Your Classic Catch-22

I want to make sure this is perfectly clear... I love the youth movement.

I can't get enough of seeing this, and apparently neither can he.

In the past I've been all about winning, whether that meant top prospects like Jesus Montero were left to rot in the minors or not. As long as the Yankees had a shot I didn't care who was on the Active Roster. Just win, baby.

But everything changes. Sure, the Yankees and I still want to win, but at the same time we have an eye on the future. Not long ago Chris Carter would have been the starting first baseman coming out of Spring Training instead of Greg Bird. Instead of Jordan Montgomery winning a spot in the starting rotation the team would have signed some over-the-hill starter from the free agent scrap heap.

And another change is my attitude towards prospects. It took me longer than some, but I strongly believe the Yankees have a very bright future as long as they are patient. Which is why this season has been a bit concerning.

See, history has made it clear that winning is more important than anything in New York. So as long as the team is winning they aren't going to make any significant changes.

That means we're not going to see Gleyber Torres called up anytime soon. Especially when Starlin Castro is hitting .360/.402/.550, Chase Headley is batting .307/.402/.489, and Didi Gregorius is... well... healthy.

Nor are we going to see Clint Frazier wearing Yankee pinstripes, especially while Aaron Hicks is hitting .300/.419/.640, along with Aaron Judge, Brett Gardner, and Jacoby Ellsbury being healthy.

The starting pitcher with the highest ERA on the team at the moment is Masahiro Tanaka, and he's not about to be demoted. CC Sabathia has the next highest ERA, and he's not getting demoted either. Luis Severino has had three nice starts book-ended by a couple of bad ones, but the team is clearly giving him plenty of rope, so I don't see him being demoted anytime soon. Michael Pineda has done a good job since the Rays roughed him up in his first start of the season, and even if he struggles I highly doubt he loses his rotation spot. And Jordan Montgomery has been solid at the back of the rotation. That means the only way we're going to see somebody like Chance Adams get an opportunity in the big leagues is if somebody gets injured.

This is not the face of somebody that wishes ill will on anybody.

I'm not saying the Yankees can't win if Torres, Frazier, and Adams were to be big leaguers. Hell, I don't believe Chase Headley is going to continue hitting like he has (he's actually hit .200 over the last 9 games), and if he falters then Gleyber could very well be a better option at third base.

I don't believe Aaron Hicks is a .300 hitter that will sock 25 home runs with regular playing time, either. Not to mention that I'd rather see Brett Gardner and Jacoby Ellsbury play for somebody else. And just one of those three current Yankee outfielders going down could mean seeing Clint get the call.

Oh, and I certainly don't believe Severino will give up 2 ER over 7+ innings like he did in back-to-back-to-back starts last month. Luis Cessa's future is not in the Yankees' starting rotation. And since the Yankees don't seem keen on Adam Warren being a starter, I'd guess that Chance Adams gets a start or two should something in the rotation change.

So unless injuries happen (sadly injuries keep hitting those that we definitely don't want them to, such as Gary Sanchez), and as long as the team is winning, they aren't going to shake things up. What we're seeing is your classic catch-22.

The Devil You Know vs. the Devil You Don’t featuring Miguel Andujar and Manny Machado

You know the old saying “the devil you know vs. the devil you don’t” well that sometimes applies to Major League Baseball as well as your regular, everyday life. This is especially true when you consider teams who play in huge media markets like the New York Yankees. Sometimes the devil you know, the player who may be average or a solid player but can handle the bright lights and big city, can be the better choice than the devil you don’t know, or the player who lets the media circus and the fans constant cheering and boos affect them. We’ve seen it far too many times, see Randy Johnson as an example of someone who buckled under the pressure while we have players like Alfonso Soriano and Brandon McCarthy who seemingly flourished in the Bronx, and we may see it again here in a few seasons when the likes of Bryce Harper and Manny Machado hit the free agency market. For the sake of this post we will focus on the latter and not the former and ask the question, by the 2019 season will the Yankees have the devil they “know” in prospect Miguel Andujar as their third baseman or the devil they don’t in Machado on Opening Day? 

Over the last two seasons Machado has put up an average triple slash of .290/.351/.518 with 36 home runs, 91 RBI, 35 doubles and 104 runs scored. That’s an average… not the total. Only Mike Trout the 2016 AL MVP Award winner, Josh Donaldson and Kris Bryant the 2016 NL MVP Award winner have had a higher WAR in that same span according to Fangraphs. In a nutshell Machado has been amazing over the past two seasons and he is somehow still just 24-years old. Any team would love to have a Gold Glove winner at shortstop that is capable of playing shortstop in a pinch and any team would love to have another big bopper in the middle of their lineup, which is going to make him extremely expensive. Would New York dip their foot into the deep end of the free agent market again for Machado in the winter before the 2019 season or would they simply see what they have in Andujar and continue their youth movement? 

Andujar had a pretty good 2016 campaign himself, albeit while splitting time between the High-A Tampa Yankees and the Double-A Trenton Thunder but still, putting up a .273/.332/.410 triple slash with 12 home runs and 83 RBI in his age-21 season. Andujar, who enters his age-22 season in 2017, did enough to warrant the Yankees adding him to their 40 man roster as the organization now sees him as the third basemen of the future. Maybe. I say maybe because Andujar is still considered raw by many accounts but almost every one of the Yankees scouts have had nothing but exciting things to say about his untapped potential and his attitude towards the game. Projections state that Andujar, much like we see now with Machado, will hit for average, hit for power and use the whole field when he reaches the Major Leagues and reaches his full potential. 

It is impossible to say with any certainty what the Yankees are going to do two seasons from now as a lot can happen between then and now and a lot can change as well. If the past is any indicator of the future though it seems like Hal Steinbrenner and his fiscally responsible ways will be quite confident with having Andujar, and not an extremely expensive Machado, at the hot corner on Opening Day 2019. Just a hunch though. 

So it Seems Voyeurism May be Back in the Bronx

I may or may not be using the term “voyeurism” as Kode but the general gist of the message is the same, people may actually begin coming back to Yankee Stadium in 2017. The Yankees have added amenities to the stadium and not just any amenities but amenities that the fans actually wanted to see added to the Cathedral in the Bronx. The fans, as a general consensus and as a whole if we are using the term loosely, also wanted a youth movement and a rebuild and they are getting that as well. Gone are the Alex Rodriguez’s and Mark Teixeria’s long past their prime and in their spots are Greg Bird and Gary Sanchez who haven’t barely hit puberty let alone their primes yet.

These are exciting times in the Bronx. The winds of change are blowing and they will keep blowing. They will keep blowing as they bring REASSURANCE that the things I say will happen. Some things are harder to do and say when there are young guys involved. It’s hard to find the words and begin the process but once you do it will begin to flow and it will all come out at once until this thing is done, and over and dead. Just be patient and know that the better times are coming, no not nearly as fast as anyone would have hoped or imagined, and they are going to be the best times ever.

A dynasty is coming and an unstoppable force is being born. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and it wasn’t torn down in a day either just as a quick reminder, but the greatness that was Rome did happen and that should and will never be forgotten. Just enjoy the ride. 

So it Seems I’m Breaking the Kode

 So it seems like I may be finally breaking this Kode. Yes I know how to spell CODE but Kode is code for code if you know what I mean. You don’t actually and that’s the point of the Kode. Thoroughly confused now? Good.

Really though, after 31 years on this planet I think I may be finally starting to put two-and-two together and I think I may be finally starting to figure this whole “living” thing out. No longer am I simply okay with the “new normal” or whatever you want to call it. I have a taste of the good life now and I am not merely content with going back to the way things were.

Always go forward, never go back or stay the same. If you’re not going forward you need to find out what’s keeping you from going forward, remove that from your life and leave them or it in your dust. Kind of like what the Yankees need to do with Randy Levine and his fat mouth that he has zero issue with running 24/7. Don’t get me started on him again because I could totally rant on him again and again and again.  

The New York Yankees are on their way to cracking the code, you can see evidence of that with youth movement, but they need to really crack the Kode. No more signing the Matt Holliday’s and Chris Carter’s of the league, let the kids have a shot at it. Let the kids flourish and be happy.

#Kode

The Curious Case of the Yankees Outfield

The New York Yankees enter the 2017 season with a bit of a conundrum on their hands regarding their team, their focus and their overall goals for this upcoming season. Does the team want to compete in 2017 and if so will they be willing to trade off pieces that they have seemingly been unwilling to part with in the past before the trading deadline to make sure the team competes? Will the team, despite what the standings say, continue the youth movement and move pieces at the trading deadline? Do the Yankees even know what they are going to do or want to do? I’m leaning more towards the latter than the former and nothing gives me that feeling more than the current state of the New York Yankees outfield.

The Yankees outfield, on paper anyway as we are just beginning spring training this season, consists of Brett Gardner in left field, Jacoby Ellsbury in center field, Aaron Judge in right field and Aaron Hicks playing the fourth outfielder. Now excuse me if I’m confused but the team, as I said earlier, is in the middle of a rebuild and the team still currently employs overpaid and underperforming veterans like Ellsbury. I get holding onto Gardner, if it weren’t so soon after the retirement of Derek Jeter I would be beating the drum for Gardner to be the captain of the team right now if we’re being honest, but we didn’t even hear an inkling of news regarding Ellsbury this winter. Why? We see players with no-trade clauses who have underperformed and failed to live up to their outrageous contracts traded all the time, why don’t the Yankees ever do this?

Why don’t the Yankees ever eat half the salary and move their overpaid and underperforming players for mediocre and high upside prospects like the rest of the damn league does? Usually to us might I add, although not recently thank goodness. If the team is going to rebuild they need to rebuild, that includes trading Ellsbury to anyone who will take him and the bulk of his salary. If the team is going to compete in 2017 they need to trade Ellsbury to anyone who will take him and the bulk of his salary. Ellsbury does not make the team better, he doesn’t make the team younger and he doesn’t make the team more financially flexible going forward. He’s weighing the team down and he’s the next big contract that the Yankees will simply wait out rather than deal away, lick their wounds and move on.

Rebuild…. Compete…. Neither of them are being done right now with the current state and the curious case of the New York Yankees outfield. You can’t have your cake and eat it too, and in the case of Jacoby Ellsbury you wouldn’t even want to eat this cake if you could. It’s a bit… stale. 

The Thought of Edwin Encarnacion in Pinstripes & How Toronto Closed the Door

The New York Yankees, depending on the Brian McCann situation and what happens with him this winter, may or may not have an “open” slot at the DH position in 2017 and many have already begun to speculate that the team should fill that spot with Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Edwin Encarnacion. Encarnacion does not fit in with the Yankees new youth movement nor does he fit in with the team’s austerity plans presumably but if you needed one final nail in the coffin the Toronto Blue Jays organization may have just given it to you with the news that the team plans to extend both Jose Bautista and Encarnacion qualifying offers after the World Series ends this season.

The Yankees as it stands right now have the 17^th overall draft pick in the upcoming 2017 MLB Draft so you have to judge any and all potential free agent signings by that if they have draft pick compensation attached to them. Remember, and this is probably the exception and not the rule but it still happened so stay with me, the Yankees landed a potential Top 10 or even Top 5 pick last year in Blake Rutherford due to signability concerns with the 18^th overall pick and there is no reason to think that possibility doesn’t still exist for 2017 as well. Is an aging and presumably expensive Encarnacion really worth the 17^th overall pick plus whatever contract demands that come with him?

If the Yankees planned on competing for not only a playoff spot but potentially a World Series spot in 2017 then yes, you sacrifice the draft pick for the one missing piece and hope for the best. The Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians both did it this July acquiring Yankees relievers Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman and it has seemingly worked out well for both. The Yankees, though, are not at that level yet in their rebuild. They may compete for a playoff spot in 2017 but only because of the Wild Card and 2^nd Wild Card. As it stands right now this is not a team that is going to make a serious run at a World Series in 2017 so for that reason, among others including aforementioned points about the cost of Encarnacion and the fact that he does not fit in with the new youth movement in the Bronx, I cannot see the Yankees inking a deal and bringing the slugger to the team.

So if the Yankees and their fans had plans and hopes of signing Encarnacion to fill their DH and occasional first base positions the Toronto Blue Jays may have just closed the book on the whole ordeal, and that’s not exactly a bad thing.

Yefrey Ramirez Named FSL Pitcher of the Week

Yefrey Ramirez Named FSL Pitcher of the Week

Tampa, Fla. - The Florida State League named Tampa Yankees RHP Yefrey Ramirez Pitcher of the Week today. This honor was for games played August 22 - 28, 2016. This is the second time Ramirez has been named FSL Pitcher of the Week this season, the first time was for games played June 27 - July 3, 2016.    Ramirez was perfect through six (6) innings on Wednesday, August 24th and totaled eight (8) innings pitched allowing only one (1) hit, while striking out eight (8) batters.   He was selected by the Yankees from Arizona in the first round of the Triple-A phase of the Rule 5 Draft on 12/10/15.           The Tampa Yankees are the Single-A Advanced Affiliate of the New York Yankees. For more information about the Tampa Yankees call (813) 673-3055 or visitwww.tybaseball.com.

Weekly Prospects Check In: Jorge Mateo

The Yankees youth movement is in full effect. I know I keep saying this but I feel like if I stop saying it the Yankees will turncoat on me and start signing up any dumpster dive veteran free agent they can find. Jorge Mateo is still in Tampa as you have to think the Yankees organization is trying to send a message to the young shortstop after his two-week suspension for questioning it and violating the team’s rules.

What did Mateo do down in Tampa this week with his new sidekick Gleyber Torres by his side? Let’s find out and delve into the stats: 

Year	Age	Tm	G	PA	R	H	2B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
2016	21	Tampa	107	479	62	116	16	8	47	34	30	101	.264	.313	.396	.709

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

2017 Yankees Auditions Needs to Include Relievers

The youth movement has begun in the Bronx with the explosions onto the scene of Tyler Austin, Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez and others but there is one part of the Yankees team that could use a little youth infusion. That part of the Yankees team is the bullpen. If the Yankees are really committed to this whole rebuilding thing and they are auditioning for the 2017 season now then they need to go all in and include relievers into the mix as well. No more Anthony Swarzak, who has been terrible and has been since been placed on the 15 day DL, no more Richard Bleier and no more Kirby Yates. Prospects and power arms only.

I get it that the Yankees haven’t had much in terms of pitching depth proving themselves this season but I would rather watch Nick Goody, James Pazos, Jordan Montgomery and others get their feet wet right now than to watch Swarzak and company blow another lead for this team. You can’t sit here with a straight face and tell me that this team and this manager is trying to win games despite the youth movement as Anthony “All I Do Is Win  Give Up Home Runs No Matter What” enters the game a few times a week. And if you can you’re a good liar.

Blake Parker, Tyler Clippard, Adam Warren, Dellin Betances and Tommy Layne likely have futures with the club beyond the 2016 season but an argument could be made against both Layne and Parker. Either way guys like Ben Heller, Chasen Shreve, Nick Goody, Johnny Barbato and others who don’t currently occupy a 40 man roster spot need to get their work in now. Get their feet wet now without all the bright lights and expectations on them. The Yankees need to go all-in on this youth movement and scrap what the standings say because beyond this year they won’t matter but what all these young guys learn and gain in terms of experience does.

Make the moves Cashman. Rosters expand in less than a week and I expect the Yankees to have to rent a party bus to get them all here. 

Severino Has Been Bad but Yankees Not Helping his Confidence

I’m not one to equivocate or beat around the bush, Luis Severino has been flat out bad this season. He hasn’t shown me many glimpses of brilliance to build upon and there are no signs of snapping out of this funk he’s in. I don’t know if it’s mechanical, an injury he’s hiding or if it’s all mental at this point and truth be told I don’t think the Yankees know what is going on either. The Yankees organization continues to show up an inability to develop starting pitching and it’s mainly because the way they like to tinker and change things. It messes with you and they are messing with Severino right now not only mechanically but in the confidence department as well. It’s blatantly obvious and it’s blatantly obvious that it needs to stop. Now.

The Yankees have sent down Luis Severino multiple times this season to work on things and the latest set of homework he was given was to work on his changeup. Severino told reporters that the Yankees, and specifically manager Joe Girardi, told him to work on the changeup regardless of the results in the game. In his latest start he lasted 5.2 innings and gave up four runs with 10 K’s while throwing the changeup but after the game Severino was clearly not happy about it.

The Yankees know Severino has to have a third pitch if he’s going to succeed in the Major Leagues and while his fastball and slider are great he has to have the changeup to keep everyone off balance. Severino admitted it was difficult to command the pitch at times and even said that he didn’t necessarily like throwing a lot of changeups. One AL scout who was at the game spoke to reporters and even said he doesn’t look comfortable, nor does he look confident, throwing the pitch. Instead of making him throw the changeup has the team considered scrapping the pitch for another pitch?

The kid is 22-years old. The sky is the limit for the young right-hander and he’s not too old of a dog to not learn new tricks. Teach the kid a new pitch because it doesn’t seem like the changeup is going to work for Severino if Severino doesn’t want to throw it. It’s human nature.

What About Lourdes Gourriel Jr.?

Major League Baseball has finally declared Lourdes Gourriel Jr., younger brother of now Houston Astros player Yulieski Gourriel, a MLB free agent. Yulieski just recently signed a five-year deal worth $47.5 million and Lourdes is expected to sign for either longer, more money or both due to his age. Currently Lourdes is 22-years old meaning due to his age and lack of professional baseball in his career he is subject to the international free agent signing restrictions. If Lourdes waits until October, which all reports say he will do, when he turns 23-years old he would be a true free agent and could be signed with restrictions. Is that where the Yankees come in?

Here is what I wrote about both Yulieski and Lourdes back when they defected. I wanted both now and I would take Lourdes now. He will have to go to the minor leagues for a year or three to fine-tune his talents and won't be an immediate impact but the Yankees don't need an immediate impact. The youth movement has begun and the youth movement takes time. This signing makes a lot of sense. Will it happen? Leave it below in the comments section.

Weekly Prospects Check In: Jordan Montgomery

Yesterday we talked this young man up as the next in line to come up from the Yankees farm system and enter the Yankees starting rotation not only this season but next season and beyond as well. We talked about what kind of pitches Montgomery throws, when Montgomery was drafted and what I thought the future held for the University of South Carolina product but you know what they say. A picture is worth a thousand words so that means a stat line is probably worth at least double that, right?

I need to step up my game though. This post was only 139 words. Anyway, here is what Montgomery has been up to lately in the statistical department and I included his 2015 stats as well just to get everyone caught up and on the same page. Enjoy:

Year	Age	Lev	W	L	ERA	G	GS	GF	CG	SHO	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	SO	WHIP	H9	HR9	BB9	SO9
2015	22	A+-A	10	8	2.95	25	24	1	1	0	134.1	118	51	44	5	36	132	1.146	7.9	0.3	2.4	8.8
2015	22	A	4	3	2.68	9	9	0	0	0	43.2	36	15	13	1	12	55	1.099	7.4	0.2	2.5	11.3
2015	22	A+	6	5	3.08	16	15	1	1	0	90.2	82	36	31	4	24	77	1.169	8.1	0.4	2.4	7.6
2016	23	AA-AAA	11	5	2.31	22	22	0	1	1	120.2	110	37	31	5	42	115	1.260	8.2	0.4	3.1	8.6
2016	23	AA	9	4	2.55	19	19	0	1	1	102.1	94	35	29	5	36	97	1.270	8.3	0.4	3.2	8.5
2016	23	AAA	2	1	0.98	3	3	0	0	0	18.1	16	2	2	0	6	18	1.200	7.9	0.0	2.9	8.8

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

Weekly Prospect Check In: Aaron Judge

The New York Yankees youth movement is in full effect with the trades that came before the August 1^st trade deadline and now the recent announcements from Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez as both are walking away from the game. Now Teixeira will look to finish off the 2016 campaign on the field but Rodriguez will no longer be on the field come the weekend as he is set to unconditionally be released to join the front office with New York. When Alex is no longer on the team and no longer on the 40 man roster someone is going to have to come up and that someone may be Aaron Judge.

Right now it looks like the two main options for New York are Tyler Austin and Judge, although Chris Parmelee did just get sent on a minor league rehab assignment with Triple-A so you never know, and many fans are clamoring for the Judge. He’s been in Triple-A longer than Austin and his power and hype is unmatched right now in the Yankees farm system. Judgement Day is coming ladies and gentleman and it could be as soon as this weekend for New York. 

Year	Age	Lev	G	PA	R	H	2B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
2016	24	AAA	89	394	56	90	18	17	60	5	43	94	.265	.358	.474	.831

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table

Rebuilding in New York Means KEEPING Brian McCann

The New York Yankees and their GM Brian Cashman may have shifted the philosophy for not only the organization but for the entire fan base as well when they decided to sell at this year’s August 1^st trading deadline. I can’t remember the Yankees ever being sellers at the trading deadline during my years of watching so this was a cosmic shift in the universe for me but it was a necessary shift and a necessary change in order to let the organization go forward. The Yankees are no longer retooling nor are they going World Series or bust this season, they are playing for next year and beyond. The New York Yankees are rebuilding and with every rebuild you need a veteran catcher to anchor your staff, work with the young arms and mentor the rotation and bullpen. For those reasons and for a million other reasons that’s why the New York Yankees cannot and should not trade their veteran catcher Brian McCann before his contract runs out.

Let’s forget about what everything McCann does that you cannot really put a stat on, things like framing pitches (yes I know there are “stats” and metrics for this), calling games, working with and speaking to young guys, providing scouting reports, etc., and instead focus on some of the intangibles that can be quantified. Stats like home runs and RBI for catchers, something that McCann does well even in what is considered to be a down season for him offensively, that are all the more important for the Yankees now that Carlos Beltran is gone and Alex Rodriguez doesn’t look too far behind. Think about how demoralizing it would be for a Gary Sanchez, Aaron Judge or equivalent to come up and have zero protection in the lineup and only see bad pitches and/or balls. That’s where McCann can come in and provide another intangible that cannot be quantified.

When I think of McCann and now the call up of Gary Sanchez I immediately think of the Jorge Posada and Joe Girardi situation. Girardi was kept on the mentor Posada in the mid-90s, maybe for too long to be completely honest, and Posada not only benefited from it but he flourished from it as well and he went on to have a great career. There’s no reason Sanchez can’t slowly get his feet wet behind McCann and grow into a monster too thus helping the Yankees not only until the McCann contract runs out but for years and years to come after.

Keeping McCann only helps the rebuild and helps those future Yankees stars and teaming that look to bring in a World Series, not hurts. Keep McCann for his two full seasons beyond 2016 and reap the benefits for many, many years to come. It only makes sense. 

Weekly Prospects Check In: Tyler Austin

If you read the blog yesterday you know that I now condone eating this, and not that, and when I say “this” I mean Yankees prospects. The first Yankees prospect that should come up and continue the youth movement and the rebuild is the showcase of today’s weekly check in post, Tyler Austin.

Austin has done more than enough to earn a shot at the Major Leagues after starting the season out in Double-A. Who could blame the Yankees for starting Austin down in Trenton after numerous injuries and a couple down seasons full on struggle but Austin was called up to Triple-A to play first base and he has absolutely made the best of the situation crushing the baseball and playing a good first base all while putting his name back on the radar and the prospects map.

Wouldn’t it make sense to not only reward your prospects for earning their chance at the Majors with a call up but to also try a young guy in the midst of a rebuild instead of an aging veteran who has shown to have little to nothing left in the tank offensively? Maybe it’s just me. 

Year	Age	Lev	G	PA	R	H	2B	HR	RBI	SB	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS
2016	24	AAA-AA	102	428	59	105	30	17	76	6	62	98	.290	.393	.519	.912
2016	24	AA	50	210	22	46	10	4	29	1	30	46	.260	.367	.395	.762
2016	24	AAA	52	218	37	59	20	13	47	5	32	52	.319	.417	.638	1.055

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table