Game Thread: New York Yankees @ Tampa Bay Rays 6/23

And just like that it is game time here in the Bronx between the New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays. In the middle game of the three-game set this weekend down in Tampa St. Pete the Yankees will send Sonny Gray out to the mound for another road start while the Rays will counter with Wilmer Font. The game will be played at 4:10 pm ET inside Tropicana Field and can be seen on Fox Sports One. You can also follow along with the game on MLB TV, with the MLB At-Bat app and by tuning into the Yankees radio broadcast with John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman on WFAN.

Follow us on Twitter, @GreedyStripes, and “Like” us on Facebook, The Greedy Pinstripes, to keep up with us and the Yankees all season long. Enjoy the game, Sonny Gray on the road is awesome Sonny Gray, and go Yankees!!

Meet a Prospect: Keegan Curtis

With their 22^nd round pick, 667^th overall, in the 2018 MLB First Year Players Draft the New York Yankees selected Keegan Curtis, a right-handed pitcher out of the University of Louisiana Monroe. Another round and another college experienced right-handed arm to add to the fold, let’s meet him. This is Meet a Prospect: The Keegan Curtis Edition.

Curtis stands 6’0” and weighs in at 175 lbs. and was drafted as a college senior with a .600 winning percentage in 20 games played at ULM. Curtis allowed just 11 runs all season long including two home runs which was good for a 2.88 ERA and seven saves as a closer. Curtis struggled as a starting pitcher in his previous three collegiate seasons before breaking out in 2018 while pitching out of the bullpen.

Curtis could be fast-tracked through the Yankees system as a relief pitcher, although it wouldn’t surprise me to see the team try and pitch him as a starter a la Chance Adams, Jonathan Holder and others.

Keegan has already agreed to a contract with the organization so let us not only welcome him to the team, but to the Yankees family as well. You can follow Keegan on Twitter by following @Curtis_Keegan06.

Predicting the 2018 MLB Trade Deadline: Yankees Prospects

The New York Yankees have one of the best farm systems in all of Major League Baseball, which is a huge reason why the team has been so successful at the Major League level not only in 2018, but in 2017 as well. Rookies have burst onto the scene like Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, Luis Severino, Gleyber Torres, Miguel Andujar and others, but the scariest part of the whole ordeal is for other teams is that there is another wave of Baby Bombers even behind this core of players. Some of these players may be trade bait at the July 31^st trade deadline and some may not, let’s decipher which prospects should be untouchable during this hot stove season and which the Yankees and Brian Cashman should explore trades with to bolster their potential World Series run.

The list of untouchables prospects should be obvious to any Yankees fan that follows their farm system. Torres and Andujar will not be moved, not for Jacob deGrom, not for Noah Syndergaard, and not for Madison Bumgarner. Not for anyone. Those are the obvious players, but if I were Brian Cashman I would also add RHP Albert Abreu, LHP Justus Sheffield and OF Clint Frazier to that list. I know many have clamored for Frazier to be traded for starting pitching but with the impending free agency of Brett Gardner and another prospect we will touch on later, Estevan Florial, so far away I would not feel comfortable moving Frazier unless the deal was just too good to pass up.

Florial is now the team’s top prospect with the promotion of Torres from prospects status, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t move him in the right deal. Would I trade Florial for a rental player? Absolutely not, no, but with no spot open in the foreseeable future in the outfield would I trade him for a young stud like Jacob deGrom? As much as it pains me to say, especially since I would have to watch Florial potentially flourish with that other New York team, I have to say that I would. I would include him in a deal for Noah Syndergaard also, but I may balk at the idea of acquiring Steven Matz using the team’s top and best prospect.

Thairo Estrada is another talented Yankees prospect that just has too many good, young options in front of him to really have a place to play here in New York at the Major League level. Estrada, currently in Triple-A Scranton, is 22-years old and has experience at second base (blocked by Torres), shortstop (blocked by Didi Gregorius) and third base (blocked by Andujar and Brandon Drury), and is ranked as the Yankees 8^th best prospect according to MLB.com. If a deal for a starter became available, I have to say I would feel very comfortable in moving him from a position of strength to fill a need.

If I will trade Florial because of no immediate openings in the Yankees outfield you have to think it would make sense to also trade Billy McKinney in the right deal, no? McKinney is Major League ready now and is simply in Triple-A due to the talent logjam that the Yankees are experiencing right now here in the Bronx. If the Yankees could acquire the missing piece they need for a deep October run, maybe a starting pitcher for example, and it came at the expense of McKinney, I would totally be okay with that.

Tyler Wade is a lot like Thairo Estrada in a way. He is young and versatile, but he is sitting in Triple-A because the Yankees simply have too many good options and not enough positions to play them all at. Wade has struggled in both his looks at the Major League level, but he could provide serviceable production to another MLB team, especially a National League team, due to his defensive versatility.

Pinstriped Prospects

The final prospect that I would be okay with moving is RHP Chance Adams. I know I have been beating the drum for Adams for what feels like forever now, and don’t get me wrong I am still high on the guy, but lately I have been accused of being loyal to a fault with the young right-hander. Adams has struggled with his command and control at the Triple-A level after tearing up the lower levels of the minor league system. At the time of this writing Adams had posted a 2-2 record with a 4.96 ERA in Triple-A which has left many scouts to wonder if he could handle pitching on such a huge stage like New York and Yankee Stadium. It has to show you something when Jonathan Loaisiga is making starts in the Bronx right now and not Adams, the team has lost their confidence in him and a trade may be what is best for not only the team, but for Adams as well.

I want to say that making such a post like this is hard for me. As a self-proclaimed “prospect humper” I want to personally hold onto all of the Yankees prospects. That mentality has gotten the Yankees into the situation they are in now, and don’t get me wrong it is a great position to be in, where they have too many great players and not enough positions to play them all in. The Yankees farm system is deep, and they can sustain trading away one or two big pieces for the missing piece to their World Series puzzle in 2018. With the farm system restocked once again with a nice draft and the international free agent signing period opening up in less than two weeks New York should strike while the iron is hot. I am not saying to make a deal just for the sake of making a deal, but I am saying if there is a piece out there that’s available and fits Brian Cashman’s idea of a fair price, I am saying to make the deal and figure out the rest later.

Game Preview: New York Yankees @ Tampa Bay Rays 6/23

image credit: Pinstriped Prospects

Good morning Yankees family. Today the New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays will prepare for the second of a three-game weekend set that will pit Sonny Gray for the Yankees and Wilmer Font for the Rays on the mound head-to-head. Sonny Gray at home scares me, but with the game in Tampa Bay I feel like maybe I can afford to be cautiously optimistic. Maybe. Let’s get to it here inside Tropicana Field down in Tampa Bay.

Gray will look to pick up back-to-back victories for the first time in his year-long Yankees tenure tonight against the Tampa Bay Rays. In his last start Gray was sharp on the road against the Washington Nationals pitching 5.0 innings while allowing just two runs on six hits in a victory.

Font will make his fourth start tonight including his second consecutive start against the New York Yankees. The Rays are stretching out Font which means he will likely be able to go around five innings or so before the move to the bullpen is made after pitching 4.2 innings last time out in New York.

The game will be played at 4:10 pm ET inside Tropicana Field and can be seen on Fox Sports One. You can also follow along with the game on MLB TV, with the MLB At-Bat app and by tuning into the Yankees radio broadcast with John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman on WFAN.

Enjoy the game, boy I feel the sudden urge for fish for dinner tonight and go Yankees!!

Hello… Gleyber Says No to Potential HR Derby Invite

Good morning Yankees family and welcome to the weekend, officially. It’s Saturday, and I hope you all have a great weekend planned ahead. Speaking of planning, no one has asked him yet but Gleyber Torres knows what he would say if the league were to ask him to participate in the Home Run Derby here in 2018. No!

Torres told the New York Post on Wednesday that he would pass if asked to do the Home Run Derby because “I’m not a home run hitter, I’m a contact hitter.” Well you could have fooled me, Gleyber, but I agree with your decision nonetheless. Torres has 14 home runs in his first 50 games of his MLB career.

FYI Aaron Judge has also stated that he will not be back to defend his crown, also a wise decision by a Yankees star if you ask me.

And a special good morning to the most beautiful woman on this planet, the woman that I go to bed with every night and the woman that I wake up to every single morning. I love you Kari.

This Day in New York Yankees History 6/23: Cleveland ROCKED!

On this day in 1996 the Yankees showed how much of a "never count us out" team they really were when they behind early only to come back with nine runs in the sixth inning. The Yankees would win the game 11-9 at Jacobs Field over the Cleveland Indians and it would complete the first time the Yankees would sweep the Indians in Cleveland in a four game series since 1964.


Also on this day in 1950 the Detroit Tigers and the New York Yankees combined for 11 home runs in a nine inning game, a major league record for the most in a single game. Hoot Evers hit the historic home run as a walk off home to give the Tigers a very dramatic 10-9 victory over New York.



Finally on this day in 1915 the Philadelphia Athletics pitcher Bruno Hass made his major league debut against the New York Yankees at the very historic Shibe Park. The good news was the 24 year old southpaw, known as Boon, tossed a complete game in the contest and in the start established a post-1900 major league record. The bad news was the record was for issuing 16 walks during the nine inning game in a 15-7 loss to the Yankees.

Game Thread: New York Yankees @ Tampa Bay Rays 6/22

And just like that it is game time here inside Tropicana Field between the New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays. In the first game of this three-game weekend set the Yankees will send CC Sabathia to the mound to face off with Ryne Stanek for the Rays. The game will be played at 7:10 pm ET inside Tropicana Field in Tampa Bay and can be seen on WPIX Channel 11 and Fox Sports Sun. You can also follow along with the game on MLB TV, with the MLB At-Bat app and by tuning into the Yankees radio broadcast on WFAN with the legendary duo of John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman.

Follow us on Twitter, @GreedyStripes, and “Like” us on Facebook, The Greedy Pinstripes, to keep up with us and the team all season long. Enjoy the game, don’t look now but Giancarlo is hot, and go Yankees!!

Meet a Prospect: Mitchell Robinson

With their 21st round pick, 637^th overall, in the 2018 MLB First Year Players Draft the New York Yankees selected Mitchell Robinson, a third baseman out of the University of British Columbia. Robinson was previously drafted four years ago out of High School by the Miami Marlins in the 22^nd round, but ultimately decided to head to college where he was a four-year senior. Let’s meet him. This is Meet a Prospect: The Mitchell Robinson Edition.

Robinson is a large guy down at third base standing 6’3” and weighing in at 200 lbs. Robinson is right-handed both in batting and throwing and he uses his big frame to generate a ton of power while at the dish. As a senior, Robinson posted an impressive .361 average with eight home runs and 54 RBI while taking more walks, 28, than he struck out, 27, all of the 2018 season.

Robinson has the potential to be a versatile player for the Yankees in their minor league system after playing third base, catcher and first base while at the University of British Columbia, with Florida International and at Central Arizona University. Robinson’s defensive versatility and polished college bat may see him fly through the Yankees system in a couple of years.

Mitchell has already signed with the club since the draft so let’s welcome him not only to the Yankees organization, but to the Yankees family as well. You can follow Mitchell Robinson on Twitter by following @mitchrobinson44.

Predicting the 2018 Trade Deadline: Joakim Soria

The Chicago White Sox are not going anywhere here in 2018 and when teams are struggling in the midst of a rebuild they tend to sign veteran players only to trade them at a later time. It happens all the time, and it will likely happen again this summer when the White Sox trade away closer Joakim Soria to a contending team in need of bullpen help. The Milwaukee Brewers will need bullpen help if they want to stave off the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals making them a perfect match for a trade and for Soria’s services.

Milwaukee lost their closer Corey Knebel for a month due to an injury and while he has been solid since his return he is still sporting an ERA north of 4.00 this season. Having an inconsistent closer may win you some games in what many determined as a weak National League Central division here in 2018, but that will not win you many games in the postseason. Soria would give the Brewers the edge they need to not only reach the postseason, but to possibly advanced past the first round of the playoffs if they were to win their division.

Soria would come relatively cheap given that the White Sox are rebuilding in terms of prospects and will likely be atop the Brewers radar here in about a month. It is a foregone conclusion that Soria will be traded, and at this point it is also as close to 100% as you can get that the Brewers will look for bullpen help at the end of the game. Whether that search leads them to Soria, or another veteran closer, remains to be seen, but my money is on Soria pitching for Milwaukee before the end of the 2018 season and adding to his miniscule 2.0 innings pitched in the postseason throughout the 34-year old’s career.

Meet a Prospect: Alex Junior

With their 19^th round pick, 577^th overall, in the 2018 MLB First Year Players Draft the New York Yankees selected Alex Junior, an outfielder out of Tennessee Tech University. Alex reminds me a lot of Brett Gardner in a way, so let’s meet the man who suddenly has a huge comparison to live up to. This is Meet a Prospect: The Alex Junior Edition.

Junior stands just 5’10” and weighs in at just 188 lbs. which make the comparisons to Gardner obvious right away, but it isn’t just his size that leads me to believe that he plays the game like the Yankees current left fielder. Junior is also a speedy leadoff type hitter that slashed .326/.458/.494 in 250 at-bats this season as a redshirt junior. Junior also walked 49 times this season with only 50 strikeouts showing a patience and plate discipline that I also compare to Gardner’s approach at the plate. Junior also plays a good center field, the position that Gardner came up playing before shifting to left field when the team acquired Jacoby Ellsbury and Johnny Damon in recent years to play center.

Junior prioritizes getting on base as an important aspect of his game, which he explained in an interview with Baseball America before the Draft:

“I FEEL PRETTY CONFIDENT. MY ONE TRUE GOAL IS JUST TO GET ON BECAUSE I KNOW I HAVE THE BIG DONKEYS BEHIND ME TO GET ME IN, WHETHER I’M AT FIRST OR SECOND. I FEEL LIKE THEY HAVE A CHANCE TO GET ME IN NO MATTER WHERE I AM. IT SORT OF TAKES OFF THE PRESSURE WITH ME. SOMETIMES THERE’S RUNNERS IN SCORING POSITION THAT I’VE GOT TO GET IN, BUT FOR THE MOST PART I’M JUST TRYING TO GET ON SO THOSE GUYS CAN HIT ME AROUND. I KNOW THEY CAN AND I KNOW THEY WILL.”

Alex has already signed with the club after the draft so let’s welcome him not only to the Yankees organization, but to the Yankees family as well. You can follow Alex on Twitter by following @JuniorCloud9.