Donovan Solano is Back, Now What?

The New York Yankees outrighted infielder Donovan Solano off their 40-man roster following the 2016 regular season but the team has now brought the former Miami Marlins product back to the organization with a new minor league deal. The Solano signing, along with the minor league deal for Ruben Tejada, should give the Yankees plenty of minor league depth and insurance for their middle infielders but much like yesterday I am left feeling “now what?” when it comes to the rest of the middle infielders in the organization, specifically Rob Refsnyder and Ronald Torreyes.

Solano is still somehow just 28-years old so he has his youth on his side and his prime in front of him after leading the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre RailRiders to a Triple-A Championship in 2016 batting .319/.349/.436 in 546 at-bats. New York is obviously high on him, it was Solano who was called up last season during the stretch run to replace an injured Starlin Castro at second base, and will give him a shot to fight for a job once again this spring down in Tampa.

Solano will join Torreyes, Refsnyder and Tejada this spring as the four men competing for no more than two roster spots this spring. Unless of course a trade comes up and Refsnyder or Torreyes, or conceivably although less likely Solano or Tejada as well, come up in trade discussions. I guess you’ll have to stay tuned to find out.

Brett Gardner, San Francisco Giants & the Trade Rumor That Just Won’t Go Away

So earlier on the blog, if you were paying attention anyway, you saw that the New York Yankees are “tapped out” according to reports and if any deals are to be made for the remainder of this winter that the team would have to clear out some payroll first so sticking with that as a theme here is an idea that involves the Yankees left fielder Brett Gardner and a potential trade partner. The San Francisco Giants seemingly love the Brett Gardner type, speedy outfielder that plays defense and can hit at the top of the order, and they may be the best and most logical fit for a trade if a trade were to go down so who would the Yankees be interested in and could both teams make it happen?

Now while Gardner is not going to be the teams saving grace when it comes to payroll he is owed $12.5 million in 2017, $11.5 million in 2018 and the team has an option on the left fielder worth $12.5 million for the 2019 season with a $2 million buyout option. That’s not nothing so they say, although I hate to use the double negative here on the blog. That’s not much to the Yankees in the grand scheme of things but that also works both ways, it’s presumably not much to the San Francisco Giants either who are in “win now” mode after signing Mark Melancon to a free agent deal.

The Giants everyday left fielder Angel Pagan is officially a free agent causing the team to, as it stands today of course, to go with either Mac Williamson or Jarrett Parker in the spacious left field grass at AT&T Park in San Francisco. If the Giants are truly desperate to win in 2017, and they should be as every year that passes is another year off of Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner’s prime while Johnny Cueto can opt-out of his deal after this season if he so chooses, the team might be willing to part with a few intriguing prospects for Gardner.

I don’t pretend to be all-knowing in terms of anyone else’s farm system but from a quick look at MLB.com’s top Giants prospects list the names Chris Shaw (left-handed power-hitting first baseman) quickly stood out from above the rest. Obviously Christian Arroyo, an infielder and the Giants top prospect, did as well but you are definitely not fetching him for Gardner in my opinion. Not alone anyway.

The deal makes sense for both sides. Gardner’s gap power, speed and defense would fit the Giants roster well while the prospects the Giants would presumably send back would fit in with the Yankees newly found austerity and youth movement. So what are you waiting for? Make the deal already. 

Now the Yankees Want to Cut Payroll?

The New York Yankees are officially “tapped out” after adding both Matt Holliday and Aroldis Chapman to Major League deals this winter and now the team, and the New York Mets as well, are looking for ways to cut payroll. The Yankees payroll is already over the luxury tax threshold for the 2017 season and as the team looks to get under the $197 million cap for the 2018 season the team will look to trade away some expensive veterans before making any sort of moves.

The Detroit Tigers have discussed moving former Yankees reliever Justin Wilson in a move and New York is said to be at least somewhat interested in his services but as it stands now a team like the Houston Astros or the Chicago Cubs may move in and swoop up Wilson before the Yankees can if a trade is not made or the budget is not stretched in the Bronx.

This also does not bode well, assuming this is not just posturing on the Yankees side, for the team’s search for a starting pitcher. Last season while the team did not sign a single MLB free agent in the offseason the team did acquire young and talented players in Aroldis Chapman and Starlin Castro while taking on money in both deals, something that seems nearly impossible this season if you believe the reports.

Stay tuned but it seems like the Yankees heavy lifting is all but done and we, the fans, are in for a long, long winter ahead. Stay warm!

Rest in Peace Alexander Figueredo

This is not exactly the way we wanted to start out our day but I am just reading about the 20-year old left-handed Yankees pitching prospect that was killed on November 27^th. His name was Alexander Figueredo and he was in his native Venezuela when he was shot and killed.

Figueredo is not a name that likely many of us know unfortunately as he never made it above the Dominican Summer League and missed the entire 2016 season due to injury. Figueredo was on the suspended/restricted list at the time of his death according to Yankees sources but no details were given that I have found yet.

At 18-years old Figueredo went 5-0 in the DSL with a 1.89 ERA in 12 games, 11 of them starts. Figueredo was 20-years old. Rest in peace. 

This Day In New York Yankees History 12/15: Ron Guidry

On this day in 1981 the Yankees continued their spending ways when they signed Ron Guidry to a four year deal worth $3.6 million to keep him in New York. Gator averaged nearly 17 wins per season during the four year contract for perennial terrible Yankees teams.

Also on this day in 1980 Dave Winfield became the highest paid player in Major League history and the history of sports at the time when the New York Yankees handed him a 10 year deal worth $16 million. Makes Robinson Cano turning down $175 million into perspective on where the game has come from in the last 30 years.

The “It’s Not What You Want” Podcast featuring Jacob Westendorf and Matt Bove w/ Special Guest Brendan Kuty of NJ.com

The “It’s Not What You Want” podcast brought to you by The Greedy Pinstripes is back with both Jacob Westendorf and Matt Bove. This time the guys have a very special guest with them on the broadcast, NJ.com’s insider Brendan Kuty. That alone is worth a listen if you ask me so check out the podcast as there should be plenty of hot stove, offseason and discussions about the upcoming season to be had.

Enjoy and leave your comments below in the comments section. 

MLB Drops Hammer on Rookie Hazing

There’s nothing more American, in my very humble yet bias opinion, than Major League Baseball. It’s tradition and it’s life. When looking deeper into Major League Baseball you see certain other traditions and such that simply come attached to the hip with MLB. Labor Day and Independence Day baseball. Hot dogs and cracker jacks. Rookie hazing. It happens. Some may not like it, especially in this world today that is so “PC” and sensitive, but it happens nonetheless and for that reason MLB is dropping the hammer a bit on teams for it in certain instances.

The certain instances that MLB will now prohibit is the act of hazing that involved men dressing up as women. For example, there will be no more MLB players dressing up as cheerleaders, Wonder Woman or a Hooters Girl. In fact no costume or outfit can be worn that is offensive to the individual’s race, sex, nationality, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or other characteristic.

Everyone has to be sensitive to everyone else and everything these days. Agree with it or not, stuck in your ways or not, that’s just how the world is today. For better or worse. Carrying on.

Meet a Prospect: Ruben Tejada

The New York Yankees have signed former New York Mets product Ruben Tejada to a minor league deal and will presumably have him in spring training camp this spring fighting for a job. While this signing is not on the same level as the Matt Holliday or the Aroldis Chapman signings this could be significant nonetheless, especially with the release of Dustin Ackley and other key losses in the infield both at the Major League and Minor League level. So let’s meet the guy that could be up in the Bronx with an injury or two or a strong showing this spring down in Tampa. This is Meet a Prospect: The Ruben Tejada Edition.

Ruben Dario Tejada was born on October 27, 1989 in Santiago de Veraguas, Panama to Ruben Sr. and Donaji Tejada. Ruben Sr. was a pitcher in Panama for the Los Indios de Veraguas and that mixed with the fact that Tejada Jr. grew up mere feet from Omar Torrijos Herrera Stadium in Panama the middle infielder was destined for baseball. Growing up Tejada idolized the likes of Derek Jeter and Omar Vizquel leading Tejada to sign with the New York Mets in 2006 as a 16-year old international free agent and prospect. 

Tejada toiled around in the Mets minor league system through the 2009 season and it was the year 2010 when Tejada was invited to Mets spring training camp. Tejada impressed the Mets enough to become the youngest position player to make the New York Mets Opening Day roster since Tim Foli in 1971. Tejada was a part-time player and a player that bounced back and forth between Triple-A and the Major Leagues until becoming a fill-time player in 2011 after an injury to third baseman David Wright moved then second baseman Justin Turner to third base.

It was business as usual for Tejada from 2011 through the 2015 regular season but Tejada was in the spotlight again during the 2015 NLDS when Los Angeles Dodgers second baseman ended his season and ultimately his Mets tenure with a slide into second base that broke Tejada’s right fibula. That broken fibula ended his season and in March of 2016 the Mets places Tejada on waivers before releasing him the next day. Tejada latched on with the St. Louis Cardinals and the San Francisco Giants in 2016 but neither resulted in long tenures back in the big leagues unfortunately for Tejada.  

Now Tejada is back in New York, this time with the New York Yankees, and once again back to fighting for his MLB career. Good luck to him and we are very happy to have him. Welcome to the family Ruben. 

Does the Ruben Tejada Signing Make Rob Refsnyder & Ronald Torreyes Expendable?

The New York Yankees signed former New York Mets middle infielder Ruben Tejada to a minor league deal with a presumed invitation to the Yankees spring training camp down in Tampa this coming spring. We’ll meet the man the Yankees signed here in a few hours on the blog but before we get to that I want to share my initial response, impression and the major question that came along with the signing. I also want to explore whether such a signing by the Bronx Bombers now makes both Robert Refsnyder and Ronald Torreyes not only trade bait but expendable as well.

I’ll start slow with my initial response. My initial response to the signing was not a real major one. It’s a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training. The Yankees will likely have many veterans and reclamation projects that they sign to similar deals this winter and spring so the fact that it’s Tejada is not a huge deal to me. I think it’s being made into a bigger deal than it is by most because he used to play for the Mets, and truth be told a little of it also has to do with the fact that news is slow right now around the Christmas holidays. This was merely a blip on the radar for me until I started thinking whether this was a precursor to something to come, something much bigger.

Let’s be honest, and this is coming from the biggest Rob Refsnyder fan besides his own mother, both Refsnyder and Torreyes are easily expendable. While I believe with constant and consistent at bats Refsnyder could become a line-drive hitter and an overall good hitter in the Major Leagues manager Joe Girardi has proven time and time again that this is not simply going to happen. With that said Refsnyder and Torreyes lend little to the team in terms of offense, their value is on defense at this point unfortunately and their versatility and ability to play multiple positions. Something that Tejada could also lend the Yankees in the middle infield.

Now we know the Yankees and their seemingly infatuation with having veteran players on the team, even in the midst of a rebuild on the fly, so it worries me that Tejada may get that 25^th spot and a young guy who still has some trade value like Refsnyder may be out the door in a deal for a starting pitcher. Of course Refsnyder alone, or Torreyes either for that matter, cannot fetch a pitcher on their own but when thrown into a package with someone else (Brett Gardner) you may have the makings of a deal on your hands. And that worries me if I am being honest. 

Call to the Pen’s Top 10 Yankees Prospects

It’s that time of the year, and just as a reminder Prospects Month here on the site is just around the corner, where various publications, blogs and writers release their Top 10 Prospects lists for their various favorite teams. Today we showcase a site I frequent often and their Top 10 Yankees prospects list. Call to the Pen, check them out and check out their list here.

10. Estevan Florial

9. Dillon Tate

8. Chance Adams

7. Domingo Acevedo

6. Justus Sheffield

5. Jorge Mateo

4. Blake Rutherford

3. James Kaprielian

2. Clint Frazier

1. Gleyber Torres

The actual article has some good information about each prospect so head over to Call to the Pen and check those guys and this article out. Enjoy and Happy Wednesday. HUMP DAY!