Series Awards: vs. Rays, 6/5 - 6/7

Jake Taylor Award
Going into this series, Russell Martin was batting .194. He'd been hitting better as of late, and that carried over against the Rays. Russ ended up going 4-for-9, including 2 home runs (one of them a grand slam). In fact, Martin is the hottest Yankee hitter over the last two weeks, as he's put up a line of .357/.455/.679. I don't think he's going to make people want to see him come back next year, but he may make people forget about trading for a catcher before the deadline this season.

Gentry Award
As hot has Russell Martin has been the last two weeks, Derek Jeter is kind of cold. Over the same 2 weeks that Martin put up that really nice triple-slash, Jeter's own triple-slash was .216/.310/.275. In the Rays series Derek didn't get a single hit, going 0-for-12, while reaching base only twice thanks to a couple of walks in the Game 3 loss. However, I wanted to point out that Granderson, Rodriguez, and Teixeira went a combined 3-for-34, so outside of Cano the top of the order did very little to give the Yanks the series win.

Rick Vaughn Award
As good as Ivan Nova was on Wednesday, going 8 innings while giving up only 1 run on 4 hits and a walk (striking out 5), Andy Pettitte was just a bit better. Pettitte went 7.1 innings on Tuesday, striking out 10 while walking just 2, but best of all he gave up only 2 hits. Andrew is striking out more batters per 9 innings than he has since 2004 in Houston (8.6 then, 8.1 now), but he's walking even fewer per 9 since 2005 in Houston (1.7 then, 1.8 now). Not sure he's going to continue that all year, but we're all pleased with his 2.78 ERA for the time being.

Kelner Award
I'm not a fan of giving a reliever this award, especially when the guy only threw .2 innings in the series, but I can't ignore Cory Wade giving up 2 hits and 1 walk in his one short outing. But I didn't give out this award last week, and no starter "earned" this honor, so Cory gets it.

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*The awards are named after one of the best baseball movies of all time... Major League.

Jake Taylor Award - Awarded to the most valuable position player. Named after the hard-nose veteran catcher that, despite making the league minimum, was the heart and soul of the 1989 American League East winning Cleveland Indians.

Gentry Award - Awarded to the least valuable position player. Named after the very first man cut from the 1989 Cleveland Indians, #47 Gentry. A man so insignificant he wasn't even given a first name.

Rick Vaughn - Awarded to the best pitcher in the series. This one is, of course, named after the "Wild Thing". The man that made Clu Haywood look silly in the division deciding game.

Kelner Award - Awarded to the worst pitcher in the series. Named after the Opening Day starter for the '89 Indians. Not a good game for Mr. Kelner, as Indians' announcer Harry Doyle famously quipped "thank God" after Kelner left the game. And yet another bad player without a first name.

Mets @ Yankees 6/8/12

UPDATE:

Robinson Cano hits a two run home run to break up the no hitter and the shut out. 2-0 Yankees

Robinson Cano, Nick Swisher, and Andruw Jones went back to back to back to make it 6-0 Yankees.

Hiroki Kuroda's no hit bid ends at 5.2 IP

Yankees win 9-1

The Subway Series, Part 1, starts tonight at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees will send Hiroki Kuroda to the mound hoping and begging for any kind of consistency out of him while the Mets will throw out some guy named Johan Santana. If you remember Johan Santana is making his first start since throwing the Mets first no hitter in their storied history. The game will be televised at 7:05 pm ET on MY9 and on MLB Network. 

Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Robinson Cano 2B
Nick Swisher RF
Andruw Jones DH
Raul Ibanez LF
Russell Martin C

The Yankees sit just 1/2 game out of first place in the AL East, trailing both Tampa Bay and Baltimore.

Go Yankees!

Rays @ Yankees 6/7/12

UPDATE:

Chris Stewart has the only Yankees run tonight with a sacrifice ground out to the second basemen. Yankees are down 5-1 in the 5th

Yankees lose 7-3

This man, CC Sabathia, will lead the Yankees tonight against the Rays and David Price looking for the sweep and maybe finally being atop the AL East all by themselves. The game will be televised at 7:05 pm ET on YES and MLB Network.  

Jeter SS
Granderson CF
Teixeira 1B
Rodriguez 3B
Cano 2B
Swisher RF
Jones DH
Nix LF

Stewart C 

The Yankees will be without Freddy Garcia for an undisclosed amount of time while he is in Venezuela on bereavement leave with the death of his grand father. Ryota Igarashi has been added to the roster to take his place. 

Sweep those Rays and Go Yankees!!

Rays @ Yankees 6/6/12

UPDATE:

A Teix Message is the difference early as the Yankees lead 1-0

Robinson Cano with a "Yankee Stadium" home run to make it 2-0

Yankees win 4-1 with Rafael Soriano getting his 8th save

Tonight the Yankees will try to completely take over first place from the Tampa Bay Rays who hold a slim half game lead over the Yankees in the division. Ivan Nova will be asked to do the pitching tonight for the Yanks on their quest for first place against Rays pitcher Alex Cobb. The game will be televised at 7:05 pm ET on YES and ESPN 2.

Jeter SS
Granderson CF
Rodriguez DH
Cano 2B
Teixeira 1B
Ibanez LF
Swisher RF
Chavez 3B
Martin C

Go Yankees!

Meet A Prospect : Yankees Draft Picks

Ty Hensley -

It's unlikely Oklahoma will see a bounty like it did in 2011, when local prepsters Dylan Bundy and Archie Bradley went in the top 10 of the Draft. It will be up to Hensley to represent the Sooner state and he should do just fine.Hensley has a fastball that's a tick above average, sitting 91-92 mph, and he can reach back for more, hitting 94 mph when he needs to. He has a hard curve with good downer rotation when he throws it right, though sometimes he drops his arm angle and it becomes a bit slurvy. His changeup is below-average right now, but he hasn't used it much and with more experience, it should be a usuable pitch in the future. He generally throws strikes and is very confident on the mound.Some of Hensley's issues stem from mechanics that can be cleaned up with time and experience. Strong and durable, Hensley may not have the ceiling of his Oklahoma predecessors, but he profiles as a very good starting pitcher at the next level.

Austin Aune - Amazingly he has already signed with the Yankees.


6'02" 185lbs DOB: 09/06/93
A two-sport star in high school, Aune has the ability to make it in either football or baseball. A potential five-tool player, Aune bats lefty and has potential plus power. He has good range at shortstop and a great arm, but some scouts think that a move to the outfield could be in his near future. Aune could potentially play center field at the next level, especially because of his great speed and arm. Although a bit raw, Aune's upside and great makeup should allow the toolsy outfielder to be picked in the early going of the Draft.


Peter O'Brien -


6'04" 225lbs DOB: 07/15/90 
This is a bit of a do-over for O'Brien, who entered the 2011 season as a strong catching prospect at Bethune-Cookman, but he decided not to sign after being drafted in the third round by the Rockies, instead transferring to Miami for his senior season. He's been more consistent with the Hurricanes, showing the kind of offensive ability most thought they'd see when 2011 began. He drives the ball to all fields and has above-average to plus raw power. He's not a bad runner for the position. His arm has always been a plus and he's shown some improvement behind the plate as well with decent hands and agility for someone his size. College catchers, especially with this kind of offensive potential, often do well on Draft day and it seems that O'Brien's decision to spend one more year in college may work to his advantage.


Corey Black -


Black has a good fastball that has good movement and can get into the upper 90s. Black also has relatively good secondary stuff and dominated the NAIA. A lot is still unknown about the righty from a small school in Alabama, but he could end up being a steal in the Draft.

Rays @ Yankees 6/5/12

A vintage Andy Pettitte mixed with some Rays errors and a Russell Martin grand slam and the Yankees win 7-0 and get one step closer to first place in the AL East

Tonight Andy Pettitte starts in game 1 of a three game set with the first place Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays will throw out James Shields to face Pettitte and try to keep their slim (shared) lead of first place. The game will be televised at 7:05 pm ET on the YES Network and MLB Network. Here are the lineups.

Derek Jeter SS
Curtis Granderson CF
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Robinson Cano 2B
Mark Teixeira 1B
Raul Ibanez LF
Nick Swisher RF
Eric Chavez DH
Russell Martin C

Where Were They Drafted?

I wanted to take a look and see where the regulars in the Yankee lineup, pitchers or hitters, were drafted. The results are pretty much what I expected, as six 1st round draft picks are currently contributing in MLB, while the rest come from rounds 3 through 36. I guess it goes to show you that while drafting the right players is important, developing them is just as key.

Alex Rodriguez - drafted by the Seattle Mariners with the 1st pick of the 1st round.
Mark Teixiera - drafted by the Texas Rangers with the 5th pick of the 1st round.
Derek Jeter - drafted by the New York Yankees with the 6th pick of the 1st round.
Nick Swisher - drafted by the Oakland Athletics with the 16th pick of the 1st round.
CC Sabathia - drafted by the Cleveland Indians with the 20th pick of the 1st round.
Phil Hughes - drafted by the New York Yankees with the 23rd pick of the 1st round.
Brett Gardner - drafted by the New York Yankees in the 3rd round.
Curtis Granderson - drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 3rd round.
Cory Wade - drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 10th round.
David Phelps - drafted by the New York Yankees in the 14th round.
Russell Martin - drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 17th round.
David Robertson - drafted by the New York Yankees in the 17th round.
Boone Logan - drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the 20th round.
Andy Pettitte - drafted by the New York Yankees in the 22nd round.
Raul Ibanez - drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 36th round.

Robinson Cano, Andruw Jones, Hiroki Kuroda, Ivan Nova, and Rafael Soriano were all signed as free agents, proving that the new restrictions on signing amateur or international free agents is going to have a big effect. So drafting the right players, and developing them, is a bit more important to the success of the big club.

Even though I, and certainly others, have no idea who most the guys are that are being drafted, we may want to watch or follow things so you get a jump on what the future of the Yankees has in store.

Yankees Draft 2012

Congrats to Carlos Correa for being the first overall pick in the MLB First Year Player Draft! Welcome to the Houston Astros organization.

Congrats to Byron Buxton for being the second overall pick in the MLB First Year Player Draft! Welcome to the Minnesota Twins organization. 

Congrats to Mike Zunino for being the third overall pick in the MLB First Year Player Draft! Welcome to the Seattle Mariners organization. 

Congrats to Kevin Gausman for being the fourth overall pick in the MLB First Year Player Draft! Welcome to the Baltimore Orioles organization. 

Congrats to Kyle Zimmer for being the fifth overall pick in the MLB First Year Player Draft! Welcome to the Kansas City Royals organization.

The Yankees, with the 30th pick in the first round of the draft, select Ty Hensley. Welcome to the club Ty!

Yankees 2012 Draft Reminder

Reminder that the MLB First Year Player Draft will be televised tonight, starting at 6:00 pm ET, on MLB Network. 

CC Sabathia will be representing the Yankees on day 1. The Yankees have the 30th overall pick in the first round and have two draft picks in the second round (89th and 94th respectively). 

Yankees Draft History:

The last time the Yankees had the 30th pick they chose Andrew Brackman. The Yankees have twice had the first overall pick. They chose Ron Blomberg(1967) and Brien Taylor(1991) respectively. 

Yankees 2012 Draft : 10 Round Slot Values

Being Borrowed From River Avenue Blues

The amateur draft is a little more than three weeks away right now, and we know the new Collective Bargaining Agreement has imposed strict spending restrictions that figure to change the way clubs operate. The Yankees have been allotted $4,192,200 for their eleven picks in the top ten rounds, including $1.6M for their first rounder (#30 overall). Any money in excess of $100k given to a player drafted after the tenth round counts against the draft pool as well.

The penalties for exceeding the draft pool are pretty harsh, including a tax on the overage and forfeiture of future picks. They really don’t want teams spending on amateurs, it seems. Baseball America recently published a list of slot values for the top ten rounds of the draft, which breaks down like so for the Yankees…

Round	Pick	Slot
1	30	$1,600,000
2	89	$548,400	for 2011 unsigned 2nd rounder, LHP Sam Stafford
2	94	$507,800
3	124	$378,000
4	157	$275,000
5	187	$205,900
6	217	$154,400
7	247	$141,000
8	277	$131,700
9	307	$125,000
10	337	$125,000

If a team does not sign a player, they can not use that pick’s money elsewhere. So the Yankees won’t be able to just not sign say, their fifth rounder and use that $205,900 on other players. They can game the system a little but, most notably by selecting some low-cost college seniors — they usually sign for bonuses in the $1k-$20k range — and using the savings elsewhere. If they take college seniors with their ninth and tenth rounders and pay them $25k each, they’ll have an extra $200k to spend on other players. The Yankees can also exceed their draft pool by $209,610 (5%) before the penalties kid in.

The slot values themselves are not low at all, in fact they’re actually larger than recent years (at least for the first few rounds). The problem is the restrictions and penalties; the inability to exceed slot for one player without having to skimp elsewhere. It stinks, but that’s the system they decided to put in place.