Nik Turley Signs w/ San Francisco

Nik Turley was not tendered a contract from the New York Yankees after being designated for assignment and assigned off the 40 man roster this past spring training and is now a member of the San Francisco Giants. Turley battled an arm injury in 2014 which led to the DFA before returning for 14 games while posting a 4.62 ERA.

Turley is headed to the Giants Triple-A squad after signing a minor league deal and will look to get back the extreme control that made him so attractive to the Yankees. Turley will not blow you away with his 90 MPH average fastball but he can spot an above average curveball and changeup about anywhere he wants to any time he wants to.

Good luck Nik, we hate to lose you in the organization but we wish you nothing but the best of luck in SF!

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. 

Fourteen Yankees MiLB Players Become Free Agents

Thursday night we learned that Zoilo Almonte, Antoan Richardson, and Scott Sizemore all elected free agency and became free agents rather than spend another season in the Yankees minor league system. Today we learn that 11 other members of the Yankees farm systems have also become free agents this week.

Joining Almonte, Richardson, and Sizemore are Carmen Angelini, Jeremy Bleich, Francisco Rondon, Nik Turley, Ramon Benjamin, Jose Toussen, David Herndon, Andrew Bailey (who has already been re-signed), Jairo Heredia, Jose Gil, Reymond Nunez, and switch pitcher Pat Venditte. 

We wish these 14 young men good luck and hope they latch on with another organization soon. 

Looking At Potential Matt Thornton Replacements

So I think we all know by now that Rich Hill will not be the answer as a replacement for Matt Thornton. He has been mediocre at best for 10 seasons and was less than stellar in his first appearance as a Yankee. The good news is the Yankees have a good ten or more potential replacements without doing much research to replace Thornton, and his name is not Rich Hill.

James Pazos has pitched in 20 games for the Trenton Thunder and sports a 1.29 ERA striking out 9.3 per nine innings and has not allowed a home run. Pazos Pazos has a .194 batting average against and that's against both righties and lefties.

Tyler Webb only has 8.2 innings pitched in Scranton but between Trenton, Tampa, and Scranton sports a 3.45 ERA and 12.7 K/9 ratio. Webb has a BAA of .152 in Tampa, .247 in Trenton, and .161 in Scranton.

Jacob Lindgren has made three stops since being drafted in June and currently sits in Double-A Trenton. Lindgren has a total of 13.1 IP and has 30 K's which is good for a 20.2 K/9 ratio. The problem with Lindrgen is I can't see him joining the bullpen before September.

Manny Banuelos has struggled this season after coming back from Tommy John surgery and has a 4.03 ERA between Trenton and Tampa this season. Banuelos does have 53 K's and a 8.2 K/9 as a starter but is likely going to finish the season in the minor leagues.

Pat Venditte is the perfect arm(s) that the Yankees should call up as he can go multiple innings if need be and can throw with both his arms for christ sake. Venditte has a 3.15 ERA with a 8.6 K/9 ratio. For some reason the Yankees continue to overlook the 29 year old.

Matt Tracy is a starting pitcher in Triple-A and has posted a 3.48 ERA in 126.2 innings. Tracy has a 5.1 K/9 this season which may keep him from the Bronx. That or his 1.643 WHIP with the RailRiders this season.

Finally Francisco Rondon has pitched well for both Trenton and Scranton this season with a combined 3.31 ERA in 32.2 innings in 2014. Rondon misses bats and was considered to be one of the best Yankees left handed relievers not too long ago.

Nik Turley has unfortunately struggled for the Scranton RailRiders this season with a 6.43 ERA as a starter making his call up highly unlikely. Same goes for Jeremy Bleich who has a 7.71 ERA and is not missing nearly enough bats to be a serious contender for the roster spot. Eric Wooten is barely in Trenton, has a 4.08 ERA, and doesn't miss nearly enough bats to be taken seriously for the roster spot. Daniel Camarena has a 6.29 ERA for Trenton and a 1.685 WHIP and Fred Lewis was not able to build on a strong Arizona Fall League or Spring Training and has a 2.400 WHIP for Trenton after being demoted from Scranton after posting a 2.250 WHIP this season.

There's always Cesar Cabral too.. no, never mind, there isn't.

One man that will not be in the plans is Jeff Francis who was released after being designated for assignment last week. Who ya got? Personally, I'm going with Lindgren in September but Tyler Webb now. He can get batters out and is ready for the Bronx now. Make the move Cash.

Quick Hit: Catching Up w/ The Farm

I am a little behind on my Yankees prospects and Baby Bomber updates so let's get caught up, shall we?

Slade Heathcott will miss the remainder of the 2014 season with a knee injury, that same knee injury that cost him much of the 2013 season. The injury will require surgery, terrible luck for Slade and the Yankees.

Heath Bell has been released after just five games for Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre. He was brought in to use and abuse for a couple weeks and that is exactly what the Yankees did.

Nik Turley is being activated off the DL finally after missing all of spring training and this season to date and will be assigned to the RailRiders. As you remember Turley was released and re-signed, basically a procedural move to get him off the 40 man roster and through waivers.

Dean Anna and Diego Moreno came off the Triple-A disabled list and really created a logjam for the RailRiders, especially in the infield. Scranton now has Kyle Roller, Anna, Zelous Wheeler, Rob Refsnyder, and Scott Sizemore vying for spots. That's not including second basemen turned outfielder Jose Pirela already moved to the outfield.

Nik Turley Officially Back In The Fold

Source: #Yankees in agreement on minor league deal with LHP Nik Turley. They released him off 40-man roster, re-signed to minor league deal.
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) May 8, 2014

Yesterday we brought you the news that Nik Turley was close to re-signing with the New York Yankees after being released last week and today the move became official. Turley signed another minor league deal with the Yankees a la David Adams from 2013. Turley was released to clear a 40 man roster spot and came right back to the organization.

No word on how much longer he will rest and rehab his sore arm that has kept him out of all of spring training and the 2014 season to date. Stay tuned.

Nik Turley Close To Re-Signing With Yankees

According to Mark Newman, the Yankees expect Nik Turley to re-sign soon. He's been rehabbing with them in Tampa since his release. #Yankees
— Lohud Yankees Blog (@LoHudYankees) May 7, 2014

The New York Yankees have been without Nik Turley's services all season and all spring training long after struggling with some tightness in his throwing arm and ultimately released him off the 40 man roster. Much like David Adams last season the Yankees are close to bringing Turley back on a minor league deal and are ready to assign him to Double-A Trenton. Great news for the Yankees to have his left handed arm back in the organization.

Nik Turley Released, Greene Sent Down, Leroux Up

The revolving door in the Yankees bullpen continued this morning as the Yankees announced a couple roster moves to have some fresh bodies in the pen. First we all heard earlier this morning that Chris Leroux was called up to give the Yankees a fresh arm to throw out there since starter today Vidal Nuno is only good for 80-85 pitches today.

To make room on the 40 man roster the Yankees have released Nik Turley is a somewhat surprising move. Turley has been injured all spring training and all season long so the Yankees may be hoping to get the lefty through waivers, back in Trenton when he is healthy, and off the 40 man roster. That's the best case scenario here anyway.

To make room on the 25 man roster the Yankees have sent Shane Greene back down to Scranton. Now you're all caught up.

Yankees Option Sanchez, Heathcott, & Turley To Minor League Camps

The New York Yankees have made at least three more cuts from Major League Spring Training camp today assigning Gary Sanchez to AA Trenton and Nik Turley and Slade Heathcott to AAA Scranton Wilkes Barre. This coming from Yankees.com transactions page, seen HERE.

Turley has been shut down with left arm tightness and has been inactive for most of the spring, supposedly the Yankees are just being overly cautious with him though. Heathcott has been moved along slowly, and I mean slowly, this spring after coming off a minor knee surgery in the winter to clean up his knee. Sanchez, while is fun to watch, has no chance of breaking camp with the Yankees so will benefit more from minor league camps when they open up soon.

Three more cuts today and none of them major yet, I don't expect we will see any of those until after the Panama series and all the players are back and rested.

New York Yankees Spring Training News & Notes 3/11

Just a few New York Yankees spring training news and notes from my porch as I watch my son play in his firetruck on a 80 degree day. Enjoy the day Yankees fans.

Nik Turley is still experiencing tightness in his throwing forearm and is still shut down for the immediate future. Not great news for a guy who had a shot, albeit a very outside shot, at making the team out of the bullpen this camp.

Masahiro Tanaka threw his first simulated game of his professional career here in the states. Jake Cave and Cito Culver did not stand a chance against Tanaka today as pitching coach Larry Rothschild called balls and strikes behind the mound. John Ryan Murphy caught Tanaka possibly squashing the idea of Francisco Cervelli being his personal catcher.

David Phelps, Ivan Nova, Michael Pineda, Adam Warren, Bruce Billings, Bryan Mitchell, Manny Banuelos, Chris Leroux, and Shane Greene all threw side sessions today.  Along with Tanaka, Davis Robertson, Matt Thornton, Preston Claiborne, and Vidal Nuno all threw simulated games today to Cervelli.

CC Sabathia sucked today, his words not mine. CC's velocity was in the 88 - 89 MPH range but velocity may not have been the problem. CC experimented with his new cutter today so I expected mixed results and apparently so did he.

Chad Jennings with the assignments from the day:

Batting practice groups in Tampa:
Group 1: Carlos Beltran, Derek Jeter, Brian Roberts, Alfonso Soriano, Ichiro Suzuki
Group 2: Russ Canzler, Francisco Cervelli, Kelly Johnson, John Ryan Murphy

· Today’s second string: C Gary Sanchez, 1B Francisco Arcia, 2B Corban Joseph, SS Yangervis Solarte, 3B Zelous Wheeler, LF Antoan Richardson, CF Mason Williams, RF Ramon Flores, DH Pete O’Brien

· Today’s scheduled relievers: Cesar Cabral, Fred Lewis, Matt Daley, Brian Gordon, Jim Miller and David Herndon (with Dellin Betances, Chase Whitley, Mark Montgomery and Danny Burawa also making the trip)

More Yankees Spring Training News & Notes 3/2

We brought you a few spring training news and notes earlier this morning and we have a bunch more to bring you now that we are a little closer to game time. I am excited because due to work, my wife and her need to shop, and all that grownup stuff this will be the first spring game I have been able to watch live and in it's entirety.

Michael Pineda threw another simulated game today to Scott Sizemore and Zoilo Almonte with Yankees pitching coach Larry Rothschild calling balls and strikes. Pineda got rave reviews from the players who talked of the movement on Pineda's pitches and a velocity that was estimated in the low 90's. Not bad for a guy that is coming off shoulder surgery two years ago.

Pineda will make his spring debut on Friday going three innings. Mark Teixeira is expected to make his spring debut either Thursday or Friday next week. Alfonso Soriano is expected to make his debut early to the middle of next week.

Masahiro Tanka will pitch next on Thursday against the Philadelphia Phillies. CC Sabathia is expected to throw a simulated game that day. Hiroki Kuroda will pitch again on Friday splitting time with Pineda and is expected to throw three innings as well.

Nik Turley has been shut down with arm soreness but is expected to begin throwing again tomorrow, probably just catch. Scott Sizemore slid into bases in the dirt today with no problem which was the last obstacle before being cleared to get into games after a second ACL surgery, good news for a guy fighting for the last bench spot.

David Herndon threw a simulated game today against Zoilo Almonte and Scott Sizemore, breaking one of Sizemore's bat. Herndon threw to Francisco Arcia.

Chad Jennings as always have the assignments from this morning:

Today’s bullpens:
Adam Warren (to Brian McCann)
Preston Claiborne (to Francisco Cervelli)
Brian Gordon (to Roman Rodriguez)
Chase Whitley (to Jose Gil)

· Today’s batting practice groups (in Tampa)
Group 1: Derek Jeter, Brian Roberts, Alfonso Soriano, Ichiro Suzuki
Group 2: Francisco Cervelli, Brett Gardner, Brian McCann
Group 3: Zoilo Almonte, Kelly Johnson, Scott Sizemore

· Today’s second string: C Gary Sanchez, 1B Francisco Arcia, 2B Corban Joseph, SS Yangervis Solarte, 3B Jose Pirela, LF Zelous Wheeler, CF Antoan Richardson, RF Addison Maruszak

· Today’s scheduled relievers: Bryan Mitchell, Shane Greene, Bruce Billings, Fred Lewis, Matt Daley (Dan Burawa, Chris Leroux and Mark Montgomery are also making the trip)

New York Yankees Spring Training News & Notes 2/26

As we all probably know by now the Yankees lost their first real exhibition game against a Major League team today when they fell to the Pittsburgh Pirates. It's no big deal, especially in February, but it was still worth mentioning that the Yankees got that first loss out of the way and can now win out without the pressure of an undefeated spring. I took this beginning paragraph about as seriously as I took today's loss and Nova's struggles, on to the news.

Eduardo Nunez was scratched today with a stomach bug. Have to wonder if he is going to be out tomorrow with flu like symptoms and if Alfonso Soriano is passing that stuff around. Nunez pleaded with the training staff to make the road trip anyway but Steve Donahue shut him down for the day, maybe it won't be serious or lingering. Yangervis Solarte started at shortstop today and Addison Maruszak was called up from a minor league camp to come off the bench to replace Nunez for the day.

Carlos Beltran, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Brian McCann all got their first action in Yankees pinstripes, well spring training uniforms anyway, and we will see the season debut of Derek Jeter tomorrow at home against the Pirates. Alfonso Soriano is slated to get into his first game on March 2, this Sunday, after being told the Yankees would hold him out of games for five days of workouts. Since he has been sick this is only his second day of workouts. Mark Teixeira will probably start in a game late next week but no date was given exactly by manager Joe Girardi.

Matt Daley was scheduled to pitch today but was kept out due to a sore calf. Doesn't seem like a big deal, hopefully it's not. If it is one of my good friends who is a writer here and comments in our comments sections, Patrick Walsh, will likely jump off a bridge. Please be okay Matt.

Speaking of injuries Nik Turley has been shut down for seven days of rest even though all the test results on his sore throwing arm came back negative. Jim Miller is back to full health and Tyler Austin's wrist was to be examined today by team doctors.

Speaking of injuries, again, add Jose Ramirez to the list of injured guys as he felt his back grab during a bullpen session. Ramirez's tight back will be reevaluated tomorrow by team doctors.

Chad Jennings with the assignments from this morning:

Morning live batting practice:
With Scott Sizemore and Ramon Flores hitting
Fred Lewis (to John Ryan Murphy)
Dan Burawa (to Pete O’Brien)
Michael Pineda (to Francisco Cervelli)
Manny Banuelos (to Gary Sanchez)

· Bullpen sessions at Steinbrenner Field
Adam Warren (to Pete O’Brien)
Masahiro Tanaka (to Francisco Cervelli)
Hiroki Kuroda (to Gary Sanchez)
CC Sabathia (to John Ryan Murphy)

· Batting practice groups at Steinbrenner Field
Group 1: Derek Jeter, Brian Roberts, Alfonso Soriano, Ichiro Suzuki
Group 2: Francisco Cervelli, Brett Gardner, Mark Teixeira
Group 3: Gary Sanchez, Kelly Johnson, Brendan Ryan, Scott Sizemore

· Today’s second string: C Austin Romine, 1B Jose Gil, 2B Jose Pirela, SS Addison Maruszak, 3B Adonis Garcia, LF Antoan Richardson, CF Mason Williams, RF Zoilo Almonte, DH Francisco Arcia

· Today’s scheduled relievers: Bruce Billings, Dellin Betances, Jose Ramirez, Chase Whitley (Matt Daley was listed but he’s now hurt; Chris Leroux, Preston Claiborne and Cesar Cabral listed as emergency backups. Assume one of them could pitch in Daley’s place)

The 2014 Yankees Injury Bug Is Alive & Present

The Yankees haven't even played their first exhibition game, which comes Tuesday against Florida State in case you were wondering or had forgotten, and the injury bug is going around worse then the flu. Not again.. I can't handle another season of this. 

Alfonso Soriano has been kept out of workouts and such the past two days with flu like symptoms and actually feels worse today. This is the good news, he can get over this in a few days and be fine all season. No need to rush Soriano, he will be there when it matters. 

The worst news is Tyler Austin and his wrist are acting up AGAIN, terrible news. His wrist bothered him all season last year and kept him out of the Arizona Fall League and will continue to hamper him this Spring Training. Austin was held out of batting practice today and will be reevaluated in a couple of days, doesn't sound good. 

Nik Turley was scratched from his scheduled throwing sessions because his arm was a little tight. Turley, as of right now, is only expected to be out for today. Manager Joe Girardi did not sound concerned about it and hopefully it is just his body adjusting to throwing after a long offseason. 

Jim Miller is on a minor league deal so this hurts him more than it hurts us, even with a short bullpen, when his calf came up slightly irritated today. Miller was held out of camp today and will again tomorrow and the Yankees will see how he feels on Monday before throwing him out there again. 

Here's to hoping these are the exception and not the rule this season, again. 

Meet A Prospect : Nik Turley

Nikolas C. Turley was born on September 11th, 1989 in La Canada, California where he attended Harvard-Westlake High School in California. With a 6'7" frame and weighing in at 230 lbs while throwing three plus pitches from the left side and has drawn comparisons to a young Andy Pettitte you can understand why the Yankees drafted him in the 50th round of the 2008 MLB First Year Players Draft. The Yankees offered him enough money, thankfully, to get him out of his written commitment to BYU and become a professional baseball player. With his three plus pitches, amazing pitchers frame, and the fact that he throws for control from the left side I cannot see how he fell to the 50th round but I am glad the Yankees scooped him up.

Nik only saw 8 IP in his first professional season for the Gulf Coast Yankees and put up a 2-1 record with a 1.13 ERA in four games, one of them as a starter. He stayed in the GCL in 2009 where he compiled 54.1 IP to go with a 2-3 record and a 2.82 ERA. Nik would start the 2010 season in the GCL once again but was not long for the league as the Yankees moved him up to the Staten Island Yankees where he put up a 4-4 record with a 4.38 ERA in 61.2 IP. By the end of the 2012 season Nik had made it all the way to the Trenton Thunder AA affiliate where he only got to pitch 5 IP before the season ended. In 2012 Nik had a combined record of 10-5 with an 3.00 ERA in 117 IP while splitting time with Tampa and Trenton. 2013 saw Turley repeat at AA Trenton and put up an 11-8 record with a 3.88 ERA before seeing one game in AAA for the RailRiders.

Nik is an intimidating prescence on the mound when he comes out there at 6'7" and throws a 2 seam fastball that sits in the 91-92 mph range. He also throws a nice changeup that sits in the 79-81 mph range and has a big looping curveball that is by far his best pitch. Unlike many tall pitchers in baseball, see Andrew Brackman, Nik has shown to be consistent with his control and his ability to repeat his mechanics and stay on top of the ball. Nik is a ground ball machine so he projects to do very well in the new Yankees Stadium if he can keep the ball down and make hitters pound the ball into the ground a la Chein-Ming Wang or Ivan Nova. Nik projects to be a middle of the rotation kind of starter and if everything goes as planned that will be in the Bronx for the New York Yankees.

ETA Mid to Late 2014

Prospects Month: Top 28 Yankees Prospects List #21

Continuing our look at The Greedy Pinstripes Top 28 prospects list as a part of Prospects Month we name our #21 prospect, Nik Turley!

Here is the complete up to date list. Check back every day as the list fills out and we continue our look at the prospects in the New York Yankees system during Prospects Month here on TGP.

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15.
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21. Nik Turley
22. Cito Culver
23. Ramon Flores
24. Mark Montgomery
25. Rookie Davis
26. Jake Cave
27. Ben Gamel
28. Angelo Gumbs

Thunder Win Game 1, 8-2; Series 1-0

Thunder with eight unanswered runs lead series

TRENTON, NJ - Trenton used a five-run third inning to erase an early 2-0 deficit against the Harrisburg Senators en route to an 8-2 win in Game 1 of the Eastern League Championship Series Tuesday night at ARM & HAMMER Park.

After allowing single runs in the 2nd and 3rd innings, Trenton's offense responded with an explosion off Harrisburg starting pitcher Blake Treinen that knocked him out of the game. Treinen, who pitched only 2.2 innings, ran into trouble after retiring all six batters he faced in the first two innings.

The inning started with a pair of walks to Ben Gamel and Reggie Corona which brought Ali Castillo to the plate attempting a sacrifice bunt to advance the runners. Instead, his bunt at the third baseman came to a stop just past the pitcher's mound for a base hit that loaded the bases with no outs. Mason Williams' two-run single and Jose Pirela and Tyler Austin's RBI singles brought home additional runs to make it 5-2 Thunder.

Trenton scored two more runs in the 4th inning on an RBI triple by Ali Castillo and a sacrifice fly by Williams, before Gary Sanchez's RBI double in the 7th inning capped the scoring for the night for both teams.

Thunder starting pitcher Nik Turley settled into his outing after allowing five baserunners in the first three innings by posting scoreless frames in the 4th, 5th and 6th innings. He fanned a career-high 10 batters including recording five of his final six outs via a strikeout. The La Canada, Calif. native earned the victory by allowing two runs over six innings on five hits and three walks.

Zach Nuding (2.0 innings) and Branden Pinder (1.0 innings) combined to retire nine of the final 10 Harrisburg batters to close out the win. With the win, the Thunder lead the best-of-five series 1-0.

Trenton and Harrisburg continue the ELCS at ARM & HAMMER Park with Game 2 Wednesday night. RHP Bryan Mitchell (0-0, 1.93) is scheduled to start for the Thunder against RHP A.J. Cole (4-2, 2.18) for the Senators. Limited tickets are available for Game 2 by going to www.trentonthunder.com/tickets or by calling the Thunder Ticket Office at (609)394-3300. Radio coverage of Wednesday's game on 91.3 FM (WTSR) and online begins at 6:45 p.m.

Being posted with permission from the Trenton Thunder organization. The original article can be seen HERE. 

Four Homers Pace Thunder Past Portland; Castillo & Pinder Rejoin Team

PORTLAND, ME - Four thunderous home runs on an afternoon where Trenton starting pitcher Nik Turley allowed just two runs in five innings were enough to lead the Thunder past the Portland Sea Dogs, 9-4, in the penultimate game of the regular season Sunday at Hadlcok Field.

Prior to the contest, the Yankees announced that shortstop Ali Castillo and reliever Branden Pinder had been promoted to Trenton from Class A-Advanced Tampa. Shortstop Carmen Angelini was placed on the team's disabled list with a left ankle sprain and LHP Caleb Smith was transferred to Tampa.

Facing the No. 5 prospect in the Boston Red Sox organization, Henry Owens, Trenton established the tone early. The second and fourth batters of the game (Ramon Flores and Gary Sanchez) homered to stake starting pitcher a 2-0 lead before he took to the mound.

Turley went out on the Hadlock Field mound in front of 7,368 fans and tossed four shutout innings before allowing a pair of runs in the 5th. Turley gets credit for the win which is his 11th of the season-surpassing the 10 wins he posted in 2012.

The other two home runs blasted by the Thunder came off the bats of Reegie Corona (5) and Ben Gamel (1). The homer by Gamel was the first in his Double-A career and was the highlight in a game in which he finished 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles, a home run and a walk.  

Castillo and Pinder each played for Trenton earlier in the season and are each expected to be a park of the team's playoff roster. In 46 games as a Thunder, Castillo batted .218 with no home runs and 22 RBI. He was hitting .234 in 73 games with Tampa. 

Pinder made 19 relief appearances earlier at the beginning of the season for the Thunder and went 1-1 with five saves and a 6.29 ERA. His numbers improved greatly with Tampa, going 1-2 with a 3.49 in 21 appearances (five starts).

The regular season concludes Monday with a 1:00 p.m. matinee game against the Portland Sea Dogs at Hadlock Field. RHP Scottie Allen (2-0, 1.59) pitches for the Thunder against RHP Jeremy Khert (2-3, 4.33) for Portland. Trenton will use the ballgame as a final tune-up before the Eastern League East Division Championship Series against the Binghamton Mets beginning Wednesday at ARM & HAMMER Park. Tickets are available for Game 1 and Game 2 of the series by going towww.trentonthunder.com/tickets or by calling (609)394-3300. Radio coverage of Monday's game on 91.3 FM (WTSR) and online begins at 12:45 p.m.

Being posted with permission from the Trenton Thunder organization. The original article can be seen HERE. 

Predicting Who Will Not Be Called Up

Earlier we gave you the list of players that we expected to be called up this September as the rosters expand to 40 players now here is my list of players that are on the 40 man roster that I cannot see coming up this season.

Michael Pineda should be called up but I really don't think they will. The Yankees were babying him with pitch and limit innings before he experienced shoulder stiffness in his surgically repaired shoulder that has kept him out nearly a month now. I can't see the Yankees letting him get any work in while we are in the middle of a pennant race.

Vidal Nuno pitched well before suffering a groin injury that will likely end his season. While he may try and rehab the groin I cannot see him being called up again this season. Nuno does not have any place to play in rehab assignment games or get any kind of real action outside of simulated games and that will keep him on the shelf for the season in my eyes.

Manny Banuelos has missed the entire season with Tommy John surgery and has begun throwing off flat ground, playing catch, etc but is still too far away from real game situations. I only included him because he has started throwing again and is not on the 60 day DL.

Jose Ramirez pitched well in AA this year but the Yankees are in the middle of a pennant race and I cannot see them letting Ramirez get his feet wet this September. Next year for sure though as I can see him getting the bump to Scranton next season.

Nik Turley will not be called up, especially not right away, because his Trenton Thunder team looks poised for a playoff spot and a playoff run. The Yankees would surely like that second left handed pitcher in the bullpen but I cannot see them forcing the issue at the expense of the Thunder's playoff run.

Ramon Flores has played pretty well for the AA Trenton Thunder team but his biggest hurdle to jump may be the fact that he is an outfielder. The Yankees already have five outfielders that they are struggling to get at bats for and I cannot see them making even more a log jam by calling up Flores. I guess he could be called up for late game pinch running or such but I don't see it.

Melky Mesa's hamstring injury will prevent him from being called up the first week or so and with an injury as tricky as a hamstring I believe the Yankees may just shut him down for the season. No reason to rush him back and risk it especially with no minor league affiliates to rehab and test the hamstring with.

Zoilo Almonte was a 60 day DL candidate not too long ago so the ankle must be a bigger issue then we are being led to believe. If he is healthy I can see the Yankees call him up but I have not heard anything from Almonte as far as running bases, rehabbing etc and with the minor league systems ending their seasons Zoilo would have no place to rehab. I see him as a winter league candidate after a strong showing in the Bronx this season in limited action.

*Obviously we did not count the people who were already on the 60 day DL and/or are down with season ending injuries like Corban Joseph, Jayson Nix, Mark Teixeira, Kevin Youkilis, and David Phelps.

Thunder Sweep DH, Clinch Wild Card Playoff Berth!

Thunder Sweep DH, Clinch Wild Card Playoff Berth!

Trenton wins Game 1, 8-0; Game 2, 4-2

PORTLAND, ME - The Trenton Thunder take both games of Saturday's double-header against the Portland Sea Dogs and are in the playoffs for the second straight season-this season as the 2013 East Division Wild Card.

In Game 1, Trenton used a complete-game shutout by Shane Greene to secure an 8-0 win and the Wild Card bid. Greene gave up just three hits and one walk while fanning five Sea Dogs in the outing. He moves to 8-4 with the win and lowers his ERA to 3.18 in 14 appearances (13 starts) since his promotion from High-A Tampa. Greene induced the final out of the game on a Deven Marrero groundball to second base.

Offensively in Game 1 the Thunder jumped all over starting pitcher Mickey Pena and had five runs already on the board with one out in the 3rd inning. After a run-scoring triple by Ramon Flores with one out to give Trenton a 3-0 lead, Jose Pirela launched a homer into the nets above the Maine Monster for his 10th home run of the season.

Lefty Caleb Smith, a 14th round selection in this year's MLB draft, was promoted from Short-Season Single-A Staten Island to make his first Double-A appearance. Smith impressed with one run allowed over 3.2 innings before being lifted for Pat Venditte who earned his first win with the Thunder this season.

Smith had a two-run lead in the first inning before he even took the mound thanks to a two-out, two-run homer by Kyle Roller-his team-leading 17th of the season. Trenton added a pair of runs in the 3rd inning on doubles by Francisco Arcia, Flores and Pirela to make it 4-0 Thunder. Danny Burawa pitched a scoreless 6th and 7th inning for the save.

Trenton continues their final series of the regular season Sunday at 1:00 p.m. at Hadlock Field against Portland featuring LHP Nik Turley (10-8, 3.90) pitching for the Thunder against LHP Henry Owens (3-0, 1.09) for Portland. Radio coverage on 91.3 FM (WTSR) and streaming online begins at 12:45 p.m.

Being posted with permission from the Trenton Thunder organization. The original post can be seen HERE. 

Turley's Gem Leads Thunder Past Rock Cats, 5-1

Longest outing of season by Thunder SP sets tone

(Trenton, NJ) - Nik Turley tossed a team-season-high 7.1 brilliant innings and Trenton scored twice in the seventh and eighth innings to break open a close game and defeat the New Britain Rock Cats, 5-1, in the second of a four-game series Tuesday night in front of 5,652 fans at ARM & HAMMER Park.

The win, coupled with a Portland win at New Hampshire, means the Thunder's (66-62) lead for the Eastern Division Wild Card spot stands at 4.0 games over the Fisher Cats (66-69) and Sea Dogs (66-69) with seven games remaining in the regular season.

Turley (10-8) allowed an unearned run in the second inning and then put the clamps on New Britain for the rest of his night. The lefty scattered four hits and four walks while striking out seven batters. He tossed 98 pitches in the longest pitching performance by the Thunder hurler in 2013.

With the score tied a 1 in the bottom of the seventh, Yeral Sanchez connected for a go-ahead two-run home run (2) against reliever Cole Johnson. It was a no-doubter to left field that also scored Carmen Angelini, who had led off the frame with a double.

Angelini struck for an insurance hit in the eighth, driving a two-out, two-run double into left-center against Jose Gonzalez that made the score 5-1. Zach Nuding recorded the final five outs for the Thunder to record his first career save.

After being shutout for the first four innings by Kyle Davies (2 IP, 1 H) and B.J. Hermsen, Trenton tied the score in the fifth when Reegie Corona stroked a two-out RBI single plating Angelini.

Game three of the series is slated for a 7:05 pm first pitch on Wednesday as Trenton tries to edge closer to clinching a playoff spot. Thunder right-hander Scottie Allen (2-0, 1.02) will get the ball for manager Tony Franklin while righty DJ Baxendale (5-6, 5.74) will start for New Britain.

Limited tickets are available through the Thunder box office at (609) 394-3300 or online at www.trentonthunder.com. Radio coverage on 91.3 FM (WTSR) and also streaming online begins at 6:45 pm.

Being posted with permission from the Trenton Thunder organization. The original article can be seen HERE.