Drafting Yankees and the Juan Soto Trade Tree

The New York Yankees acquired star left-handed hitting outfielder Juan Soto from the San Diego Padres in the offseason prior to the 2024 season in a seven-player deal. Coming to the Yankees alongside Soto was fellow outfielder Trent Grisham while the Yankees sent five prospects/players including RHP Michael King, catcher Kyle Higashioka, and arms Jhony Brito, Drew Thorpe and Randy Vasquez. Unlike the Aaron Judge trade tree that showed a flurry of under the rader type moves that led the Bronx Bombers to their current Captain, the New York Yankees can thank their drafting and development teams for the acquisition of #22. 

Looking at the trade package the Yankees gave up, every single player can be linked to the Yankees and their team in charge of the MLB First Year Players Draft. Higashioka was drafted by the Yankees in the seventh round of the 2008 MLB Draft while Thorpe was drafted by New York in the second round of the 2022 Draft. 

The Yankees can also thank their international scouting department for the acquisition of Soto. Brito was signed as an International Free Agent on November 9, 2015, while Vasquez was signed as an IFA three years later in 2018. 

For the Yankees to send King as the centerpiece of the deal, New York can look back at a "won" trade between them and the Miami Marlins on 11/20/17. In that deal, New York sent infielder Garrett Cooper and LHP Caleb Smith for King and $250K in international bonus pool money. 

New York acquired Garrett Cooper from the Milwaukee Brewers just four months prior, sending LHP Tyler Webb to the NL Central. Webb was another product of the Yankees draft and development team, adding the LHP in the tenth round of the 2013 round, four rounds before Smith was drafted in the same round. 

The road to Juan Soto in Pinstripes can be directly linked to the International and Domestic drafting, scouting and development teams employeed by the Yankees under Brian Cashman. There were a few key trades involved, highlighted below, but the pieces came from within. 

The Yankees have been known as the Evil Empire since the early 2000s, but imagine how "Evil" the team could be if they were more willing to dip into the treasure trove of young prospects that continually go through the Yankees system. Soto could stay with the Yankees for one season, or for the remainder of his career, that remains to be seen... but the Yankees farm system and development team will look at this as a victory regardless of the tenure. Juan Soto, for at least one season, wore the Yankees pinstripes and marched the team into the postseason. 

What more could you ask for?

ALDS Game 1 - New York Yankees @ Tampa Bay Rays

The New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays are familiar foes who both reside in the American League East Division, so this best-of-five game series should offer little in terms of surprise, right? Well you must remember that this is 2020, and in 2020 if there is a curve ball to be thrown you should expect it to either be in the dirt and 20 feet short of the plate, or up and in towards your chin. Hopefully this latest little thing is more like the former and not the latter as these two teams will enter the MLB Postseason bubble while playing inside Petco Park in San Diego, home of the San Diego Padres. The Yankees have not played inside Petco Park since the 2016 season, so sample sizes will be limited, but these two teams know each other well... and it's well known that they just don't like one another. 

Gerrit Cole has not been good against the Rays this season, let's go ahead and get this out of the way early, but many of those starts came early on in the season before Cole both found his groove, and found comfort on the mound pitching to Kyle Higashioka. No, I am not worried about his 0-1 record this season against Tampa, nor am I worried about his 4.96 ERA against them in 2020. What I am worried about is how Cole has pitched to a 1.32 ERA over 34 innings since being paired with Higgy on September 5th, hurling 47 strikeouts with just five walks. 

Blake Snell, future Yankee #2 starter, became the first pitcher in the (Devil) Rays postseason history to get through the first five innings of a game without allowing a single hit. In two starts against the Yankees here in 2020, Snell has gone 1-0 with a 3.38 ERA, striking out eight batters over eight innings pitched. Snell has handled the Yankees, but not dominated. The playoffs are a new season. 

The game will be played at 8:07 pm ET inside Petco Park in San Diego and can be seen nationally on TBS. 

What it Means to Be a Yankees Fan: Daniel Burch

What does being a fan of the New York Yankees mean to you? It seems like such a simple question, but the answers may not be as cut and dry, black and white, and as simple as you think. When thinking about it myself I couldn’t quite put my finger on just one thing or aspect that made me a Yankees fan, and I knew that it wouldn’t be that easy for others to answer as well, so I scoured the internet, our own family here on the site, and I looked within myself to try and find a concrete answer to the question, “What does being a Yankees fan mean to you?” Here are my own personal findings, enjoy.

What makes you a fan of the New York Yankees?

I was always destined to be a fan of the New York Yankees. Looking at my fandom and my life I couldn’t imagine a path where I wasn’t a fan of the team. I mean, I was born in the Bronx, New York in Bronx Lebanon Hospital. Now while my family moved out of the city while I was still very young, and while I don’t remember it well, I was always told that you could see Yankee Stadium from my hospital bed. True, not true. I don’t know, but it is a story I have always told because I’ve always been told that way. Maybe one day soon I can go up there again and see for myself.

My family are all Yankees fans, with the occasional black sheep that we don’t really like to talk about, and I was just immediately drawn to the Yankees and to the sport of baseball. My mother has told me stories from my childhood of me trying to toss baseballs up in the air and hitting them as young as two-years old. The Yankees weren’t the best team back then, I was born in 1985 so by the time I was starting to pay attention New York was still feeling the ill effects of George Steinbrenner and his iron fist, but they were my team and I loved them regardless.

The history drew me to the team. The World Series rings. The traditions. The facial hair policy, which I am not really a fan of anymore, and the lack of last names on the backs of their uniforms. It was everything. The Yankees were different to me, and as you can see on this blog daily I have always been drawn to and attracted to doing things a little different. It was just everything, the team and he organization just completely consumed me.

What is your earliest memory of the New York Yankees?

For some, you are just born into Yankees fandom. Personally, I can remember growing up as a young child as young as two-years old watching Yankees games with my family. Now while my mother and father weren’t the biggest Yankees fans I can say my Yankees fandom began with my uncle, David Pittinger of New York, and his wife, Lisa. My parents had to give up custody of me due to personal reasons and rather than toiling away in foster care or whatever they were gracious enough to pick up the slack and take me in at a very young age. I am and will always be forever grateful for that, and I am also grateful for my uncle for introducing me to my Yankees fandom.

I can remember sitting on the couch watching games with him. I can remember really getting into baseball religiously during the 1994 season, and I can remember never fully understanding why the 1994 season was shortened due to strike. I can remember being supremely disappointed at the cancellation of the World Series and I can remember almost being heartbroken when the 1995 season did not start on time and began in jeopardy as well.

What is your fondest memory of the New York Yankees?

 I can remember watching the Yankees win game after game and World Series after World Series in the 1990’s with him as well. I can remember specifically being so mad at him because he was laying on the couch during Game 4 of the 1998 World Series, he worked nights and it was hard for him to stay awake and watch a game sometimes. I can remember asking him, no it was more like begging him, to wake up and watch the game. I can remember counting down the outs until the Yankees were back on top, and I can remember mocking the San Diego Padres with every pitch thrown. Three outs away, two outs away, and then one.

I can remember begging at this point. “Uncle David, please wake up. One more out!” and I can remember him replying with a simple grunt and a wave of his hand, almost dismissive. I can remember being excited about the Yankees winning another World Series, but I can remember also being a bit disappointed that we couldn’t and wouldn’t share this together. To my surprise he was playing coy the whole time and when the final out was recorded I can remember him waking up and grabbing a conveniently placed broom and sweeping the living room, which was carpet FYI which made it all the more comical. I can just remember him yelling “sweep!” as he did it, which may not be my earliest memory, but it was definitely my fondest moment as a Yankees fan in my early fandom.

The next day, just like we did after every World Series victory, I can remember my Aunt getting me the World Series championship shirts from Modell’s that I wore until I literally could not wear them anymore. We definitely always got our monies worth out of our Yankees gear in that household, a tradition that still holds true today.

What do you think of when you see the interlocking NY of the Yankees?

That symbol means everything to me. To be honest, I am surprised I don’t have the symbol etched into my skin somewhere via tattoo. When I see that symbol I see tradition, pride, history, greatness, winning, family, friends, and everything that is good in the world. It means a lot to me. Maybe it means more than it really should to me, but I don’t care, and I don’t mind. I wear that symbol with pride and I wear it down here in Atlanta just as proudly as I did when I was in New York.

So, what does it mean to be a fan of the New York Yankees? To me, Daniel Burch, it means everything.

What does it mean to you?

Predicting the 2019 Season: The Rookies of the Year

Honestly, as a self-professed Prospect Humper, I think this award is the most fun to watch for, and to predict. The American League and National League Rookie of the Year Awards! Who will be the next Miguel Andujar (because we know Shohei Ohtani did not deserve the award) or Ronald Acuna in 2019?

In the American League, I think it would be silly for anyone to pick against Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays. I know that’s the general consensus and the safe pick, but this kid is uber-talented and will get every opportunity to make it at the MLB level this season. Toronto may opt to start Vlad Jr. in the Minor Leagues to start the season, and to manipulate his service time, but once that deadline clock runs out you can guarantee that he will be with the big-league club. Vlad Jr., unlike Andujar last season, has the ability to learn the position on the fly as well given that he is on a losing team that can afford to take their time and be patient with their young stud. Andujar had to hit his way onto the team and into the spotlight, and he did just that in 2018. Vlad Jr. will do that very same thing here in 2019.

Now while I went with the safe pick in the American League, I cannot do the same in the National League. I think many are picking Victor Robles of the Washington Nationals, but I am going to go with Fernando Tatis Jr. of the San Diego Padres. Why is this a bold pick and not a safe pick? Well, Tatis has never played above Double-A ball during his professional career and may end up spending half the season in the minor leagues. You know what I say to that? So what? Tatis Jr. has destroyed Double-A pitching and destroyed Dominican Winter League pitching this season as well. His bat is ready, and the Padres are ready to call him up and let him learn at the MLB level alongside Manny Machado sooner rather than later. You don’t sign a guy like Machado for 10-years to take your time with guys like Tatis in Triple-A. If he produces, and history says that he will, he will be in San Diego by mid-to-late June in my opinion.

Predicting the 2019 Season: The Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman Award Winners

The best relief pitcher in the American League is now awarded the Mariano Rivera Award, while the best relief pitcher in the National League is given the Trevor Hoffman Award. Who will win each prestigious award in 2019? Keep reading…

Brad Hand of the Cleveland Indians is my pick for the Mariano Rivera Award. No, I’m not picking Aroldis Chapman, but I did seriously consider it to be completely honest. I just feel like Hand pitched extremely well for Cleveland after being traded from the Padres last season and I think that will translate to a strong 2019 campaign. Hand was splitting the closing duties with Cody Allen in 2018, but Allen has since departed via free agency at the time of this writing and will leave all the save opportunities to Hand. Hand has struck out at least 100 batters in three consecutive seasons and will look to make it a four-peat here in 2019.

Jeremy Jeffress of the Milwaukee Brewers is my pick to win the Trevor Hoffman Award for the National League. I have the Brewers making it to the World Series in 2019 and that cannot be done without a strong bullpen. I know some probably expected me to pick Josh Hader, if I was going to pick a Brewers player, or Edwin Diaz of the Mets, but I just had a gut feeling with Jeffress that I simply cannot ignore.

Predicting the 2019 Season: The Standings

The 2018 saw three teams in the American League win at least 100 games, but on the flip side of that coin we also watched as teams like the Kansas City Royals, Baltimore Orioles, and others struggled mightily to win games all season long. To have just one team win 100 games is not the most common thing in the league in recent memory, so to have three is downright special. Will we see a repeat of that here in 2019? Only time will tell, but I will do my best to predict whether they will, or they won’t, as well as what teams will make the postseason and win their respective divisions as well. Bookmark this. I have a feeling by the end of the season I will be eating a whole lot of crow with these predictions, as usual.

American League East

New York Yankees: 96-66

Boston Red Sox: 92-70

Tampa Bay Rays: 87-75

Toronto Blue Jays: 66-96

Baltimore Orioles: 59-103

I know, most will call me a homer for picking the New York Yankees to win the division. Guess what? I don’t care. Maybe I am a homer, or maybe I can just see better than most that the team has done a lot to improve themselves here in 2019, especially on the pitching side of things. Boston will undoubtedly take a step back with that bullpen and the loss of Craig Kimbrel while you cannot expect Ian Snell to repeat what he did in 2018. Not to say that the Red Sox or Rays are necessarily worse teams in 2019, but an awful lot has to go right for a team to win 90 games, 100 games, or even 108 games. There’s a certain luck factor there and that historically just doesn’t translate from year-to-year.

American League Central

Cleveland Indians: 88-76

Minnesota Twins: 82-80

Chicago White Sox: 74-88

Detroit Tigers: 72-90

Kansas City Royals: 70-92

I don’t think there are any real surprises here other than maybe the win total of the Minnesota Twins. I know the Twins lost one of their better and more consistent starters, when healthy, in Ervin Santana, but I really like the young core of guys that the Twins have. Extending a couple of their guys allows them to focus solely on the game, and that generally translates into production on the field. I think they will at least be in the conversation for the second Wild Card this season, assuming the health of their key contributors.

American League West

Oakland Athletics: 91-71

Houston Astros: 90-72

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: 81-81

Texas Rangers: 73-89

Seattle Mariners: 70-92

Kill me if you want to, but the Houston Astros lost a whole lot of pitching this offseason, Justin Verlander has to age eventually, and the Oakland Athletics are just a damn good team. I could end up with egg on my face by the end of the season, but these are my predictions regardless. Also, I love how Seattle “reinvented their roster” rather than rebuild the team. Same difference, at least according to the above.

Wild Card #1 – Boston Red Sox

Wild Card #2 – Houston Astros

National League East

Atlanta Braves: 93-69

Washington Nationals: 91-71

Philadelphia Phillies: 88-74

New York Mets: 80-82

Miami Marlins: 60-102

I truly believe that the Atlanta Braves are a much better team than they were in 2018, and here’s why. Josh Donaldson, if healthy and we all presume he will be, is a monster on a one-year deal and will provide a legitimate bat in the middle of that lineup. I also think that Brian McCann, even a shell of his former self, will help more than can be expressed or quantified with the Braves pitching staff. I expect Washington to be in the thick of things again and better than they were last year, maybe even in spite of Bryce Harper, while the Phillies “stupid money” offseason plan will fall just short.

National League Central

Milwaukee Brewers: 91-71

St. Louis Cardinals: 87-75

Chicago Cubs: 85-77

Cincinnati Reds: 81-81

Pittsburgh Pirates: 80-82

I think the NL Central will be the most competitive division in all of Major League Baseball in 2019. The Brewers should be the cream of the crop, but the Cardinals and Cubs should be right on their tails for much of the season. The Reds added a ton of pitching to go with their young group of players while the Pirates, while still rebuilding, still have great pitching with Chris Archer and others.

National League West

Los Angeles Dodgers: 97-65

Colorado Rockies: 89-73

San Diego Padres: 80-82

San Francisco Giants: 75-87

Arizona Diamondbacks: 73-89

No, I am not jumping on the Manny Machado bandwagon and donning him the reason the Padres improve by 16 games in 2019. He will help, sure, but the Padres have a great young team that is absolutely stacked with talent. That, alongside Machado, will be the reason the Padres make a real stride this season. I expect Eric Hosmer to be better as well, compared to what he produced in Kansas City to what he did in San Diego he almost has to improve you would think, which should help the Padres win more games in what should be a weaker division overall in 2019.

Wild Card #1 - Washington Nationals

Wild Card #2 - Colorado Rockies

What will happen in the postseason? You have to tune in tomorrow to find out!

Brad Hand, Adam Cimber, and Would You Have Given Up Estevan Florial to Have Acquired Them?

The Cleveland Indians shocked the league a bit on Thursday night when the team acquired not one, but two top relievers from the San Diego Padres for the low, low price of one of their top prospects in their farm system. The Indians acquired both closer Brad Hand and his setup man Adam Cimber from the Padres for their top prospect and one of the top prospects in all of Major League Baseball in Francisco Mejia. New York had been linked to Hand in recent weeks with varying degrees of interest, so I always wonder when a deal is made if the Yankees could have met or exceeded the prospects package that the receiving team had given up. The closest the Yankees could have come to matching this deal is if they offered their own top prospect in Estevan Florial, would you have made the move? Here is whether I would have made the deal or not if I were the Yankees GM.

Mejia is listed as a catcher and an outfielder on MLB Pipeline and is the 15^th best prospect in all of MLB. Mejia is also the top catching prospect in all of baseball with experience at both corner outfield spots and third base as well. Florial, meanwhile, is the 37^th best prospect in the game according to MLB Pipeline and the best prospect in the Yankees system. While the Yankees may have had to add another piece to sweeten the pot I truly think these two teams could have come to a deal, and both Hand and Cimber would have likely been worth the price, even at the cost of their top prospect.

Hand is on a very team-friendly deal that will keep him in Cleveland through the 2020 season, a deal that will earn him $3.5 million in 2018, $6.5 million in 2019 and $7.5 million in 2020. Hand also has a team option for the 2021 season with $10 million with a $1 million buyout. As a member of the Padres since 2016, Hand has put together a 2.66 ERA, 11.8 K/9, 3.0 BB/9, 0.9 HR/9 and a 46.5 percent groundball rate in 213 innings pitched, albeit inside the spacious Petco Park for his home games. Meanwhile Cimber is a 27-year old set-up man that has pitched to a 3.17 ERA, 9.5 K/9, 1.9 BB/9, and a 52.3 groundball percentage in 48.1 innings pitched with the Padres. Both men would have been a huge upgrade over Chasen Shreve, or possibly a lot of the Yankees bullpen right now not named Betances or Chapman. Cimber has held right-handed batters to a .207/.221/.261 triple slash this season which would immediately make him the Yankees left-handed specialist going forward if a deal was to be made.

Cimber and Hand would have been great for the Yankees, and I truly believe the team could have matched or exceeded the deal the Cleveland Indians gave San Diego before the end of the All-Star break. Oh well, while these posts are fun to look at an analyze, unfortunately they do not change a thing. Cashman, still waiting on you. You’re up.

Everyone Wants Hamels, But Bring Me Tyson Ross Instead

The New York Yankees will be in the market for a starting pitcher before the July 31^st trade deadline comes and goes here in 2018. Now let me preface by saying that this does not necessarily mean the team will acquire a starter, only that they will be in the discussions for many of the top available starters this trading deadline. One thing Brian Cashman, the Yankees GM, has shown though is an unwillingness to “lose” a trade and trade away top talent just because. Cashman won’t make a deal just for the sake of making a deal, and that includes any deal that could potentially bring a starter like Cole Hamels to the Bronx. Hamels is the name I have seen thrown around the most when discussing who could potentially be on the radar for the Yankees this winter, but he isn’t the top arm on my radar. While everyone wants Hamels to be donning pinstripes on August 1^st I’d much rather have Tyson Ross of the San Diego Padres personally, but maybe that’s just me.

Ross is set to reach free agency for the first time in his career after the 2018 season meaning that the right-hander is a true rental for any team that could potentially acquire him. Where Ross is especially attractive to the Yankees where Hamels may not be is in the financial department. Ross is making just $1.7 million this season, which any team who acquires him would be on the hook for roughly half that with a pro-rated salary, while Hamels comes attached to not only a $23 million base salary for the 2018 season (pro-rated to about $12 million for whichever team acquires him) but the lefty also comes with a $20 million option for the 2019 season as well with a $6 million buyout. 

Ross is 31-years old and has undoubtedly benefited from pitching in one of the biggest and most spacious ballparks in all of Major League Baseball. I truly believe if the Yankees were to acquire Ross that they would not be acquiring the ace that the San Diego Padres may be selling him as, but I also truly think that Ross could be better than CC Sabathia, Sonny Gray, Domingo German and Jonathan Loaisiga.

I am not an expert on the farm system of the San Diego Padres, but the team seems to be in full rebuild mode meaning they may simply take the best available package rather than a package heavily weighted towards a certain position or pitching. The Yankees have plenty to offer in terms of prospects and I truly believe that the team could acquire Ross for a reasonable price, maybe a package of Chance Adams and Tyler Wade for example. Ross would be the better fit in my opinion for the Yankees this season while also giving the team a sneak peak of his abilities before he hits the free agent market next season.

Looking for Help from the Fans

As you saw about an hour ago I have been busy working on the blog in search of what being a Yankees fan means to you. I want to know what it means to us all, because if you’re reading this then it is very likely that you are a fan just like I am. I have more than a few of these posts lined up already, but me being me… I want more. I want to get greedy, and I want to know what being a Yankees fan means to YOU. So, with that said I need a little bit of help from my friends here on the blog and from my fellow Yankees fans. I want to know what being a Yankees fan means to you.

Answer the same four questions that I answered above and send them to me via email to be showcased here on the blog. We aren’t looking to win any Pulitzer prizes here with these entries so if your grammar isn’t perfect, don’t worry about it. An English major and degree doesn’t change your heart and your fandom and that is what we are ultimately looking to capture here.

Send submissions to DanielBurch 1102 at yahoo dot com or thegreedypinstripes at gmail dot com. We look forward to seeing your submissions, your stories and your fandom on full display! You won’t find this opportunity on any other Yankees site, I assure you of that, so take advantage now while you still can. See you around on the blog.

What it Means to Be a Yankees Fan: Daniel Burch

What does being a fan of the New York Yankees mean to you? It seems like such a simple question, but the answers may not be as cut and dry, black and white, and as simple as you think. When thinking about it myself I couldn’t quite put my finger on just one thing or aspect that made me a Yankees fan, and I knew that it wouldn’t be that easy for others to answer as well, so I scoured the internet, our own family here on the site, and I looked within myself to try and find a concrete answer to the question, “What does being a Yankees fan mean to you?” Here are my own personal findings, enjoy.

What makes you a fan of the New York Yankees?

I was always destined to be a fan of the New York Yankees. Looking at my fandom and my life I couldn’t imagine a path where I wasn’t a fan of the team. I mean, I was born in the Bronx, New York in Bronx Lebanon Hospital. Now while my family moved out of the city while I was still very young, and while I don’t remember it well, I was always told that you could see Yankee Stadium from my hospital bed. True, not true. I don’t know, but it is a story I have always told because I’ve always been told that way. Maybe one day soon I can go up there again and see for myself.

My family are all Yankees fans, with the occasional black sheep that we don’t really like to talk about, and I was just immediately drawn to the Yankees and to the sport of baseball. My mother has told me stories from my childhood of me trying to toss baseballs up in the air and hitting them as young as two-years old. The Yankees weren’t the best team back then, I was born in 1985 so by the time I was starting to pay attention New York was still feeling the ill effects of George Steinbrenner and his iron fist, but they were my team and I loved them regardless.

The history drew me to the team. The World Series rings. The traditions. The facial hair policy, which I am not really a fan of anymore, and the lack of last names on the backs of their uniforms. It was everything. The Yankees were different to me, and as you can see on this blog daily I have always been drawn to and attracted to doing things a little different. It was just everything, the team and he organization just completely consumed me.

What is your earliest memory of the New York Yankees?

For some, you are just born into Yankees fandom. Personally, I can remember growing up as a young child as young as two-years old watching Yankees games with my family. Now while my mother and father weren’t the biggest Yankees fans I can say my Yankees fandom began with my uncle, David Pittinger of New York, and his wife, Lisa. My parents had to give up custody of me due to personal reasons and rather than toiling away in foster care or whatever they were gracious enough to pick up the slack and take me in at a very young age. I am and will always be forever grateful for that, and I am also grateful for my uncle for introducing me to my Yankees fandom.

I can remember sitting on the couch watching games with him. I can remember really getting into baseball religiously during the 1994 season, and I can remember never fully understanding why the 1994 season was shortened due to strike. I can remember being supremely disappointed at the cancellation of the World Series and I can remember almost being heartbroken when the 1995 season did not start on time and began in jeopardy as well.

What is your fondest memory of the New York Yankees?

 I can remember watching the Yankees win game after game and World Series after World Series in the 1990’s with him as well. I can remember specifically being so mad at him because he was laying on the couch during Game 4 of the 1998 World Series, he worked nights and it was hard for him to stay awake and watch a game sometimes. I can remember asking him, no it was more like begging him, to wake up and watch the game. I can remember counting down the outs until the Yankees were back on top, and I can remember mocking the San Diego Padres with every pitch thrown. Three outs away, two outs away, and then one.

I can remember begging at this point. “Uncle David, please wake up. One more out!” and I can remember him replying with a simple grunt and a wave of his hand, almost dismissive. I can remember being excited about the Yankees winning another World Series, but I can remember also being a bit disappointed that we couldn’t and wouldn’t share this together. To my surprise he was playing coy the whole time and when the final out was recorded I can remember him waking up and grabbing a conveniently placed broom and sweeping the living room, which was carpet FYI which made it all the more comical. I can just remember him yelling “sweep!” as he did it, which may not be my earliest memory, but it was definitely my fondest moment as a Yankees fan in my early fandom.

The next day, just like we did after every World Series victory, I can remember my Aunt getting me the World Series championship shirts from Modell’s that I wore until I literally could not wear them anymore. We definitely always got our monies worth out of our Yankees gear in that household, a tradition that still holds true today.

What do you think of when you see the interlocking NY of the Yankees?

That symbol means everything to me. To be honest, I am surprised I don’t have the symbol etched into my skin somewhere via tattoo. When I see that symbol I see tradition, pride, history, greatness, winning, family, friends, and everything that is good in the world. It means a lot to me. Maybe it means more than it really should to me, but I don’t care, and I don’t mind. I wear that symbol with pride and I wear it down here in Atlanta just as proudly as I did when I was in New York.

So, what does it mean to be a fan of the New York Yankees? To me, Daniel Burch, it means everything.

What does it mean to you?

Quick Hit: If You Didn’t Need To… Then Why Did You?

Simple question, but the answer may not be so simple. I know this isn’t really Yankees related at all but as I have been one of the most outspoken people and writers I know about the steroid era, whether these players should be in the Hall of Fame, etc. I feel like I should and want to touch on this a bit. This week Mark McGwire gave an interview to The Athletic about his 70 home run season in 1998 and, of course, his steroid use.

McGwire, now a bench coach with the San Diego Padres, hit 70 home runs in 1998 with the St. Louis Cardinals setting the then single-season home run record mark, passing the Yankees legend Roger Maris who hit 61 home runs in 1961. Later McGwire admitted steroid use during his playing career, including during the 1998 season, but this week said he could have hit 70 home runs in a season regardless of whether he was taking performance enhancing drugs. Okay, cool…. Then why didn’t you?

McGwire said there was “no way” he would have used illegal and banned substances if they were tested for in 1998 and during his playing career. Listen, I totally get why McGwire, or anyone did steroids. If there was something I could do at my job that could make me millions of dollars I would at least consider it. If it were against the rules, I probably wouldn’t, and if it was downright illegal then I definitely wouldn’t, but if there is a little gray area… I’m sorry… but I am going to exploit that if I ethically can. That’s what the steroid era was, and it doesn’t make it right, but it is what it is, and it is what it was. At the same token though I wouldn’t come out years later and profess how I could have matched those same totals without my shortcuts at work either, because that’s just being an egotistical douche to me.

Only my opinion, what’s yours? Leave it below in the comments section or shoot us a line over on Twitter, @GreedyStripes.

This Day in New York Yankees History 10/21: 4:51 World Series Game

On this day in 2000 the Yankees would beat the Mets in the longest World Series game ever played. The Yankees would beat the Mets 4-3 in a four hour and 51 minute game that went 12 innings. This also keeps the streak alive at 13 consecutive World Series games with a victory.


Also on this day in 1998 the Yankees completed a four game sweep of the San Diego Padres by winning 3-0. The Yankees would win their 24th World Series title in their storied history and the 125th win of the season with the regular and post season’s combined.



Finally on this day in 1976, older Yankees fan turn your heads here because you are not going to like this, the Yankees lost their fourth consecutive game getting swept in the World Series. The "Big Red Machine" proved to be too much for the Yankees team. The Reds would win 7-2 behind a two run home run and a three run home run from Johnny Bench.

Padres Ask for Gleyber Torres, Give Them Jorge Mateo Instead

The San Diego Padres are looking for their shortstop of the future and in their journey the team has found themselves knocking on the door of the New York Yankees. The San Diego Padres have made it clear that they want New York’s top prospect Gleyber Torres but as of the time of this writing Yankees GM Brian Cashman has been reluctant to give up any of his top prospects in any deal, period, especially Torres. If the Padres want to make a deal and need a shortstop of the future could the Yankees give them Jorge Mateo instead of Torres, who is injured and technically cannot be traded although the “player to be named later” route is always possible, and land a guy like Brad Hand?

The Padres are high on Hand and they have absolutely no reason they “have” to trade him but for a rebuilding team like San Diego they may see it as a way to accelerate the rebuild. Trading Hand for Mateo and maybe another prospect or two works for both sides as San Diego gets their shortstop and the Yankees get some much needed bullpen help not only for 2017 but for years to come.

At the time of his injury Torres was hitting .309 with two home runs and 16 RBI in 23 games at Triple-A Scranton after playing 32 games in Double-A as well in 2017. Hand is great and has pitched extremely well in 2017 but in no way, shape or form is he worth Torres. Torres looks to be a perennial All-Star and absolute beast in the making, you don’t trade that for a relief pitcher. Period. Mateo’s spot on the team in the future is not as clear as Torres’ spot so moving him for something useful makes much more sense for the Yankees and for Mateo who is seemingly blocked at second base and shortstop.

The Padres have reportedly asked for Torres but I wonder if Cashman thought to counter with Mateo. If he didn’t then maybe he should because the Yankees could use a guy like Hand going forward. Hand is a serviceable reliever and is under team control on a team-friendly deal for a few years making him fit into the plan to get under the luxury tax threshold after the 2017 season.

Get it done Cash.

USA Today’s Weekly MLB Power Rankings

Another week of Major League Baseball and another set of MLB Power Rankings courtesy of the USA Today. To see the complete list and to give those guys a few views for all their hard work head over to the USA Today Sports and check it out for yourselves while we recap the Yankees-related and pertinent information here.

The Top Five teams according to the rankings are the Chicago Cubs, the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Houston Astros, the Baltimore Orioles and the Washington Nationals while the list is rounded out with the five worst teams being the Seattle Mariners, the Philadelphia Phillies, the Oakland Athletics, the Atlanta Braves and the San Diego Padres.

The New York Yankees rose five spots from last week, a perfect week will do that to a club though I guess, all the way to the #11 spot while the Boston Red Sox were #6, the Tampa Bay Rays were 19^th and the Toronto Blue Jays were 25^th overall.

Lots of movement and small sample sizes this time of the year so nothing to see here just yet. Carry on. 

USA Today’s Week One MLB Power Rankings

Ladies and gentleman we are barely three games into the 2017 regular season and the USA Today is already updating their weekly MLB Power Rankings. This is the first official set from the actual season as the first batch was a preseason ranking and the New York Yankees are on the way up.

The biggest rise of the week went to the New York Yankees who rose two spots from the 18^th spot overall in the league to 16^th overall. Good job Baby Bombers! The biggest fall of the week went to the Miami Marlins who fell two spots from a week or so ago dropping to the 21^st spot from 19^th overall. Obviously this early in the season these mean little to nothing, remember people… sample size, but it’s still good to see the Yankees trending in the right direction regardless.

The Top Five teams in the league according to the rankings are the Chicago Cubs at the #1 spot followed by the Cleveland Indians, the Boston Red Sox, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Washington Nationals. The New York Mets are 9^th, the Toronto Blue Jays are 10^th, the Baltimore Orioles are 12^th, the Seattle Robinson Cano’s are 14^th, the Tampa Rays are 19^th and the San Diego Padres currently occupy the 30^th spot in the league. For the complete rankings head over to the USA Today to check out their post. 

And the Injury Bug Has Hit Yankees Camp…

It’s never too early for the injury bug to hit a team and unfortunately for the New York Yankees that bug has hit the club even before their first spring training game in 2017. According to Bryan Hoch of Yankees.com the Yankees will be without both Ronald Herrera and James Reeves for a few weeks after sustaining injuries during spring workouts.

Herrera, who was traded to the Yankees from the San Diego Padres in the deal for Jose Pirela a couple years back, will miss at least two weeks with shoulder inflammation while James Reeves, an underrated left-handed reliever that could have snuck onto the Yankees Opening Day roster with a strong spring, will miss at least 3-4 weeks with a left elbow sprain. Bummer.

Herrera is just 21-years old and is coming off a 2016 campaign that saw the right-hander put up a 10-7 record with a 3.75 ERA in 132.0 innings in Double-A with the Trenton Thunder. Herrera struck out 123 batters in those 132 innings but he also continued to show he was vulnerable to giving up hits which was evident by his nearly hit per inning ratio last season. Again though, he’s 21. He has plenty of time to put it all together and improve. That’s what the minor leagues are for.

Meanwhile Reeves was a 10th round draft pick in the 2015 MLB First Year Players Draft for the Yankees and is coming off a season with the High-A Tampa Yankees where he put up a 5-1 record with a 2.27 ERA mostly out of the bullpen. I say mostly because Reeves did start 12 of his 25 games that he appeared in last season but it still viewed as more of a reliever than a starting pitching prospect at this point in his career.

Get well soon boys and get back to the grind. We’re always rooting for you. 

35 New Free Agents Enter the Fold

As you have already learned the New York Yankees lost future reliever Jacob Lindgren to the Atlanta Braves after the team non-tendered him a contract making him a free agent. Lindgren will likely miss all of the 2017 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery so I feel it is safe to presume that the Yankees felt like they could sign him to a new minor league deal while getting him off the 40-man roster before the Braves swooped in and gave him a cool million bucks to rehab down in Atlanta. This such scenario, or a similar one at least, happened for 35 players before the deadline adding 35 new free agents into the fold, let’s take a look at them.

Tyson Ross likely headlines the pack of new free agents after becoming an All-Star just two seasons ago with the San Diego Padres. Joining Tyson Ross are other notables including Washington Nationals outfielder Ben Revere, Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Cody Asche, Arizona Diamondbacks catcher Welington Castillo and pitcher Rubby De La Rosa, Baltimore Orioles starter Vance Worley and Los Angeles Dodgers bullpen arm Louis Coleman. Chris Carter, formerly of the Milwaukee Brewers, and Jeff Locke, formerly of the Pittsburgh Pirates, were also non-tendered but only after being designated for assignment last week.

Ross is likely the most intriguing for the Yankees followed possibly by Vance Worley only because they are starting pitchers, an obvious need for the Yankees. Ross is still just 29-years old and is coming off a season in which he posted a 13-14 record with a 2.81 ERA in 2014 before slipping a bit to 10-12 with a 3.26 ERA in 2015. 2016 was a different scenario for Ross though posting just one MLB appearance due to a thoracic outlet syndrome surgery he had in the offseason. Ross earned $9.625 million in 2016 for that one appearance and will look to latch on with a team despite his four-to-six month recovery time for the surgery he had in October. He may or may not be ready for spring training but on a one-year deal with incentives, he isn’t going to take a minor league deal at 29-years old, I don’t see an issue with taking a waiver on him whatsoever. Do it.

Worley would be a fifth starter with the Yankees and an innings eater, nothing more unfortunately. He is AL East trained after pitching with the Baltimore Orioles last season but he should be a clear Plan C or below. I’d take him personally but only after a lot of names and a whole lot of arms came off the board. That’s just me. It’s Ross or bust in my opinion. What say you?

Yankees Also Show Interest in Derek Holland

Earlier this morning we reported here on the blog that the New York Yankees had shown early interest in former Chicago Cubs 15-game winner Jason Hammel since he has reached the free agent market but Hammel is not the only arm that is at least intriguing the Yankees somewhat. New York along with the San Diego Padres have reportedly also been poking around in the Derek Holland free agent pool as well.

The Texas Rangers declined their option on Holland for the 2017 season after three consecutive seasons of battling injuries for the now veteran left-hander and now, presumably anyway, the Yankees smell a low risk and high reward type deal for the 30-year old southpaw.

This was confirmed by Holland who also went on to say that he has shown some interest in pitching for the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2017 after having his $11 million option declined by Texas. Holland pitched to a 7-9 record and a 4.95 ERA in 22 appearances this season for the Rangers but he once again battled shoulder injuries throughout the year which limited him to just 16 appearances over the previous two seasons.

Is it due diligence or is there true interest here? That’s anybody’s guess and half the beauty of the hot stove season. I guess you’ll have to just stay tuned. 

This Day in New York Yankees History 10/21: 4:51 World Series Game

On this day in 2000 the Yankees would beat the Mets in the longest World Series game ever played. The Yankees would beat the Mets 4-3 in a four hour and 51 minute game that went 12 innings. This also keeps the streak alive at 13 consecutive World Series games with a victory.


Also on this day in 1998 the Yankees completed a four game sweep of the San Diego Padres by winning 3-0. The Yankees would win their 24th World Series title in their storied history and the 125th win of the season with the regular and post season’s combined.



Finally on this day in 1976, older Yankees fan turn your heads here because you are not going to like this, the Yankees lost their fourth consecutive game getting swept in the World Series. The "Big Red Machine" proved to be too much for the Yankees team. The Reds would win 7-2 behind a two run home run and a three run home run from Johnny Bench.

Looking Back at My 2016 Comeback Player of the Year Award Predictions

This is my post regarding the Comeback Player of the Year Awards that I wrote in March. In the post I predicted that Matt Wieters of the Baltimore Orioles would win it for the American League and that Wil Myers would win it for the National League with the full knowledge that Major League Baseball only hands out one award for the entire league. I’m just nice like that and I want to hand out two. Here is the post with my predictions and explanations. It looks like I did a halfway decent job with these predictions if I don’t say so myself. 

The Comeback Player of the Year, quite possibly the most useless award in all of Major League Baseball’s set of awards? Why you may ask? The league or whoever votes on these things focus too much, in my opinion, on a guy who missed a chunk of the previous season due to injury and less on a player that makes a true comeback. I was pretty on the fence about this award before last year but when Alex Rodriguez did not win the award that solidified it for me. Leaving my bias and opinions aside I wanted to take a stab at an American League and National League Comeback Player of the Year Award winner for the 2016 season. 

In the American League I went a little off the script here with my pick. This player is technically still coming back from an injury but the injury did not keep him off the field for the majority of the 2015 season. In fact this man played much of the 2015 season on the field and behind the dish for the Baltimore Orioles, Mr. Matt Wieters. Wieters is entering the 2016 campaign in his second season removed from Tommy John surgery after playing in 75 games last season. Wieters struggled with the bat last season and struggled to command the running game at times last season. They say positional players need a year to recover from the injury while pitchers need two full years to be fully back to themselves but everybody is different just like every injury is different. Wieters has to throw the ball back to the pitcher a good 150-200 times a night, control the running game and bat on a surgically repaired elbow that may or may not have been 100% when he did it all. Wieters should benefit from a long winter off and should be back to form in 2016 winning the award outright.  

I considered going with Marcus Stroman here for the AL but after that September and October he had I felt like he already came back, you know?  

In the National League I went with a “can’t miss” prospect that has yet to live up to the expectations and hype over a 162-game schedule. Wil Myers of the San Diego Padres was thought to be the next big thing when he was with Tampa but after a trade to the West Coast and a wrist injury later we fans were left wondering once again what could have been with Myers. 2016 may finally be the year we see a full season and a productive season out of Myers as he has yet to play in more than 88 games in a season during his career or get more than 335 at bats. Myers started out last season hitting well with four home runs and a .286 average in April as the leadoff man before hurting his wrist again and ending his season. Myers, if he can finally stay healthy, might not only win this award but may be in consideration for the NL MVP Award as well. You never know.