Yanks Trade Ben Gamel

Yanks today have traded Ben Gamel to the Mariners for RHP's Gio Orozco (19) and Juan DePaulo (18).  This is a pretty nice return to alleviate the log jam of OF's the Yanks have on the 40 man roster and on the horizon.  Orozco, especially, looks like he has upside, but is a ways away.  Really nice ecology.

Yesterday the Yanks decided on OF Tito Polo and LHP Stephen Tarpley to complete the Ivan Nova trade.  Both are intriguin as Polo is smallis and fast with emerging power and Tarpley is a lefty with some arm strength.

This Week on the Blog

Alright, last week was interesting.  The Yanks seem to be making move, the Giants beat the Jets, the Rangers seem pregnant with a trade, and Melo won gold. This week could be exciting.

Yanks: If the Yankees win big again today, will we call this series The Baltimore Chop?  Their lead for the 2nd WC will be just about gone.  Later this week, the waiver deadline will expire.  It will be interesting to see if they move McCann now. Also, on Thursday, rosters expand.  We'll see if they want to move anyone onto the 40 for a call up, or whether they'll just call up the guys who are already on the 40.  Another trade would help the roster crunch.

Giants:  Seems like Coach McAdoo really wanted to just get through these preseason games with as much health as possible.  That's the only way to explain all the draw plays.  Giants will play again Thursday, but that's the annual waiver bowl, as most the guys who play in that game, will be cut over the weekend.  The Giants also have to cut some players before the preseason finale.  And they still haven't addressed the OL.

Rangers: The Rangers are primed for a big trade or two.  They need to improve both their cap position and their on ice defense.  Whether it happens now or later, both the Traverse City Tournament and training camp are on the way.

Knicks: The Knicks seem stable.  I guess training camp will start some time in September.

So the big stuff will be the Yanks and Giants roster decisions, and the big possibility is a Ranger trade.  Have a great week and thanks for readind and posting.

Rangers Sign C Pirri, Trade Must be on the Way

The Rangers further scotchguarded their forward depth today by signing 25 year old C Brandon Pirri.  It's a one year deal worth 1.1M for the former second rounder.  Pirri was considered one of the top remaining FA's and one of the few with remaining upside.  Nice move, but even last week when they landed Vesey they had too many forwards, and it looked like a trade for D was on the way.  Now we sort of know it.  The question is which D, and which forwards will it cost?

We should know soon.  It'll probably be a righty with playmaking skills.

Sanchez is the Yankees' OBJ and KP

Wow.  Tonight's Yankee game is just in the sixth (and Swarzak just gave up a three run bomb, so we're back down one), but Gary Sanchez is already 3-3 with two homers and 3 RBI's.  Between Odell Beckham Jr and Kristaps Porzingis have raised our standards for rookies over the past two years, and now Sanchez is turning into the same kind of phenom.  I wasn't sure who it would be for the Yanks -- whether it would be Sanchez or Judge, or whether we'd have to wait on one of the other high upside prospects to go full phenom.  Wonder who it will be for the Rangers.  Strangely, Castro also has two homeruns tonight.   Hoping Judge and Austin can get back on track in the next three innings.

This Week on the Blog

Alright, this past week was interesting, especially for the Yanks and Rangers, while some of the Knicks continued to compete in the Olympics, and the Giants looked horrible.  Let's hope all of our teams start trending up this week.

Yanks:  Behold Luis Cessa.  He was a position player who couldn't hit, and now he's a pitcher who is hard to hit.  He was awesome last night - mixing four pitches and pitching inside.  Let's see if Chad Green, who was lights out last time, can establish traction today.  Similarly, we'll have to see what Luis can do to follow it up.  And of course there's Gary Sanchez World.  I think you have to go back to Joe D or Lou to find such a hot start to a Yankee career.  And isn't it interesting that kids can actually get the older guys like McCann and Gardy going balls out again? Haven't we all be saying that?

Rangers:  The Rangers won the Jimmy Vesey sweepstakes on Friday and now have an abundance of forwards and still a hot mess on defense. I think Vesey was the ignition key to the rest of what they're goung to do, and I think one of those things will be to trade Nash in a package for D.  Shattenkirk desperately wants to be a Ranger (who doesn't?) and I wouldn't be surprised if something worked out that way.

Giants: We've been talking about the Giants OL issues for years.  Now it's come home to roost.  Pugh was unavailable yesterday, and the Giants could not move the ball or score. Just ridiculous and now they're going to have to deal assets to get OL help if they want to compete this year.  And the does look improved, though the tackling could still use some work.  They have two young studs at safety for the first time since Jackson and Guyton.

Knicks: Melo better win gold today.  And Zinger is apparently a Connor McGregor fan.

Keep enjoying the Yanks and looking for good news from all our other teams.  Have a great week.

Giants Today

In a few hours the Giants will play their second preseason game.  This time Eli and Odell are scheduled to play, and let's hope for all the health luck we can get, especially, though not exclusivley when the OL subs start playing.  Yeesh.  We've talked about this for years and they still haven't fixed it. Let's hope Nassib survives.  Let's also look for signs of an improved D.  Probably the biggest question outside of the OL, is can Spags still do it?   There seems to be plenty of talent on D, and some emerging kids like Owa.  Will we see development and a scheme that's workable?

Enjoy the game!

Rangers Land Vesey

 The Rangers have just won the Jimmy Vesey Sweepstakes.  This whole thing was somewhat surreal, as Vesey, though universally sought throughout the league, was pretty much considered a late first round type pick. So it will be interesting to see just how good he is, and to perhaps temper expectations as he seems unlikely to be an all-star.  Having said that, I did read other reports that he was the best player on the ice in most games for Harvard this year, so who knows?

He's listed as 6'1" and 195, and said to play a PF game, but with burgeoning ability as a playmaker.  Supposed to be the sort of strong skater the Rangers love and also won this year's Hobie Baker Award after getting nosed out by Jack Eichel last year.

In general, this is the kind of move the Rangers should make: getting young free agents, either through rights expirations like Hayes or as foreign pickups like MZA and Stromwall, to make up for all the first and second round picks they gave up to chase cups over the past few years. So whether Vesey turns out to be great, good or average, it's a smart and necessary signing for the Rangers.

Now let's see what else they do.  They're still primed for another trade or two.

Oh, and yesterday, as the world waited on Vesey, the Rangers also signed expired rights FA D John Gilmour, from Providence.  He's listed as 5'11" with a blossoming 2 way game.

UPDATE: Blueshirts United is listing Jimmy as 6'3" 203.   So maybe the 6'1" 195 measurement was from his draft year.

Eovaldi Requires TJ

In a bit of a surprise, Nate Eovaldi has been shut down and will require Tommy John Surgery.  That's a bit of a blow, but the Yanks do have some upper level guys in the minor who can fill in this year and even more that can step up next year.  What the Yanks shouldn't do, during this offseason is sacrifice some of the rebuilt farm due to an injured starter.   That wouldn't be dealing from strength, and their don't seem to be any UFA SP's that will be worth the Yanks indulgence.   This is a bad break for Nate,  but creates a big opportunity for guys like Dietrich Enns, Jordan Montgomery, Luis Severino and others.

Yanks Send Down Severino, Again

The Yanks are sending Luis Severino back down again to get his secondary stuff working and hopefully to clear his head.  I'd love to see Dietrich Enns get a shot, he's been dominant all year.  Meanwhile, Sanchez, Judge and Austin should be moving up in the order.   Also, let's hope this was McCann's last game in pinstripes.  They need to keep making room.

Austin and Judge Make History in Their Yankee Debuts

You all know what happened by now.  For the first time in baseball history two teammates homered in their first career AB's in the same game.   What's more, Austin and Judge did it back to back.  They both finished 2-4 and Austin also stole a base.  Hicks, Didi and Castro also homered and the Yanks won rather easily in the very first game of their long delayed youth movement.  I surprised Sanchez didn't get into the act today, but more is coming from all three rookie sluggers, as well as from the farm.

It was one of those Magical Saturdays we used to have during the last dynasty.   In all, a big day for Austin and Judge, for the Scouts and for FO people who wouldn't trade them away.

Holy Crap: Here Come Da Judge, Too!

Wow, Bob Lorenz just tweeted that Aaron Judge has also been called up and will be playing right and batting 8th today.   Judge hit his 19th HR of the season last night for Scranton, and brings unlimited power, a great arm and surprising speed for his mammoth size.  Judge had motored through A and AA, but had trouble gaining traction in AAA, until they made him adjust his hands back in May or June.  Since they, aside from a multi week injury, Judge has been sentencing baseball after baseball to extreme pain, and he's also been controllling the strikezone and hasn't been K'ing nearly as much.

This could be a pretty amazing day around Yankeeland.

This Week on the Blog

Alright, the ARod stuff is over, the Giants ones looked good, the Rangers haven't made any more trades, and Carmelo Anthony is a great American.  Let's take a look at what comes next.

Yankees: The Tyler Austin Era finally begins.  Holy crap has this kid been through hell on his way to his big.  First, he overcame testicular C.  Then after making a big splash and getting fast tracked through the minors (Cash called him "elite"), Tyler started to have issues with his hands.  He sort of recovered, but then didn't look like Tyler Austin anymore and ended up getting released, then re-signed.  And that was a good thing, because this year, the Real Tyler Austin stood up again and he has been mashing.  He'll finally make his debut today -- roughly 3 years after he would have had he not injured his hands.

Back when Tyler was chosen, it was sort of a watershed moment in the Yankee draft. It was 2010, and the Yanks had been having trouble finding hitters outside of the first two rounds or so for awhile. They had a habit of drafting athletes they believed would hit.  Tyler was the first kid they took who could flat fricking hit without having to be projected.  The next year they took Bird, and on and on, and we're about to have a bunch of good homegrown hitters again.  Tyler is a great kid and incredibly easy to root for.

Giants:  Eli and Odell were healthy sctratches last night, but the ones on O and D looked good. The depth looked poor, especially on the second team OL, which lead to hurried throws and turnovers from Nassib.  He short armed some tosses, which was unusual.  Both Apple (knee) and Sterling (groin) left early, but the injuries weren't serious.  Geremy Davis had a hammy, that's supposed to be okay, but those can linger.  Let's hope they can get through the preseason with no more injuries. And they still have to fix the OL.

Knicks: Carmelo has saved team USA time and time again.  Haven't seen Spain or Lithuania play, so no more Knick sightings.

Rangers: Still haven't made anymore trades, and are really hoping to land Harvard's Jimmy Vesey, who, I believe, becomes a free agent this coming week.

Have a great one and thanks for reading!

More Yankee Stuff

Presumably, an organizations best pitching coach is assigned to their major league team. That is the only level that counts.  Thus it is strange, that yesterday, the Yanks sent down their best pitching prospect thereby denying him access to their best pitching coach. Ponderous.  There's also the idea that if they keep him down there for 15 more days, they gain an extra year of control.  So that will probably come into play unless there are more injuries, like Eovaldi's last night.  Joe, being Joe used 6.2M relievers during yeserday's game, and so today, the Yanks have called up Ben Heller, from the Andrew Miller trade.  He's supposedly a high velocity filth merchant.

In other news, Gary Sanchez is breaking out and dunderhead must play him every day.

Also, the media and Yankee management are making a fricking meal out of this last ARod game story.  I remember when the Yankees had class.  I also remember stuff like this, so this is just more of that.  I prefer the Yankee Class Experience.

They'll probably call up Austin on Saturday, with Judge on his heals.

UPDATE: Eovaldi to the 15 day DL.  Severino recalled.

Yankee Stuff

Brian McCann has cleared waivers and is elegible for a trade.  Hopefully, something can get done here and Sanchez can take over.  There's no point in having three catchers on the roster.   Hopefully, the Braves and Rangers both want McCann.  We'll see.

The ARod ending comes as a surprise, but it seemed likely that they would re-assign him in the organization, and if he chooses to, I think he can really thrive there.  We've been through too much drama with #13, but he has always been great with young players, and could become a big part of the organization going forward if he chooses to put his heart into it.

Also, once Austin, Judge and the others join Sanchez,  and eventually Bird, the Yanks could become the the Bronx Bombers again.  All of those guys, including the True Tyler Austin, have nice to plus pop.

This Week on the Blog

Alright, it was a big week for the Yanks as they improved their future selves at the deadline, and started calling up the kids, the Giants had seemless first full week of camp, the Knicks officially signed Baker and Chasson, and the Rangers did nothing.  This week could be just as interesting.

Yanks: The Gary Sanchez Era is now underway, he's catching a day game after a night game and hit an RBI double in his first ab today.  Can more help be on the way?  Also, the Waiver Trade Deadline is in 9 days, so keep an eye out for OF, C and P injuries among the contenders.  Oh, and thank you, Mark Teixeira.  Let's see if they can move anyone else before the offseason.

Giants:  The Giants will play their first preseason game this week and it will be interesting to see how Coach McAdoo approaches them.  Also, it's early but the Giants may have some tradeable assets from their plethora of WR's, RB's and TE's.  Stay tuned.

Knicks: time to watch Melo carve up foreigners in the Olympics - again.  That's how he looks with real teammates, and he'll probably decline more slowly as KP gets better and if Rose is ready to rock.

Rangers: Rangers are supposedly all in but not favored in the Jimmy Vescey sweepstakes.  Also, they're still capped out and need to make a trade or two.

Okay, so the big news right now is the Yankee youth movement, and the Giants first preseason game of the McAdoo era.  I have a feeling he's the goods, but we'll see.  I wish all of you a perfect summer week.

Giants Sign CB Leon Hall

Though they still haven't fixed the OL, the Giants did, perhaps, fix their starting D today.  If he can stay healthy, Leon Hall is a terrific slot corner.   And this move is very reminiscent of when the Giants added Sam Madison before the run to 42.  Yesterday, a lot of folks thought the Hall was using the Giants to get Cincy to offer him more, but clearly that wasn't the case.  If the health is there, this is a very good move for the Giants.  Spags has no excuses.

Yanks: Lindgren to Have TJS

Yanks relief phenom, Jacob Lindgren is going to have Tommy John surgery.  He had been shutdown last year with bone chips, but never seemed to snap back.  See you in 2018,  Jake!

Yanks: The Gary Sanchez Era Starts Tomorrow

At long last, the Yanks are calling up Gary Sanchez, there slugging Catcher tomorrow.  They also told the press that Judge, Austin and others will be up before the rosters expand on September first.  For that to happen, they have to make more room.  Btw, I am in favor of giving the starting catching job to Sanches right away and calling up Higgy to be his back-up as soon as possible. Higgy's a better defender than Sanchez or Romine and his offense has greatly improved since he finally got healthy.  I'd hate to see him have to make the bigs elsewhere.

Yanks Trade Beltran for Dillon Tate and Two Others

The Yanks continued their streak of daylight deadline heists today by dealing 2 months of 40 year old Carlos Beltran to Texas for last year's 4th overall pick RHP Dillon Tate as well as RHP Nick Green and RHP Eric Swanson. The big surprise here is Tate.  He was last year's 4th overall pick after becoming a dominant starting pitcher at UCSB.  Earlier in his career UCSB had used him as a reliever, as win at all costs stupid college baseball coaches have been known for decades to do.  Anyway, Dillon was apparently available because his high 90s gas had become low 90s deisel this season.  Some are saying he's been dealing with a hamstring, while a few Ranger fans are saying he hasn't adjusted to the mechanical changes he's been given by Texas.  Who knows? But the Yanks have been good at finding velocity, so let's hope they can find Dillon's. Not too concerned about Swanson and Green because I assume the Yankee scouts had been on both for awhile.  In fact, they had drafted Green out of HS a few years ago.

Nice haul.

Oh and Nova has been dealt to Pittsburgh, details to come.  The details are that the Yanks can pick any two from a group of 8 the Bucks are offering.