SIGNED, HAVING AN OUTSTANDING TRIO OF CATCHERS IN THEIR 2018 SIGNING CLASS, IT HAS BEEN SPECULATED THAT GUERRERO MIGHT MOVE TO A CORNER POSITION TO GET HIS BAT IN THE LINEUP.”

Guerrero has already signed with the club, thus foregoing his commitment to the University of Washington, so let’s welcome him not only to the Yankees organization, but to the Yankees family as well. Guerrero unfortunately does not have a Twitter account that we know of, so we will have to send our congrats and well wishes the old-fashioned way I guess. Make us proud, Alex.

Oh, and it is also worth mentioning that in High School the newest Yankees catcher did post a 4.1 GPA and scored a 1360 on his SAT’s. Between that and his decision to sign with the Yankees the guy seems to be a pretty smart guy.

Meet a Prospect: Matt Pita

With their 12^th round pick, 367^th overall, in the 2018 MLB First Year Players Draft the New York Yankees selected Matt Pita, an outfielder from the Virginia Military Institute. Imagine that, the Yankees drafted someone, and it wasn’t an experienced college starting pitcher. Let’s meet the man that “defied the odds.” This is Meet a Prospect: The Matt Pita Edition.

Pits stands just 5’10’ and weighs in at 175 lbs. which immediately, based on size, garners comparisons to the Yankees current left fielder Brett Gardner. Gardner is left-handed while Pita is right-handed, but both can swing the bat well, which was never more evident than during Pita’s three years at VMI. At VMI the outfielder slashed .359/.428/.639 including a .389/.459/.721 here in 2018.

Pita, now 21-years old, is beginning to develop power which translated to 41 extra-base hits in 2018. Here is what the VMI athletics page had to say about Pita prior to the draft:

“18 OF HIS 55 HITS WENT FOR EXTRA BASES…FINISHED FIFTH IN THE SOCON (BIG SOUTHERN CONFERENCE) IN BATTING AVERAGE AND EIGHTH IN SLUGGING PERCENTAGE (.583)…CLOSED OUT THE YEAR ON A 10-GAME HITTING STREAK, EIGHT OF WHICH WERE MULTI-HIT GAMES.”

Matt has already signed with the Yankees so congratulations to him and to his family. Welcome to the organization and welcome to the Yankees family. You can follow Matt on twitter by giving @Matt_Pita a follow.

Meet a Prospect: Ryder Green

With their third-round pick and 97^th pick overall in the 2018 MLB First Year Players Draft the New York Yankees selected Ryder Green, a high school outfielder out of Knoxville Cristian Academy in Tennessee. Green has a commitment to play for Vanderbilt this fall but the Yankees hope that he will forego that commitment allowing the team to sign one of the top prep players in all of Tennessee. Let’s meet him. This is Meet a Prospect: The Ryder Green Edition.

Ryder Green is a right-handed power bat that stands 6’2” and weighs in at 205 lbs. Green is an outfielder that will likely stick in a corner outfield spot due to his size if he were to make it to the Major League level. Green has a ton of power with his bat and a strong throwing arm to boot which makes him intriguing on both sides of the ball.

PerfectGame.org had the following to say about Green before the Draft:

“RIGHT HANDED HITTER, HIGH BACK ELBOW LOAD WITH A HANGING LEG LIFT LOAD, TIMING INTENSIVE SWING APPROACH, STRONG SWING WITH GOOD EXPLOSION TO THE BALL, USES HIS STRENGTH WELL AND HAS BIG POWER POTENTIAL, PULL APPROACH. 6.72 RUNNER, 4.28 HOME TO FIRST. HAS GOOD FUNDAMENTAL SKILLS IN THE OUTFIELD AND MAKES ACCURATE ON LINE THROWS.”

Green does strike out more than you would like, but that is the case with many amateur and High School players. Green has average speed running the bases and will likely stick as a corner outfielder despite playing middle infield and center field in High School. Green does need work with his ball tracking abilities, but that will come with his development at just one position instead of many at any given time. Green will likely never be a .300 hitter at the Major League level, but he has shown power that could carry him through the Minor Leagues.

Here’s to hoping the Yankees can get Green signed and into their Minor League system as soon as possible. You can follow Ryder on Twitter by following @airryder25 and you can follow us while you are there by following @GreedyStripes.

The 2018 MLB Draft, Luke Heimlich, and the Morality Behind Drafting Him

In a little under two weeks Major League Baseball will host their annual MLB First Year Players Draft from New York. The event can be seen live on MLB Network for the first few rounds of the draft while the entire event is over the course of a few days. Every team sees their future and their potential on these days as all 30 teams look to draft the next big thing. While evaluating a player a lot of things come into play before a team decides to draft a player. Ability is usually at the top of that list, closely followed by signability I’d say, but another huge factor that a lot of people seem to forget about is character. Character will play a huge role not only when drafted and while the player is in the Minor Leagues, but also when that player gets to the Major League level. Character is huge for the team drafting a player, especially a team with a huge market like the market in New York, which is why Oregon State pitcher Luke Heimlich may have trouble finding a home next month in the draft.  

If you don’t know the name Heimlich is a senior left-handed flamethrower from the Oregon State University baseball program who has had his bout with legal troubles in recent years. Heimlich was convicted for sexual assault for molesting his niece when she was just 6-years old, and he was 15. Heimlich, now 22-years old and the star pitcher on the top ranked team in the country, was placed on probation for the crime after pleading guilty and has served his time, completed his community service, etc. that came associated with the conviction. Heimlich states he only plead guilty as a way to spare his niece and family the pain and trauma of a trial but did admit to having “sexual contact” with the child. I don’t see the distinction, but it isn’t my place to judge. 

Heimlich was a Top-50 projected draft pick last season but went undrafted after his criminal history was revealed. Now Heimlich could be a Top 10, or even a top pick in the 2018 Draft, but will history repeat itself once again for the lefty? Heimlich, at the time of this writing, is sporting a 13-1 record with 129 strikeouts this season before his final regular-season start at home happened with the UCLA Bruins. Are there 30 teams that would once again pass on his talent in order to send a message due to his character?  

That would be nothing but speculations, although I can give my opinion on it. Everyone loves a good redemption story and to the best of everyone’s knowledge there hasn’t been a recurrence of the crime. The crime is heinous and disgusting, but not to sound insensitive the crime happened almost eight years ago when the lefty was 15-years old. It doesn’t excuse him from the crimes, and not to defend him but he did his time in the eyes of the law, but if he is sitting there in the first round when the New York Yankees pick comes to the podium… I’m sorry but if I am in that war room, I am taking him. It may not be the popular opinion, but it is my opinion. You draft for talent, and you work out the rest later in my opinion.  

This is bound to be a hot topic, so I am curious… what say you? 

Press Release - Minor League Baseball and Satisfi Labs Partner to Enhance Fan Experience

Minor League Baseball and Satisfi Labs Partner to Enhance Fan Experience

Bilingual artificial intelligence solution amplifies league-wide multicultural initiative

ST. PETERSBURG, Florida — Minor League Baseball™ (MiLB™) today announced a new collaboration with Satisfi Labs, a leading artificial intelligence engagement platform, to create a bilingual customer service AI conversation platform for more than 30 MiLB teams. This unique partnership marks the first time a sports league will communicate with its fans in both English and Spanish by leveraging Satisfi Labs’ AI capabilities.

This new product solution will amplify MiLB’s national multicultural initiative “Es Divertido Ser Un Fan®” (It’s Fun to Be a Fan®”) and its new “Copa de la Diversión™” (“Fun Cup™”) season-long event series specifically designed to embrace the culture and values that resonate most with participating teams’ local U.S. Hispanic/Latino communities. The interface will initially be made available to the participating “Copa” teams to support their respective fan engagement efforts.

The AI platform will operate within individual teams’ Facebook Messenger pages and serve to answer fans’ questions pertaining to aspects of the gameday experience such as ticketing, parking, and other common inquiries surrounding the venue, game, and teams, while providing unique answers based on the users’ locations. The platform’s bilingual capability allows each team to effectively connect and engage with their fans in the language of their choice to provide the right information, at the right place, in real-time.

“Our new partnership with Satisfi Labs reinforces our tech-infused strategy specifically designed to improve the fan experience any time they engage with MiLB,” said David Wright, Minor League Baseball Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer. “This cutting-edge technology will better our ability to understand the fan journey by providing a platform for our teams to engage a more diverse audience and turn data into intelligent action.”

“We’ve developed several unique platforms for brands across entertainment, retail, and sports, but this is the first tool we’ve created that can communicate as efficiently in Spanish as in English. We’re excited to expand our offerings in AI conversation platforms to the Hispanic community and support one of the largest sports leagues in the U.S. in its effort to better connect with all of its fans,” said Don White, CEO and Co-Founder of Satisfi Labs.

MiLB and Satisfi Labs plan to roll out an expanded AI conversation platform and league-wide fan engagement tool for the 2019 season.

Quick Hit: Boy Was I Wrong About Gleyber Torres

There are a lot of things you can say about me but one thing you will never be able to say about me is that I cannot admit when I am wrong. Both in my blogging life and in my personal life I am always the one to admit fault and take responsibility for it when I am wrong, and that is exactly what I am going to be doing here. Why? Because a couple weeks ago I opined what the Yankees should do when both Greg Bird and Brandon Drury return off the disabled list. I suggested that the team should designate Neil Walker for assignment, something I can still get behind, and I also stated that it made the most baseball sense to send down Gleyber Torres for some additional work and seasoning. Insert foot in mouth here please.

In the post I described how foolish it would be for the New York Yankees to send down either Miguel Andujar or Tyler Austin when the aforementioned duo returned from the disabled list because both had earned their spots on the club respectively. At that point in the season Gleyber was still freshly called up and had not yet hit the ground running, but what a difference a week or two can make. Torres has not only found his stride at the Major League level, but he is now beginning to show what has made him once a top prospect in all of Major League Baseball.

Gleyber is showcasing not just an ability to defend, run the base and hit the ball, but he is showing a true baseball knowledge at the plate that may be well beyond his years. Gleyber is showing a maturity that no 21-year old should possess at the Major League level as well as an ability to adjust not only at-bat by at-bat, but pitch-by-pitch. Gleyber is showing that he no longer has anything left to prove down at the Minor League level, and he is also proving that I was a fool for ever suggesting that he go down to make room for either Bird or Drury.

Gleyber has proven that he is the real deal, and he has also proven that I can be wrong every once in a while, (which I have proven more times than I would like to admit). Gleyber is for real, and Gleyber is here to stay. Robinson Cano who?

Article Revisit: My Second Trip to AT&T Field to Watch the Chattanooga Lookouts

So you all may or may not remember, or you may be new to the blog so if so… welcome, but last year my son Evan won an annual award from his school for being the Most Improved Student. What you get for this besides the obvious learning ramifications is a free ticket and food at the Chattanooga Lookouts AT&T Field. Well Evan won again this year so we made our second trip to Chattanooga on Wednesday night to watch the Lookouts take on the Pensacola Blue Wahoos.


Last year Evan’s little brother, Hayden, was a little too young to attend the game but this time around he made the trip with us for his first baseball game. Boy did Hayden have a good time. The chants, the mascots, the game and of course the hot dogs and ice cream he was a huge fan of. Plus at Minor League games the kids can be kids and aren’t confined to a small, cramped seat surrounded by thousands of people. It was nice and the boys had a great time. Evan almost caught a foul ball too but he missed it by about 10 feet, maybe next time kid!


It really is a great time. They have lots of things to keep you entertained in-between innings and such and the atmosphere is just nice. I love it there. I loved seeing old Yankees in new places like Angelo Gumbs, Matt Tracy, Nik Turley, Eric Jagielo and others along with new faces that I had never seen before. Nick Gordon was the starting second baseman for the Lookouts and Paul Clemens started the game which was cool to see live.





It was just a really enjoyable experience and I fully recommend it for anyone who is in the neighborhood. Next time though it’s going to be with you. Hey you. I love you.

Meet a Prospect: A.J. Cole

Another beard bites the dust...

The New York Yankees acquired pitcher A.J. Cole from the Washington Nationals in exchange for cash considerations just hours after the team beat up on the Minnesota Twins to the tune of a 14-1 victory on Monday night. New York designated right-hander David Hale for assignment after pitching the final two innings of the contest in order to make room for Cole on the active roster. Cole was brought in as depth for the Yankees and their struggling bullpen so let’s meet him. This is Meet a Prospect Special Edition: The A.J. Cole Edition.

Andrew Jordan Cole was born on January 5, 1992 in Florida where he attended Oviedo High School in Oviedo, Florida. While there A.J. played for the school’s baseball team and committed to attend the University of Miami on a baseball scholarship. Cole was considered to be a first-round pick in the 2010 Major League Baseball First Year Players Draft but fell in the draft due to his commitment to Miami and reportedly due to a high signing bonus demand. Cole fell all the way to the fourth round where the Washington Nationals snatched him up and signed him to a $2 million signing bonus, a record bonus for a fourth-round pick, to forgo his commitment to Miami. Cole finished the 2010 season in the Minor Leagues with Washington and spent the 2011 season there as well before the Nationals included Cole in a trade package.

On December 23, 2011 the Nationals traded Cole, catcher Derek Norris and pitchers Tommy Milone and Brad Peacock to the Oakland Athletics for Gio Gonzalez and Robert Gilliam. Cole struggled as a new member of the Athletics farm system beginning the 2012 season with a 0-7 record and a bloated 7.82 ERA. Cole bounced back after a demotion by the Athletics, but Oakland had seen enough after one season and ultimately traded Cole back to the Nationals on January 16, 2013 along with Blake Treinen and a player to be named later (Ian Krol) in a three-team trade that sent Michael Morse to the Seattle Mariners and Jon Jaso to the Athletics. Cole spent the 2013 and 2014 seasons with Washington before being added to the Nationals 40-man roster before the 2015 season.

Cole started the 2015 season back in the minors but was ultimately called up to make his MLB debut on April 28, replacing an injured Max Scherzer. Cole had a rough go of it in his MLB debut allowing nine runs in only two innings of work leading the Nationals to only allow him to appear in two more games that season, both out of the bullpen. Cole was back in Triple-A to start the 2016 season as he worked exclusively as a starting pitcher until August 18, 2016 when the Nationals called Cole up to work out of their bullpen. Cole remained in the bullpen until Stephen Strasburg went on the disabled list at the end of August 2016. Cole notched his first victory of his career on September 2, 2016 against the New York Mets.

Cole was back in Triple-A to begin the 2017 season but was called up on May 1, 2017 to fill in as a starting pitcher. Cole made one start before being optioned back down to Syracuse on May 12. Cole was called up multiple times throughout the 2017 season making various spot starts before coming up to stay on September 4 as a part of September call ups and roster expansion. Cole completed the 2017 season with a 3-5 record and a 3.81 ERA across 52 innings which included eight starts and three appearances as a relief pitcher.

Cole won the fifth starter job with the Nationals out of spring training in 2018 but the Atlanta Braves rudely welcomed him to the show scoring 10 runs off him in just 3.2 innings pitched. Cole made one more start for Washington before the Nationals moved Cole to the bullpen, where he will ultimately end up for Aaron Boone and company going forward. Good luck, A.J. and welcome to the family.

Gleyber Torres Discusses His Promotion to NYY

Meet a Prospect: L.J. Mazzilli

The New York Yankees made an interesting move this week when they swapped outfielder Kendall Coleman for New York Mets prospect L.J. Mazzilli. It was interesting to see Mazzilli join the organization that currently employs his father, Lee Mazzilli, who is a special advisor to the Yankees front office, and his twin sister and YES Network personality Lacey Mazzilli. While trading Coleman makes sense for the Yankees, the former 11^th round pick has struggled in Low-A ball since his drafting in 2013, it hurts a bit as a fan as I have grown close to Coleman and even interviewed him shortly after the Yankees drafted him here on the site. I will try not to hold my fandom and personal feelings against L.J. as I introduce him to the Yankees and Greedy Pinstripes faithful here this morning. This is Meet a Prospect: The L.J. Mazzilli Edition.

Lee Louis Mazzilli Jr. was born on September 6, 1990 in Greenwich, Connecticut to former MLB player and pitching coach Lee Mazzilli and his wife Dani. Lee Louis, or L.J. which stands for Lee Jr., played Little League Baseball while in Greenwich and even won a Little League Home Run Derby at the age of 12 before truly beginning his amateur career at Greenwich High School. Mazzilli later transferred to Iona Preparatory School in New Rochelle, New York due to their stronger baseball program before ultimately ending up at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida for his senior year of High School. All the bouncing around did some good for Mazzilli as the shortstop was able to enroll at the University of Connecticut where he continued his amateur baseball career.

While playing for the Connecticut Huskies baseball team Mazzilli was moved to second base as the Huskies had Nick Ahmed already manning the shortstop position. Mazzilli showed great potential with his bat as a freshman, sophomore and junior garnering the attention of the Minnesota twins who selected Mazzilli in the ninth round, 280^th overall, of the 2012 MLB First Year Players Draft. Mazzilli ultimately decided not sign with Minnesota despite being offered a $260,000 signing bonus and returned to UCONN for his senior season. The decision turned out to be a good one for Mazzilli who hit .354 with 51 RBI and 29 stolen bases as a senior.

The New York Mets selected Mazzilli in the fourth round of the 2013 MLB Draft with the 116^th overall selection and was immediately signed to the New York-Penn League. Mazzilli was named to the Short Season All-Star team in 2013 before earning a promotion to Class-A Ball and the South Atlantic League (SAL) for the 2014 season. Another year and another All-Star Game appearance for Mazzilli in 2014, this time earning the nod in the SAL All-Star Game, before making stops in Class-A Advanced, Double-A and even Triple-A with the Las Vegas 51s before the end of the season.

The 2014 season was kind to Mazzilli but the offseason before the 2015 season could not say the same. During the 2014-2015 offseason Mazzilli was suspended for the first 50 games of the season after failing a second test for “drug abuse.” Mazzilli was assigned to Double-A Binghamton for the remainder of the 2015 season where he would remain for the rest of that season and for the majority of the 2016 season. In August of 2016 Mazzilli found himself back in Triple-A with Las Vegas, where he finished the 2016 and 2017 seasons. Mazzilli, drafted as a second baseman, was learning the outfield position with the Mets which led to the slow down in progression for him as a prospect.

Mazzilli was back in Triple-A to begin the 2018 season before the need for infield and outfield depth at the upper levels of the organization led the New York Yankees to come calling. The Yankees traded Coleman to the Mets thus bringing Mazzilli to the team and to the organization. Welcome, L.J.! Do us proud.

Yankees Sign Nate Coronado out of the Atlantic League

The New York Yankees brought in a little more minor league depth this week when the organization plucked away an infielder from the Atlantic League. The Yankees announced the signing of infielder Nate Coronado from the Lancaster Barnstormers out of the Atlantic League.

Coronado is 25-years old and at the time of this writing was at the team’s spring training camp in Tampa, Florida awaiting an assignment to one of the team’s minor league affiliates. The infielder joined the Barnstormers following the 2017 All-Star break where he batted .333 in 60 games with six home runs and 38 RBI.

Barnstormers manager Ross Peeples spoke highly of him when news broke that Coronado was signed by New York stating that the 25-year old “can play multiple positions and, with his age, definitely deserves this opportunity. Source goes to the Lancaster Barnstormers who broke the news first.

Welcome to the organization, Nate, and welcome to the family.

Meet a Coach: Phil Nevin

The New York Yankees saw much of their coaching staff leave when Joe Girardi was asked not to return to his managerial position in 2018, and that included their bench coach, first base coach, hitting coach and their third base coach. The Yankees sought to promote from within at a lot of these positions, but one man opened enough eyes outside the Yankees organization to garner an interview, and eventually a job with the team. Phil Nevin was named to manager Aaron Boone’s staff this winter as the team’s third base coach, so let’s meet the man with the thankless job of sending and holding runners at third base all season long. This is Meet a Coach: The Phil Nevin Edition.

Phillip Joseph Nevin was born on January 19, 1971 in California where the right-hander attended El Dorado High School in Placentia, California. After graduating from high school the Los Angeles Dodgers took a waiver on the infielder by selecting him in the third round of the 1989 MLB First Year Players Draft. The Dodgers were prepared to give Nevin a $100,000 signing bonus to forego his college commitment and to begin his professional career, but in the end Nevin decided he would attend California State University, Fullerton, better known as Cal State Fullerton. As a two-sport star at Cal State Fullerton, Nevin played both baseball and football, Nevin represented both teams to the fullest as a kicker and as a third baseman. Nevin led the Titans to the College World Series final as a Junior, although his team did lose to the eventual champion Pepperdine Waves baseball team and won the CWS Most Outstanding Player award. Nevin’s contributions to the Titans led the the Houston Astros to take Nevin with the first overall pick in the 1992 MLB First Year Players Draft. Much controversy was had after Nevin, and not eventual New York Yankees legend Derek Jeter, was taken first overall, especially by Houston Astros scout Hal Newhouser.

Newhouser was a scout for the Astros who had evaluated Jeter extensively prior to the Draft and had lobbied team management to select Jeter. When the Astros decided to pick Nevin instead Newhouser quit in protest over the decision. The Astros were worried that Jeter would want a signing bonus in excess of $1 million to sign with them and forego his college commitment, while the team thought the team could sign Nevin, a college Junior, for significantly less. When all he negotiations were complete the Astros thought they had their third baseman of the future after signing Nevin in June of 1992 for just $700,000.

Nevin traveled with the Astros at the end of the 1992 season despite being on the team’s active roster as the team prepared their third baseman to go to the Arizona Fall League. Nevin showed he needed little work in the Minor Leagues during the Fall League of 1992 and during Spring Training camp in 1993 where he hit .350 and showed tremendous power for the Astros. The team considered letting him skip the Minor Leagues all together and even considered letting him immediately start in the Major Leagues on Opening Day 1993, but the team ultimately decided to start him down at Triple-A with the Tucson Toros due to the fact that the team already had a third baseman in Ken Caminiti manning the position. While in Triple-A the Astros tried to get Nevin to learn left field so both he and Caminiti could be on the field at the same time, but Nevin began the season with a .247 batting average quelling any decisions to immediately promote him to the Major Leagues, at least for a little while. Nevin ultimately ended the 1993 season with a .286 batting average, 10 home runs and 91 RBI, but it was not enough to warrant a trip to the Major Leagues that season. Nevin was back in Triple-A to begin the 1994 season as well and this time he had a new position to learn, the first base position.

Nevin’s MLB debut was delayed due to less-than-stellar defense, Nevin committed 61 errors in his first two seasons, and the MLB work stoppage in 1994 that cancelled the World Series and delayed the opening of the 1995 season. Before the 1995 season the San Diego Padres had seen enough of Nevin down in Triple-A and decided to trade Caminiti to the San Diego Padres, thus opening the door for Nevin to play third base for the team. Nevin, in a bit of a head scratcher, was not invited to the team’s spring training camp for the 1995 season. Nevin and teammate Billy Wagner had previously refused to play with replacement players at the Major League level which many attributed to why Nevin was not invited to camp that season. Nevin started the 1995 season back down in Triple-A, but eventually he did too much with the bat to warrant being down there and the Astros finally promoted him to the Major Leagues on June 10 of that season. Nevin played in just 18 games that season, struggling with a .117 batting average and no home runs before being demoted back to Triple-A. Nevin, when learning of the news, cursed at Astros General Manager Bob Watson and their manager Terry Collins, an incident he would later have to apologize for.

Before the 1996 season the Houston Astros traded Nevin and his presumed bad attitude to the Detroit Tigers for pitcher Mike Henneman. Nevin was assigned to the Tigers Double-A team where he was converted into a catcher. After the 1997 season Nevin was traded once again alongside catcher Matt Walbeck to the Anaheim Angels, where former manager Terry Collins was now managing, for minor leaguer Nick Skuse. Nevin could never seemingly stay in one place for long at the beginning of his career and he was on the move again before the 1999 season after the Angels traded Nevin and minor league player Keith Volkman to the San Diego Padres. With the Padres in 1999 Nevin appeared in 100 games for the first time during his Major League career. Nevin seemingly found his way while out in San Diego enjoying a productive 2000 season before being named to the National League All-Star team in 2001 after hitting 41 home runs and knocking in 126 RBI. Nevin did lead the league in errors at third base with 27, but his offensive production more than made up for that for the Padres.

Nevin was converted back to first base for the 2002 season, his strongest defensively by many metrics and stats, but injuries would tell the tales of his 2002 and 2003 seasons, and not his defense or offensive production. In 2002 Nevin strained his elbow, then three games after returning from the elbow injury he broke his arm diving for a ground ball missing six additional weeks. In 2003 Nevin dislocated his shoulder in spring training and did not return until the month of June after left shoulder surgery. By July Nevin was back under the knife after undergoing arthroscopic surgery to repair torn cartilage in his right knee in July. In Nevin’s absence the Padres acquired Rondell White to replace Nevin in the outfield while allowing Ryan Klesko to play first base and rookie Sean Burroughs to man the hot corner at third base, pushing Nevin to a utility role.

Nevin and Padres GM Kevin Towers were said to have a “love-hate” relationship and that relationship was almost severed on July 25, 2005 after the Padres agreed to trade Nevin to the Baltimore Orioles for RHP Sidney Ponson. Nevin exercised a clause in his contract that allowed him to block a trade to one of eight teams, one of those franchises being the Baltimore Orioles, but was ultimately traded five days later on July 30, 2005 to the Texas Rangers for Chan Ho Park. Nevin slumped while with the Rangers, and so did Texas who went 1-12 in Nevin’s first 13 games, which ultimately ended in him being benched after the team was eliminated from playoff contention.

Nevin had one year left on his contract for the 2006 season and he hoped that playing DH for the Rangers would revitalize his game and put to rest any rumors of him losing bat speed as he aged. Nevin continued to struggle in 2006 batting just .216 with nine home runs and 31 RBI in 46 games which prompted the team to call up rookie Jason Botts, who received the bulk of Nevin’s playing time. The Rangers ultimately traded Nevin to the Chicago Cubs who needed a first baseman to replace the injured Derrick Lee on May 31, 2006 for Jerry Hairston, Jr. Three months later Nevin was traded once again on August 31, 2006 to the Minnesota Twins for cash and a player to be named later. Nevin appeared in the postseason for the first time that season with the Twins, although Minnesota was ultimately swept by the Oakland Athletics in three games. Nevin appeared in just one of those games, batting 0-for-3.

That would be Nevin’s final game as the former third baseman and utility player announced his retirement prior to the 2007 season. Nevin played 12 seasons at the Major League level hitting 208 home runs and driving in 743 RBI with a career .270 batting average. Nevin spent the 2007 season as a member of the Padres’ pre-game radio show and as an analyst for ESPN during the college baseball regionals during the annual College World Series.

Nevin returned to baseball as a manager in 2008 after being named the manager of the Orange County Flyers in the Independent Golden Baseball League. Nevin managed the Flyers in 2008 and 2009, and planned to do so again in 2010, but after attending the winter meetings in 2010 the former MLB player was named the manager of the Erie SeaWolves, the Class-AA minor league affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, replacing former manager Tom Brookens after Brookens was promoted to first base coach at the Major League level. Nevin spent one season with the SeaWlves before being promoted to Triple-A with the Tigers AAA team, the Toledo Mud Hens before the 2011 season. Nevin lasted two seasons with Toledo before being fired on August 31, 2013 after managing to a 192-238 record over his three seasons.

Nevin bounced back for the 2014 season finding a job with the Arizona Diamondbacks managing their Triple-A team, the Reno Aces. In his first season with the Aces, Nevin led the team to the best record in the Pacific Coast League, 81-63, and an eventual Pacific Coast League Championship Series berth. Nevin remained with the organization for the 2015 and 2016 season before the San Francisco Giants named Nevin their third-base coach for the 2017, replacing Roberto Kelly. After the 2017 season the New York Yankees and new manager Aaron Boone came calling in hopes that Nevin would accept the same position with their team in the Bronx for 2018. Nevin ultimately decided to make the move to the Bronx and will now be sending players home with an exaggerated windmill type arm motion all season long. It’s a thankless job, Phil. Especially in the Bronx. I hope you’re ready. Good luck, welcome to the organization, and more importantly welcome to the family. Do us proud.