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Yankees should avoid replacing Derek Jeter with Hanley Ramirez at all costs

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Derek Jeter may be gone, but, the New York Yankees shouldn't waste lots of money pursuing someone like Hanley Ramirez, for a change.

With Derek Jeter's farewell tour concluded, the gaping void at shortstop next year for the New York Yankees is ever more evident. Naturally, like every other year, the Yankees are likely to spend big to ensure a place in the playoffs and in doing so will most certainly need to find a replacement for Jeter. With big shoes to fill, it is likely that they will spend significant money to fill the hole. With J.J. Hardy off the market, many think that Hanley Ramirez is the answer.

Hanley Ramirez is not the answer.

Contrary to what many people believe, replacing The Captain with an offensive force is not the way forward. For the vast majority of successful teams, having a strong glove is the biggest priority for their shortstop. Look at the two World Series teams: The San Francisco Giants and Kansas City Royals. Neither Brandon Crawford or Alcides Escobar are offensive forces, but both play superb defense. Ramirez should be no exception.

Hanley had a defensive runs saved of -9, which is simply woeful. His ultimate zone rating over a 150 game season of -15.6 is also horrific and is 3.1 points lower than the retiring Jeter. He also made fifteen errors, four more than Jeter.

Long story short: Ramirez is quite simply dreadful on defense, probably even worse than Jeter was last year -- which is a scary thought. The Yankees need someone who can field their position with the best of them, not someone who will cost them runs.

Teams favor defense at short

After all, in 2013, the league average wRC+ -- weighted runs created plus, the most accurate offensive metric -- for a shortstop was a mere 88, which shows that teams favor defensive value as opposed to offensive value at short. Ramirez's wRC+ of 135 is heads and shoulders above the league average, but is a high wRC+ from their middle infielder truly what the Yankees need? Not in the slightest. Their team accumulated 92 errors last season, leaving ten teams with fewer errors. With a premier defensive shortstop, they could be the best defensive team in the game.

Offensively, don't get me wrong, Ramirez is a force. When he gets hot he can carry his team on his back. However, his steamer predictions for next season reinforce the inevitable; his offensive production is likely to descend, year after year as of now. In a thin free agent class, a shortstop like Ramirez could probably get himself a seven-year-deal, which is a daunting thought and must be avoided.

Yankees need peaking players, not post-peak players

The Yankees for years now have been an experienced/old team, and consequentially have been hindered by injuries throughout the year. The last thing they need now is another injury-prone player. What may be even more valuable than thepotential production Ramirez could bring, is someone who could stay on the field for 150-or-so games. Hanley played in 128 games this season, only 86 in 2013, and just 92 in 2011.

There are other options

This year's free agent class is pretty poor if you're shopping for positional players, and even more so for infielders. In turn, it is likely that the trade market will be very active. So the Yankees' best move would be to look at working out a trade to acquire a new man for short. Guys like Starlin Castro, Andrelton Simmons, Troy Tulowitzki or even someone like Ehire Adrianza could all be available.

Don't listen to the hype. Don't be advocating for the Yankees to sign Hanley Ramirez to fill the void left by the Hall of Fame bound Derek Jeter at shortstop. If you want him to play third base for you (and move A-Rod back to his home position at SS?), it may be a different story. Hanley's injuries and inadequate defense make him a risk, but his offense would be a very nice addition.

Still, in terms of shortstop: The New York Yankees should avoid replacing Derek Jeter with Hanley Ramirez at all costs.


PSA Comments of the Day 10/20/14: One More Day

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The long wait is almost over. The World Series starts tomorrow. The Giants will play the Royals.

Comments of the Day

Two COTD Awards, one GOTD, and one HMM award all in the same screen cap. Now that's what I call convenient. The two COTD awards go to Blanky and kshah90 for their posts about Brian Roberts' retirement.

GIF of the Day

Enjoy retirement, Brian Roberts. Sorry things didn't work out. Thanks for this Scioscia face.

Honorable Mod Mention

Andrew wins for the GIF up above of Brian Roberts' HR against the Angels, causing some epic Scioscia face!

Fun Questions
  • Favorite Brian Roberts memory?
  • Top three favorite desserts?
Song of the Day

Peace Frog by The Doors

As always, link us your song of the day!

Only one more day until the World Series between the Giants and the Royals begins. After that, there will be no baseball until pitchers and catchers report. The end of baseball season always seems a bit sad, even though in reality we could all use a break. Sure, there will be other sports going on to keep us occupied until Spring Training rolls around. Not to mention all the Yankees'offseason business plans that will take place between now and then. Even with all of that, no baseball on sucks.

The World Series is almost upon us.


Yankees 2014 Roster Report Card: Mark Montgomery

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Mark Montgomery seemed to go backwards this season, both figuratively and literally.

Grade: D

2014 Statistics: (AAA) 3.03 ERA,  3.96 FIP, 10.3 K/9, 5.5 BB/9, 29.2 IP
(AA) 0.83 ERA,  3.63 FIP, 7.1 K/9, 3.3 BB/9, 21.2 IP

2014 Level/Roster Status: Trenton (AA)/Non 40-man

Any season where the single most noteworthy moment was getting demoted from Triple-A Scranton to Double-A Trenton to make room for Heath Bell is likely a season to be forgotten.

The hope for Mark Montgomery this season was that he would return to elite relief prospect status after a tough 2013 fighting off shoulder injuries and twin troubles of losing velocity and control. Unfortunately the rebound didn't happen this year; Montgomery stayed healthy but the fastball velocity from 2012 never returned.

The below is  a quote from Brian Cashman (source: The Trentonian)

He used to have much bigger velocity, and now its settling at a lower level. He still has the performance behind it, its just not the power stuff it was before. He’s still someone that’s on our radar.

It does sound like Montgomery's prospect status has taken a hit with the front office. Considering that bullpen depth in the organization currently, a prospect losing shine in his age-24 season has an uphill road towards making the big league team.

That said, Cashman did specifically say that Montgomery is still on the team's radar. I'm personally hoping the demotion was more about Montgomery than it was about clearing a spot for Bell. A quick look at the gaudy ERA in Trenton, and two fewer walks per-nine innings might tell a positive story about the way Montgomery handled the demotion, but it's concerning that his velocity never returned while the strikeout rate fell off and that his FIP told a very different story compared to his ERA.

All told, there doesn't seem to be much reason for optimism at this point with Montgomery, but it appears safe to say he will receive at least one more shot to impress in 2015. Hopefully for his sake, some of that fastball-life returns now that he is a full year removed from his shoulder trouble. Montgomery is eligible for the Rule 5 Draft at this point, so the Yankees will have to decide very soon if they think enough of him to protect him on the 40-man roster, or if they want to risk losing him a la Tom Kahnle. If he does stay, he'll also need to continue to work on that control, which might suggest he'll remain at Double-A at least at the beginning of the year where he will be given a chance to earn his way back to Scranton and perhaps a shot with the big-league club in September.

Yankees front office rumors: Gary Denbo replaces Mark Newman, Pat Roessler out

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While the Yankees' new hitting coach has not been leaked, other front office positions have reportedly changed.

The Yankees had not only positions on the field to fill at the end of the season, but also front office jobs after longtime Senior Vice-President of Baseball Operations Mark Newman retired in September after 15 years on the job and 26 overall in the organization. While the official stance was that Newman was departing due to retirement, news from behind the scenes suggested that the Yankees weren't going to bring him back anyway since his contract was up. Unsatisfied with the results from the minor league system recently, which hasn't produced a good position player since Brett Gardner, the Yankees could be seeking a change in player development philosophy.

According to Mark Feinsand, Newman's replacement will be Gary Denbo. (Special assistant Trey Hillman was initially considered a frontrunner for the job, but he left the team to become the Astros' bench coach for 2015.) If Denbo's name rings a bell, then it's not surprising since the 53-year-old has been associated with the Yankees for quite some time. An unsuccessful minor leaguer with the Reds, Denbo became a minor league coach and joined the Yankees' organization in 1990. For the next 11 years he served in a plethora of roles for the team: minor league hitting coach, minor league manager, organizational hitting coordinator, Assistant Minor League Director, and finally the 2001 AL champion Yankees' hitting coach.

Denbo shares a close bond with Derek Jeter, who he managed way back when Jeter was a raw 18-year-old in the 1992 Gulf Coast League, and he's always known Jeter's swing better than anyone. He lasted only one year as the team's hitting coach though, as the team's playoff struggles at the plate prompted George Steinbrenner to let him go, for better or for worse. Since then, he's bounced around a few teams in various roles, even coaching in Japan at one point before returning to the Yankees again in 2009 as a player development consultant. Since the Yankees chose him to replace Newman, this previous experience in development appears to have prepared him for the highest development job in the system. Time will tell.

Meanwhile, another notable move was revealed, as the director of player development, Pat Roessler, has reportedly been let go. Roessler had been on the job since 2005, and his decade did not produce much major league talent for the Yankees aside from Gardner and some pitchers here and there. With Newman departing, it was rumored that Roessler would be gone as well, and that has come to fruition. The person to replace him has not been announced, though as Matt Kardos noted, this could be the job that the recently-linked Omar Minaya would fill. Although not a good general manager with the Mets, Minaya (currently with the Padres) has long had a reputation for a keen scouting eye, and this position seems like a nice fit for him if he is chosen for it.

Yankees 2014 Roster Report Card: Brian Roberts

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Low-risk, low-reward. Nothing to see here. Move along.

Grade: D-

2014 Statistics: 91 games, .237/.300/.360, 5 HR, 84 wRC+, 1.5 bWAR, 0.2 fWAR

2015 Contract Status: Retired

Well, Brian Roberts certainly did not have it easy this year. After 13 seasons as a member of the Baltimore Orioles, where he was once one of the best second baseman in baseball, Roberts became a free agent for the first time in his career. His struggles since a 2010 concussion saw him receive little interest on the market, and he ultimately signed with the New York Yankees for $2 million dollars and the impossible job of replacing Robinson Cano.

It turned out that Roberts wasn't good enough to block off prospects like Robert Refsnyder and Jose Pirela this season, but he can't be held accountable for roster decisions. In any case, even after he was cut, Stephen Drew was the primary second baseman for most of the remaining season whenever Martin Prado was needed elsewhere. Thus, it is important to leave out any consideration for prospects when evaluating Roberts in 2014. It is also unreasonable to turn this into a referendum on the decision not to re-sign Cano. Brian Roberts must be judged purely on his own performance. His only problem there being that his performance was really bad.

The 91 games Roberts played for the Yankees this year represents his highest yearly total since 2009. That's a positive. It's also the only positive from his dismal 2014. The only mystery for me is how the Baseball-Reference calculation of Wins Above Replacement came to plus 1.5, the FanGraphs number of 0.2 seems a far more intuitive fit. He provided well-below average production at the plate as exhibited by the above statline, and his fielding was nothing to write home about either; his -5.3 UZR in half a season of games fits in well with both the more conventional numbers (10 errors, 0.974 fielding percentage) and the eye test.

There is simply no sugar-coating this: Brian Roberts proved he was done as a regular player. There is nothing to qualify his below-average OPS+ and wRC+ and nothing to suggest he had the potential to rebound into something closer to his pre-2010 self. His isolated power, strikeout and walk rates were all around career norms. The one striking number was his batted average on balls-in-play (BABIP) being below league average, but as the below graph demonstrates, he hasn't matched league-average in BABIP since 2009. Roberts_fangraphs_BABIP.0.png

Source: FanGraphs

It was hard to call the signing a mistake when it cost only $2 million dollars and ultimately wasn't the reason any prospects were blocked.  However, it is now time to look somewhere else. New York isn't going to get Robinson Cano production from second base again in the near future, but it would be useful to see if someone can actually provide league average production with the bat as well as being a solid glove at a critical up-the-middle position.

Ultimately, Roberts has decided to retire after this season, ending a very solid 14-year career in Major League Baseball despite his sluggish, injury-hit finish.

Pinstripe Q&A: What are the Yankees dressing up as for Halloween?

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Brian McCann is totally gonna go as a picture frame.

It's Halloween soon. People everyone are buying and putting the final touches on their costumes. As I don't know any, I assume professional baseball players are the same. I choose to believe that as we speak, Brian Cashman is planning a Halloween party to be held in the Yankees clubhouse, and no, you can't convince me otherwise. With that in mind, I asked the PSA staff what they thought the Yankees would be dressing up as.

Q: With Halloween approaching, what do you think the various Yankees are planning to dress up as?

Jason

David Robertson will be the Monopoly guy. Shawn Kelley will go as Reek.

Caitlin

Tex is going to dress like a newborn baby and force his wife to push him around in a stroller.

Andrew

Ian Clarkin will be going as a classic pop culture figure from his childhood: Jimmy Neutron. Carlos Beltran will see him and feel very depressed in his Teen Wolf outfit.

Derek Jeter is dressing up as a member of the media, and he will be visiting their houses to pester them with banal questions about relationships with their neighbors and sewage pipe brands.

Brian McCann is dressing up as Officer Clean, Mr. Clean's straight-laced, no-nonsense uncle.

Mark Teixeira is dressing up as a baby, just so he can try to recapture the magic of his baby wrist. He has 3:2 odds of frightening local children, who will also receive Juice Press coupons instead of candy.

Greg

I think they'll all dress up as members of the Justice League, and it'll go a little something like this...

Eduardo Nunez: It's a foolproof plan, Phil! They'll never suspect a thing.
Phil Hughes: Ed....nothing about what you're doing is okay. I'd just like to point that out.
/Later at the Halloween party
Superman Jeter: So the site is going well so far. In time, we hope...
/Jeter is interrupted by the door slamming open
Nunez: Greetings, fellow heroes.
Zatanna Teixeira: Oh Lord no...
Aquaman CC Sabathia: Nunez...what are you doing man?
Nunez: Nunez? Who is this Nunez you speak of? I'm Krypto the Superdog!!!
Batman D-Rob: Ed, you're not dressed as a dog. You don't even have a cape on. You've just painted a mask on, badly, and for some reason.....you're wearing Jeter's jersey.
Nunez: There's no rule that says a Superdog cannot play shortstop for this team in 2015.
Flash Chase Headley: So the stories you told us were true? I thought you were just pranking McCarthy and me!
Wonder Woman McCarthy: Well don't we look foolish, huh Headley?
Nunez: Now batting for the Yankees.......Number 2.......Krypto...Superdog.......Number 2.

Arun

A good baseball team. It would be kinda cool if everyone dressed like their favorite members of a Royal household. So everyone laughs, then reach that moment when it sinks in for everyone at the same time. The Kansas City Royals could easily be at that point, the world champions. In fact they might end up being the first team in history to go 12-0 in the post season. The Royals: Best team in history.

Bryan

Mark Teixeira will obviously go as Iron Man so he can finally feels what it's like not to be injured by a gust of wind.

Alex Rodriguez will visit the nearest 'Party City' and buy a Derek Jeter mask so that he can be welcomed with open arms, and eventually, play shortstop.

Brendan Ryan will go as the Grim Reaper because that is what it felt like every time he got an at-bat this season.

Brian McCann will of course go as Mr. Clean because all he would need is a clean, basic white t-shirt. Plus, he would spend Halloween just cleaning the locker rooms.

Brett Gardner will play an alien who is on earth to research various sports drinks, and what occurs when he dumps it on others.

Stephen Drew will go as a Yankee because that is pretty scary.

Shaun

Masahiro Tanaka will come to the party as the Ace of Spades playing card.

Brett Gardner will make his grand appearance as the Monopoly guy.

Dellin Betances will ride up dressed as Kevin Costner in Dances with Wolves, with a dozen huskies following behind him.

Michael Pineda will be Dancing Groot.

Brandon McCarthy is going to come as a player who just signed a contract with the NY Yankees. (Take the hint, Cashman.)

Doug

The Yankees are planning to dress up as various characters, for the latest team building exercise. For the second straight season, the reality of missing the playoffs has finally set in. Led by Joe Girardi playing the role of Captain America, plans are being devised in which to remedy this situation using his trusty binder.

Batman and Robin, played by Jacoby Ellsbury and Brett Gardner, will fly around the outfield to cover ground that the Tin Man (Carlos Beltran) cannot cover.

On the infield, Brian McCann will play the role of the "Big Bossman," enforcing all of the unwritten rules in baseball, while starting pitcher Masahiro Tanaka will play Superman using his superhuman splitter to strike out the universe.

Matt F.

Mark Teixeira will dress up in a bunny costume and probably actually go trick-or-treating, because that seems like something Mark Teixeira would really enjoy.

Francisco Cervelli will show up in a full-body cast. Everyone will find hilarious until they realize it's real and he broke every bone in a water-skiing accident.

David Robertson will forget its Halloween and stay in all night looking up yacht estimates.

And the now-retired Brian Roberts will be going as a ghost. He got a rock.

***

Now that we've given our answers, it's your turn. What will the Yankees be dressing up as for Halloween?

Spotlight on prospects getting Arizona Fall League time

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Here are some observations on a few players getting Arizona Fall League experience.

After a mid-season trade from the New York Yankees to the Arizona Diamondbacks, catcher Peter O’Brien was assigned to Double-A Mobile. He didn’t do much with the Baybears, getting in only four games.This had to have been an anti-climactic end to a run he’d had between the Florida State and Eastern Leagues.

O’Brien was making quite a name for himself while with the Double-A Trenton Thunder, going on a home run tear. He hit .245/.296/.555 with 23 homers in 72 games. The sense in Trenton to that point was that the Yankees valued O’Brien’s bat and defense, and there was talk that if he kept that pace, he might get a call from the big club. Instead, his value was in what the Yankees could get for him (veteran infielder Martin Prado).

At the plate, O’Brien’s solid frame (6-4, 215 lbs) projects power, although what he did in the first half of the season was pretty unexpected. He’s a versatile defender, with time split behind the plate and at third in 2013, and he got some time in the outfield in 2014, in addition to his catching duties. Although his overall strikeout rate is quite high, he showed some ability to make contact when viewed in person. He threw out just 10% of runners, but showed some ability to block the ball well. He’s not the flashy type but has natural leadership qualities that teams value, particularly in a catcher.

By capitalizing on the success he put together in 2014, he could move fast in the Arizona system, and considering his age (24), a Triple-A promotion to open next season wouldn’t be a shock. Just looking at his numbers alone in 2014, giving him the chance to play against more advanced competition in Triple-A makes sense. This is especially true given his performance in the Arizona Fall League thus far: although hitting just .226 in 10 games, he's hit three homers, slugged .581 and has drawn 13 walks for a .467 OBP.

Fellow Yankees prospect Tyler Austin is hitting .261/.363/.323 through eight games.  Austin’s progress in the Yankees system has been affected by injuries and time missed in 2013 and this season, after upping his value in 2012 when he hit .322/.400/.559, and level-jumped four times. In 105 games this season for Trenton, he hit .275/.336/.419, collecting 109 hits, 47 RBI, 36 walks and 80 strikeouts in 396 at-bats.The Yankees 2010 13th round pick showed early ability to make contact & hit for some power (17 HR’s in 2012). Expectations for him are only going to get lower if he can’t show more of what we saw in 2012. Getting a shot at solid fall league competition is a good test for Austin. He did finish strong during the regular season (.336/.397/.557 in his last 33 games).

While the Yankees have received tons of criticism for lacking focus on player development, that’s not entirely fair. Many players whose future they hung their hat on didn’t pan out as predicted. Pitching prospect Manny Banuelos underwent Tommy John surgery. Dellin Betances took a long, rough journey through the minors to the majors, from a starting role, to the elite reliever he’s developing into. On the other hand, an improved focus on development is necessary, as Brian Cashman suggested to reporters when he signed a new three-year deal last week. On the tail-end of a playoffs-free Yankees season, that shift in thinking makes sense. With the power-bat potential of recent draft picks Eric Jagielo and Aaron Judge and top pitching prospect Luis Severino in the pipeline, the upper levels are starting to shape up. The huge Yankees investment in Latin American prospects this summer will (or should) also pay long-term dividends.

The New York Mets, could also be onto something with a few of their own recently drafted players. It’s difficult to find players like Brandon Nimmo, and not just for what he’s capable of on the field. At eighteen, he was the consummate professional, unaffected by attention, respectful of the job, and has no tendency for the controversial, as former top Mets prospect Lastings Milledge did.

Nimmo is that rare breed of focused aggression and intensity, mixed with patience and teachability. His story is legend at this point: with no high school baseball program in Wyoming, he played the showcase circuit. Scouts noticed and he was drafted in 1st round in 2011 He came to the Brooklyn Cyclones of the New York Penn League as poised as a ten-year veteran. By the end of the season, however, the inexperience showed. Fatigue affected what was otherwise a highly successful debut.

He entered Spring Training in 2013 ten pounds heavier and talked about the noticeable difference in getting to balls in the outfield. He made the jump to Double-A Binghamton in 2014. He showcased more power, with a smooth swing path (it looked wobbly at times in 2012), and good hip rotation. He simply looked like a more solid version of the guy that played 69 games in Short-A ball in 2012.The selection to the fall league wasn’t a surprise.

Nimmo is the top outfield prospect in the organization, and one of the top outfield prospects in all the minor leagues. In tough fall league competition, he can work on developing more power and improve already very good plate approach. After the struggles with consistency that he exhibited down the stretch in his first professional season , he showed more ability to perform at the level he’s capable of in 2014. He ended the season hitting .278/.394/.426 in 127 games. He’s had a good fall league debut, hitting .393/.476/.571 in his first seven games.

Similarly, Mets second base prospect LJ Mazzilli is developing more power at the plate. His ability for gap-power was on display in 2013 with the Brooklyn Cyclones. And while Mazzilli has the same kind of professionalism and maturity as Nimmo, Mazzilli’s is all pedigree, as the son of former major leaguer Lee. The younger Mazzilli also remained unfazed by the super-hype of his introduction to the New York media at Citi-Bank Field. That kind of laser-focus helped him adjust quickly to pro- ball. He exhibited rock-solid maturity off the field, and a consistent approach at the plate, also proving to be a strong defender with good speed. He hit .301/.361/.440 in 131 games between the Florida State and South Atlantic Leagues this year.

He spoke about his goals this off-season, working on strengthening and agility, with a focus on further improving his speed. Putting those elements together in fall league, and continuing that program through the winter, could lead to him seeing Double-A time in 2015. While not highly ranked in the system by some sources, he can play himself into a more valuable role with the Mets.

Finally, Tampa Bay Rays pitching prospect Jaime Schultz was a standout player on a team that struggled from the start of the season. The Bowling Green Hot Rods woes were mostly offensive, while the starting pitching and bullpen remained steady and solid. The Rays 14th round pick in 2013, is coming off of his first full season of pro-ball, going 4-1 with a 2.40 ERA and a 79/29 K/BB in 60 innings over 14 starts split between the Bowling Green Hot Rods of the Midwest League and the Charlotte Stonecrabs of the Florida State League.

In 2013, pitching for the Short Season Class-A Hudson Valley Renegades in 2013, he showed a live arm, with a consistent delivery, and a sharp curveball with big, late break to compliment his mid-to-high 90’s fastball. The heater also showed a lot of movement.Although his background is as a starter, there’s still strong possibility that he winds up in the bullpen.  He's started three games in the fall league and has struggled with his command, with a 11/10 K/BB in 9.1 innings with 11 runs allowed. Giving him extra innings is crucial in seeing how much of a workload he can handle, particularly with his injury history, but converting him to a relief role, if he can polish his secondary offerings, could be the best thing for him and the Rays.

Around the Empire: New York Yankees News - 10/21/2014

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Alex Rodriguez nearly gets run over, A look back at Joe Torre being forced out, The Yankees 2015 spring training schedule.

NJ.com | Charles Curtis: Alex Rodriguez gets nearly run over by Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo.

MLB Trade Rumors | Mark Polishuk: The latest edition of Offseason Outlook breaks down the New York Yankees.

Yanks Go Yard | Billy Brost: Turning back the clock: October 19th, 2007–The Yankees force Joe Torre out.

NY Times | Dave Anderson: George Steinbrenner's revolving door sent a champion to the Royals.

Hardball Talk | Aaron Gleeman: Fired by the Yankees, Mick Kelleher is retiring.

Bombers Beat | Bryan Hoch: The Yankees announce their 2015 spring training schedule.


Yankees 2014 Roster Report Card: David Robertson

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Houdini is now a 'Proven' Closer

Grade: A-

2014 Statistics: 39 SV, 64.1 IP, 3.08 ERA, 2.68 FIP, 13.43 K/9, 3.22 BB/9

2015 Contract Status: Free Agent

It is never easy to replace a legend, especially if that legend happens to be the best ever to play his position. For David Robertson, that is exactly what he had to do when he took over the closer’s role from Mariano Rivera. Despite consistently ranking among the best relievers in baseball for the last few seasons, there were still rumblings questioning Robertson’s ability to hold down the ninth inning since he was not a "proven" closer.

To the surprise of some, the unproven Robertson demonstrated that he was a worthy heir to Mariano, converting 89% of his saves while producing the second best hits per nine and K/9 rates of his career. 2014 also saw a change in Robertson’s pitch usage. Like his predecessor, Robertson all but abandoned his sneaky four-seamer, throwing it only 7.6% of the time and relied on the cutter Mo taught him as his primary fastball. Robertson also increased the usage of his trademark curveball to a career high 34.7%.

There were not many negatives to Robertson’s season, some may point to the fact that he blew five save opportunities this year, but the counterpoint is that two of those blown saves came in games where Robertson was pitching for the third consecutive day. Some may bring up that his season ERA of 3.08 is too high, but save for one game where he was torched for five runs in two-thirds of an inning, Robertson had a very respectable 2.40 ERA over the rest of the season. The one indefensible issue for Robertson this season was his walk rate. After posting rates under three for the past two seasons, the Yankees closer regressed slightly posting a 3.22 BB/9 in 2014.

Robertson is expected to test free agency, but hopefully he's re-signed by the Yankees to give them the formidable one-two punch they had this year with him and Dellin Betances. He will be a valuable commodity on the open market with a history as one of the most consistent relievers in baseball and just after a strong year in which he converted 39 saves in 44 attempts. He's in line for a payday when one considers how many teams suffered immensely this postseason because they lacked a capable closer to lock down games. David Robertson is that closer.

Doing the right thing: Spike Lee documentary of Taney Dragons?

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Rumors abound about Spike Lee creating a documentary about the Mo'ne Davis and the Taney Dragons. And maybe there will be a commercial during tonight's World Series game as well.

He's a New Yorker through and through.  What's worse, is he's a diehard Yankees fan.  But Spike Lee, like us, had the brains to figure out that the most amazing thing in baseball this summer were Mo'ne Davis and the Taney Dragons.

Rumor has it that he has been in Philly to film a documentary about the Davis and the Dragons.  From one source:

The film will be focused around the Taney Dragons and their journey to the Little League World Series.  The documentary will give viewers a behind the scenes story and  look at the team that captured America’s attention this past summer.  No word yet on the official release of the film.

Further rumor has it that there may also be a commercial featuring Davis during tonight's World Series game.  Be on the lookout.

And, of course, while in Philadelphia, Lee had to snap the obligatory photo of himself and Davis at the Art Museum steps.  At least the Rocky statue isn't in the picture!

From one of their Instagrams:

Mo'ne and Spike

Yankees 2014 Roster Report Card: Michael O`Neill

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Grade: B

2014 Statistics: .256/.333/.384, 10 home runs, 42 stolen bases at Low-A Charleston

2014 Level/Roster Status: Low-A/Non 40-man

People were intrigued when the Yankees drafted Paul O`Neill's nephew in the 2013 MLB Draft. Obviously, there are a lot of expectations that come when you follow in the footsteps of a fan-favorite All-Star hitter, but what people need to realize is that Michael O`Neill and Paul O`Neill are completely different players. While the older O`Neill hit for average and power and drew walks, the younger O`Neill survives on his contact abilities and his speed on the base paths. They couldn't be more different. It's unfortunate that Michael O`Neill must live in the shadow of his uncle because he has talents of his own, but such is the way things work in the baseball world.

Michael O`Neill got his feet wet in Staten Island last year and he wasn't overly impressive, with a triple slash in the twos and a K-rate in the 30s. Thankfully, in his first full year of professional baseball, O`Neill showed a lot of improvement. He didn't quite hit for average, but he did reach base at a consistent rate and he did cut down on his strikeouts to some degree. It's still too often and doesn't walk much, but he did manage to hit to all fields and he excelled at reaching on infield singles:

Michael O`Neill

O`Neill also showed a surprising amount of power, hitting 10 home runs on the year. As a right-handed hitter, he showed an ability to pull the ball with a majority of his extra-base hits and home runs heading to left. While he'll likely max out in the teens if he's lucky, his ability to hit to all fields, coupled with his propensity to pull the ball could make him a real threat with the bat.

His true strength lies in his legs, as he ended up stealing a total of 42 bases while only being caught nine times. Couple his hitting patterns with his skills on the base paths as one of the top base stealers in the minors, and he's looking a lot more like Brett Gardner (without the patience) or Ichiro Suzuki (without the high average) than any O`Neill. The only catch is that he's already 22 and only in Low-A. He'll likely start in High-A Tampa next year and if he can continue to play to his strengths while adding more power he could move his way up quickly and even become a legitimate prospect down the line. He just needs to keep running.

Upon 2014 World Series Game 1 tonight, a look back at the dynasty Yankees' unforgettable openers

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The 1998-2000 Yankees made Fall Classic classics out of World Series opener. Miss those guys.

After almost a week of waiting, the 2014 World Series between the Kansas City Royals and San Francisco Giants kicks off tonight in Kansas City. Kauffman Stadium is sure to be rocking for its first World Series game in 29 years, but it will take some volume for it match the sheer noise made at Yankee Stadium during the dynasty years.

Those seasons were unbelievable for Yankees fans, and the 1998-2000 "three-peat" squads made awesome World Series openers an annual affair. As if it wasn't thrilling enough to just make it to the Fall Classic, these teams gave the audience a thrill right off the bat. (Pun absolutely intended.) Long before those years, the Yankees often had excellent openers, going back to their very first World Series game in 1921, when spitballing submariner Carl Mays dazzled John McGraw's New York Giants in a five-hit shutout, and 1949, when "Ol' Reliable" Tommy Henrich ended a scoreless tie in the bottom of the ninth with the first walk-off home run in playoff history. The three games the 1998-2000 Yankees offered were iconic for a new generation of fans, and they will never be forgotten.

1998

The 1998 Yankees were the greatest team in baseball history. Arguments could be made for other awesome teams like the '27 "Murderers' Row" squad or any number of other teams' favorites. In the end though, the '98 Yankees won 114 regular season games in an era of integrated baseball, West Coast travel, and three rounds of playoffs. They could have bowed out before even reaching the World Series like 116-win 2001 Mariners, but they didn't. They won the American League pennant and faced the San Diego Padres in the World Series. The Padres were underdogs, but no slouches; they had taken out two extremely good 100-win Astros and Braves teams on the way to the Fall Classic.

The Yankees took an early 2-0 lead on a surprising two-run double by rookie Ricky Ledee against the still-menacing Kevin Brown. San Diego struck back immediately with their most powerful bat, as 50-homer hitter Greg Vaughn crushed a two-run homer to right field off David Wells, knotting it up at 2-2. Two innings later, it was "Mr. Padre," Tony Gwynn, who brought silence to Yankee Stadium. The future Hall of Famer was, as Paul O'Neill would say "not a home run hitter," but nevertheless, he demolished a Wells pitch off the facing of the upper deck in right field for another two-run blast, putting San Diego on top, 4-2.

On the next pitch, Vaughn followed with his second homer of the night, and the Yankees were officially in trouble. Brown was mowing down the formidable Yankees lineup. By the seventh, he had the Padres eight outs away from taking an early lead in the World Series. Then Jorge Posada beat out a very slow grounder to second and Brown walked the #9 hitter Ledee on four pitches. That brought an end to Brown's night, as skipper Bruce Bochy (now of course managing the Giants) hooked him to bring in Donne Wall for Chuck Knoblauch.

The Yankees' second baseman had been acquired in a big trade with the Twins before the season for moments like these, but just a couple weeks ago, he suffered humiliation in front of these same fans. In extra innings of Game 2 of the ALCS against the Indians, he wasted time arguing with the first base umpire and pointing at the ball while the go-ahead run came around to score. The Yankees lost the game, and Knoblauch was excoriated by the fans and media. He had a shot at redemption. He seized it:

Just like that, the game was tied. A single and a couple Mark Langston walks later, another Yankee had a shot to make up for postseason letdowns: Tino Martinez. A .188/.301/.292 hitter to that point in 29 playoff games with the Yankees, Tino drew the ire of some fans for not coming up with a big hit. A 2-2 pitch from Langston just barely missed the strike zone according to home plate umpire Rich Garcia. It might have been a gift, but if so, it was not wasted:

Yankee Stadium might never have been louder than it was after Tino's grand slam. Would it really be surprising if that was the case? The seven-run seventh gave the reliable Yankees bullpen all the support they would need, and a couple innings later, the 9-6 comeback victory was clinched with Mariano Rivera'sfirst career World Series save. The Yankees never lost a game in that World Series, sweeping the Padres away 16 years ago today.

1999

Let us take a moment to remember the 1999 Yankees, who never get their due when recalling the Yankees' greatest teams. Completely overshadowed by the '98 steamroller, they still won a league-high 98 games, all while going through painfully difficult personal adversity.

The franchise losing icon Joe DiMaggio in March was small compared to the scariness of beloved manager Joe Torre leaving the team for a couple months to undergo treatment for prostate cancer. Teammate Darryl Strawberry battled drug problems while recovering from his own colon cancer diagnosed during the previous year's playoffs. Star '70s pitcher Catfish Hunter lost his fight with ALS in September, and third baseman Scott Brosius's father was slowly losing his life as well. Brosius left the team a few times to tend to his dad before he finally passed in September. Infielder Luis Sojo's father died just prior to the World Series, and the Yankees played the first two games with a 24-man roster as Sojo flew back to Venezuela to attend to his family. Finally, Paul O'Neill's father passed away from heart failure the day of World Series Game 4. He played anyway, the Yankees won the title that night, and O'Neill tried to celebrate through the tears. It was an absolutely brutal emotional year for the club, and yet they persevered. That can't be overlooked.

The 1999 World Series brought forth another Yankees/Braves matchup in what was billed as a fight to determine the "Team of the '90s." Atlanta had made the playoffs eight straight years, won five National League pennants, and the '95 Fall Classic. However, they had lost the '96 series to the Yankees, who were in the playoffs for the fifth year in a row and could now win their third title of the decade. The opener at Turner Field pitted future Hall of Famer Greg Maddux against playoff menace Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez.

Both pitchers were on their games, even though Maddux wasn't even supposed to start. (Tom Glavine became sick with the flu on gameday, so Maddux covered for him.) Maddux was vintage Maddux with seven brilliant innings of three-hit shutout ball. El Duque pitched seven innings himself and allowed just one hit. Unfortunately for him, that one hit left the yard, as a mistake to '99 NL MVP Chipper Jones was launched down the left field line for a solo homer. That was the difference.

The Yankees were six outs from falling behind in the series with Maddux still on the mound in the eighth. Brosius led it off with a single to left, and with the pitcher's spot due up, Torre elected to pinch-hit Strawberry (just activated in September) rather than having El Duque bunt. It paid off, as Maddux pitched him too cautiously and issued a rare walk. Knoblauch came up, and he dragged a perfect bunt between the pitcher's mound and first base that was mishandled. Up stepped Derek Jeter, who had a monster '99 season and showed the Braves why:

That was it for Maddux, as manager Bobby Cox went with lefty closer John Rocker, the nemesis of New York for his racist and homophobic comments about the city subway. O'Neill wasn't at his healthiest and Rocker destroyed lefties, but that did not stop the veteran right fielder from defying the odds:

The Yankees were back on top with another Game 1 rally. They tacked on a third run via a Jim Leyritz bases-loaded walk against Rocker, and the bullpen shut Atlanta down over the last two innings. The Yankees swept the series, repeated as champions, and ended the '99 playoffs with an 11-1 record, a mark even better than the '98 squad and matched just once since MLB went to a three-round format in '95. Now that's worth remembering.

2000

The 2000 Yankees were not nearly as good a team as the '98 and '99 groups. They went through struggles at various points of the season, needed a boost from trade acquisition David Justice to push them over the hump into playoff contention, and they shockingly lost 15 of their last 18 games entering the playoffs. Fortunately, the AL East was a weak division that year, so the Yankees won it despite only notching 87 victories, three fewer than the playoff-absent Cleveland Indians.

They proved that one only had to be in it to win it though, as they fought off a couple of dangerous Athletics and Mariners teams to win the AL pennant for the third straight year. In their quest to become the first team since the 1972-74 A's to "three-peat," they would have to take down the cross-town rival Mets. New York City was abuzz with the first Subway Series in 44 years and the Mets' first pennant since 1986.

Game 1 at Yankee Stadium (14 years ago today) pitted veteran lefties Andy Pettitte and Al Leiter against each other, and both pitchers were strong. It was scoreless through five when the Mets almost broke through in the sixth inning. Timo Perez was on first with a single and with two outs, Todd Zeile sent a fly ball deep to left field that caused chaos:

Zeile's poor luck, Perez's baserunning error, and Jeter's terrific relay throw cut down the game's first run. Still, the Mets jumped on top by a score of 3-2 by virtue of a seventh inning rally against Pettitte after Justice had given him the lead with a two-run double. The Mets carried the lead into the ninth as closer Armando Benitez took the mound. Posada flew out to lead it off, and the Yankees were two outs from seeing their 12-game World Series winning streak snapped. Then, magic happened in the form of O'Neill's patient 10-pitch walk:

2000_ws_walk_medium

Luis Polonia followed with a pinch-hit single, and second baseman Jose Vizcaino slashed an opposite-field hit to left. The bases were loaded for Knoblauch, who to tie the game just had to avoid striking out or hitting into a double play. A sacrifice fly to left tied the game, though Benitez fanned Jeter to force extra innings.

The Yankees almost won the game twice twice. They had the bases loaded in the 10th with one out, but O'Neill bounced into a double play to end the threat. They loaded the bases again in the 11th with two outs. This time, a Glenallen Hill fly ball helped the Mets escape. There was no such luck for the Mets in the 12th. With one out, Tino singled and Posada doubled to center, moving Tino to third. Although Sojo struck out, Vizcaino was the next hitter. Another trade acquisition, the light-hitting infielder was an unlikely hero, but sometimes crazy things happen in October:

The Yankees won the game and later the series in five games. We may never see a team as dominant as the 1999-2000 clubs again, and we'll almost certainly never see three straight Yankees World Series openers as captivating as these.

***

We can only hope that the Royals and Giants play a similarly exciting Game 1 tonight. Those 1998-2000 Yankees spoiled us with high expectations through all-time highlights like the Tino slam, and I can't wait until the Yankees make it back to make more memories.

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Around the Empire: New York Yankees News - 10/22/2014

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Is Joe Girardi on the hot seat? Are the Yankees the most popular team in New York City?

NJ.com | Brendan Kuty: Is manager Joe Girardi on the hot seat?

NY Post | George A. King III : Travis Ishikawa recalls his brief stint with the Yankees and how he was treated.

NYMag.com | Joe DeLessio: Chris Russo comments on why the Giants are the Yankees during their dynasty run.

NY Daily News | John Harper: Watching Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford make a potentially game-saving play, John Harper couldn't help but to think of the decision that the Yankees are facing for next season.

NJ.com | Charles Curtis: Are the Knicks, Yankees or Giants the most popular in New York City? Facebook data will surprise you.

Yankees 2014 Roster Report Card: Brendan Ryan

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Oh yeah, he was on the team.

Grade: D

2014 Statistics: 49 games, 124 plate appearances, .167/.211/.202, 0 HR, 8 RBI, -0.7 WAR

2015 Contract Status: Signed through 2015 at $2 million, with a $1 million player option.

While it sometimes was tough to remember, Brendan Ryan was actually part of this team in 2014, and aside from some nice defensive plays here and there, Ryan didn't exactly do much this season. During the 2013 offseason, the Yankees decided to give the all-glove man a two-year contract worth $4 million, plus another $1 million in a player option for some reason. Of course at the time the Yankees figured they needed some insurance in case Derek Jeter were to breakdown, as well as a nice late-inning replacement for Jeter. And as expected, Ryan didn't really do much of anything.

In just 124 plate appearances, with the majority of at bats making us question whether Ryan was actually a major league player, Ryan was pretty abysmal to the surprise of no one. Ryan hit just .167, knocking in 8 RBI in the process, which is pretty shocking in itself. Now the Yankees didn't sign Ryan so that he could tear the cover off the ball as he would actually have to hit the ball to do that, the Yankees got Ryan to have someone actually cover ground up the middle and make some fantastic plays. The problem was that Ryan barely made any appearances as Jeter played the majority of the time during his farewell season. Ryan would make an appearance sometimes, but most of the time it was just a "hey, I'm still here" appearance.

Ryan somehow made it through the season without being moved as the Yankees had some options down in the minor leagues that could have done better, but the Yankees didn't budge. Partially because Ryan still had another year on his contract, although thankfully Jeter didn't miss an extended period of time or because this is what the Yankees do. We could have seen Ryan in the lineup everyday.

You might all be wondering why I gave Ryan a grade of a 'D' instead of an 'F'.' Well, that's only because Ryan at least kept his teammates entertained on the bench with some impressions and other shenanigans, and he had the occasional sparkling play, which has to count for something especially with the amount of ground ball pitchers we had on the staff this season.

Going into 2015, we can expect to see more of Ryan in his "backup" role unless the Yankees decide to cut him in order to make room for someone else. Ryan will not be the starting shortshop as the Yankees might hit the free agency market for that one, or simply call up Rob Refsnyder to play second and plug Martin Prado at short. But of course all this remains to be seen and it will be interesting to see who this team decides to plug in at short.

Blue Jays Year in Review: June

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Unfortunately the season insisted on continuing past May.

After an amazing May the Blue Jays returned to earth in June.

It seems that as Jays fans we just never get to have nice things, at least not lately. Mark Buehrle went 1-4- with a 2.79 ERA to be fair- Juan Francisco began his long and painful descent, and the Blue Jays clung to their division lead waiting for the next hot streak.

Record: 12-15

Just like April, but with expectations to make it more painful.

Best Position Player (by fWAR): Edwin Encarnacion (1.0)

HR

RBI

BB%

K%

AVG

OBP

SLG

wRC+

7

17

11.9%

13.8%

.305

.394

.589

173

He might not have been superhuman, but he was pretty close. It would have been really nice if he hadn't gotten hurt this year... These are the type of numbers that aren't even that far out of line from what Encarnacion is at the height of his powers.

Best Pitcher (by fWAR): Marcus Stroman (0.5)

IP

K/9

BB/9

HR/9

ERA

FIP

xFIP

30.1

7.71

2.37

0.89

2.67

3.59

3.69

These kind of numbers are what Jays fans came to expect from Stroman over the course of the season. This was the first time the rookie looked like the team's best starter, but certainly not the last.

The Team Hit Like... Eric Hosmer

Player/Team

BB%

K%

AVG

OBP

SLG

wRC+

Eric Hosmer

6.4%

17.0%

.270

.318

.398

99

Blue Jays in June

8.4%

18.2%

.248

.315

.392

99

Do not be deceived by Hosmer's postseason, this comparison is not especially flattering. The Blue Jays bats were unremarkable in June, just like Eric Hosmer is 99% of the time.

The Team Pitched Like... Jorge De La Rosa

Player/Team

K/9

BB/9

HR/9

ERA

FIP

xFIP

Jorge de la Rosa

6.79

3.27

1.03

4.10

4.34

3.95

Blue Jays in June

6.94

3.01

1.14

3.93

4.36

4.09

Regardless of what the Colorado Rockies think, De la Rosa is by no means a special pitcher. The fact the Jays were comparable to the middling veteran is indicative of the mediocre work the pitching staff did in June.

GIF That Best Summarizes the Month

This one might be a bit personal. In June more than anything I wanted the Jays to go to Yankee Stadium and win a series, or at least a game there. I wanted it because it sucks to lose to a divisional opponent, especially the Yankees, but mainly I wanted it so Buck and Pat would shut up about how much more professional the Yankees were than the Jays for one second.

That's all I desired in the world.

On June 17th the Jays traveled to New York, ran into Masahiro Tanaka's brick wall of a splitter and on the way to yet another sweep. The streak continued and the misery it caused as counted in raw Tabler-isms was astounding.

That depressing anecdote concludes part three of the "Blue Jays Year in Review Series", check in later for future installments that range from bearable to unfathomably depressing.


Yankees 2014 Roster Report Card: Mark Payton

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Nothing was expected from Mark Payton, but he surprised everyone and put up the best season in his draft class

Grade: A+

2014 Statistics: .320/.418/.497, 13.9 BB% between Low-A Charleston and High-A Tampa

2014 Level/Roster Status: High-A/Non 40-man

The Yankees made a lot of safe picks in the 2014 MLB Draft, taking primarily college players with little upside with their picks this year. After taking five pitchers in a row, the Yankees took outfielder Mark Payton with their seventh-round pick and it wasn't very exciting. A college senior outfielder with little power doesn't sound very exciting and nothing was expected of him going forward, however he seemed to prove everyone wrong and ended up having the best season of the organization's draft class.

Instead of starting him off slowly in Short Season Staten Island, where most college draft picks start out, the Yankees decided to be aggressive with his development and let him begin his professional career in Low-A Charleston. He hit a ridiculous .357/.443/.500 with a 13.4% walk rate in 97 plate appearances, and despite his success, it was expected that he'd simply stick around and continue to tear up the Sally league for the remainder of the year. Instead, the Yankees decided they had seen enough and pushed him up to Tampa. He impressed again by hitting .286/.396/.495, this time hitting a total of 11 doubles and walking at a 14.4% rate in 111 plate appearances. Payton went from question mark to standout rivaling Jacob Lindgren for the best debut season in the system.

Of course, one great season, especially to kick off a career, does not a prospect make. We've seen this before, like when Dante Bichette tore up rookie ball right after being drafted and proceeded to fall apart after that. We can't expect Payton to put up an .900+ OPS every year from here on out, but seeing as how he has control over the strike zone, has plenty of experience from college, and beat up a higher level, there is reason to believe he won't flop in his sophomore season like Bichette did.

As a 23-year-old next year, the Yankees could move him up to Double-A to put him on pace with Aaron Judge in 2015 and add him on the radar in the coming seasons. The Yankees already have a plethora of outfield prospects coming down the line in Ramon Flores, Tyler Austin, Jake Cave, Aaron Judge, and Taylor Dugas, but one more shouldn't hurt and not all of them will end up working out in the end. What was originally expected to be organizational filler has turned into an asset that could become an integral part of the system going forward. We just have to see what he does in his encore performance next year.

The surprisingly decent 2014 rotation, and why pitching will be the Yankees strength in 2015

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Looking back at the 2014 rotation, a pitching staff much better than it had any right to be.

While the 2014 season didn't end the way we all hoped, there remain plenty of reasons to think fondly of the 2014 Yankees, and to get excited about the 2015 squad.  Perhaps the main reason, on both counts, is the pitching staff.

Somehow, even with a rotation decimated almost beyond recognition, the Yankee staff remained quite competent throughout the year (they finished 13th in the majors in FIP - not bad, considering).  Not only did they manage after losing Ivan Nova and CC Sabathia for the season (not to mention Masahiro Tanaka and Michael Pineda for long stretches), the pitching staff actively kept the Yankees in the hunt and managed to scratch out a multitude of close wins while the offense (20th in runs scored) floundered away.  Whether it be Joe Girardi's managing, Larry Rothschild's work with pitchers old and new, or Brian Cashman and the front office plucking surprisingly good young arms from the farm (or a combination of all three), the fact that the Yankees pitching remained as solid as it did all season long is a fact to be celebrated.

Much of the Yankees success in 2014 is due to another underrated and excellent season from Hiroki Kuroda.  Kuroda put together another excellent campaign last year, leading the team with 199 innings pitched and posting a 3.71 ERA and a 3.60 FIP.  Even more importantly, he gave the rotation an anchor, and without his consistency, the Yankee rotation could have easily fallen into shambles.  Even if 2014 is Kuroda's last season, he certainly went out on top of his game.

But Kuroda is the past - Tanaka and Pineda are the future.  Their performances are both reasons to celebrate 2014 and be extremely excited for the Yankee rotation in 2015.  Tanaka threw 136.1 innings this season, posting a 2.77 ERA and a 3.04 FIP.   Pineda only threw 76 innings, but his 1.89 ERA and 2.71 FIP show that, when healthy, he's got the stuff to dominate major league hitters.  He also demonstrated much improved control in 2014, as his 0.83 BB/9 is well below the numbers he posted in both the minor leagues and his first full season in Seattle.  While their health remains a (major) concern, their ability to come back for the end of the season and show flashes of their early success should give Yankee fans hope.  If things break right, they could form one of the best one-two punches in the game next season.

While injuries cost the Yankees a shot at a truly dominant rotation, it did give some young guns the chance to step up.  Both David Phelps and Chase Whitley gained valuable experience (and demonstrated that they would be adequate No.5 starters in the future).  However, the best - and perhaps most unexpected - performance came from Shane Greene.  Greene had a terrific run in 2014, and while he fell off towards the end (a 5.40 ERA and ad 4.16 FIP in September, compared to a 3.09 ERA and 3.55 FIP in 55.1 innings before that) his performance overall was quite positive.  He looks like a solid major league starter that should give the Yankees needed depth next year if (or, more than likely, when) the injury bug strikes again.

The final great pitching story of the season came in the form of Brandon McCarthy.  After Cashman somehow acquired him for just Vidal Nuno, McCarthy helped stabilize the rotation down the stretch and definitively proved that his rough start in Arizona was just a fluke, posting a 2.89 ERA and a 3.22 FIP in pinstripes (hopefully the Yankees front office takes note).

All in all, 2014 should have gone much, much worse from a pitching perspective (when Whitley, Phelps and Chris Capuano combine for 41 starts, you know it's been a rough year).  The Yankees were the only AL team, other than cellar-dwellers Boston and Texas, to not have a pair of starters with more than 25 starts each (Kuroda had 32).  This means they had a lot of turnover in their rotation.  The amount of adversity the Yankee staff faced in 2014 was staggering, and the team's ability to stay in the hunt through it all is one of the best stories of the Yankees' year.  It also should give us all great hope for 2015.  With a couple acquisitions in free agency, such as signing one of Jon Lester/Max Scherzer/James Shields and hopefully re-signing McCarthy, the Yankees could very well find themselves with one of the most talented and deepest rotations in the league.  Let's all just imagine Tanaka, Lester, Pineda, McCarthy, Greene, Sabathia, and Nova all healthy and on the same team.

Hey, it's the offseason.  A guy can dream.

Around the Empire: New York Yankees News - 10/23/2014

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Should Brian McCann play more first base? Mark Teixeira must get stronger.

NJ.com | Brendan Kuty: Mark Teixeira says he must get stronger.

Newsday | David Lennon: The Yankees could learn from the lineup moves of Royals' Ned Yost.

LoHud Yankees Blog | Chad Jennings: How the Yankees stack up against the Royals and Giants.

YanksGoYard | Jason Evans: Should the Yankees give McCann the Buster Posey treatment and have him play more first base?

It's About The Money | Domenic Lanza: Sizing up the free agent market for right field and designated hitter.

Yankees 2014 Roster Report Card: CC Sabathia

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Where have you gone, CC Sabathia?

Grade: D-

2014 Statistics: 8 GS, 46.0 IP, 5.28 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, 4.78 FIP, 4.80 K:BB, 0.1 fWAR

2015 Contract Status: Signed for $25 million. Two years and $53 million remaining with a $25 million vesting option for 2017.

I remember CC Sabathia. You probably do, too. The Cy Young winner, the ALCS MVP, the guy who went 74-29 with a 3.28 FIP across more than 900 innings in his first four seasons as a Yankee and gobbled up 22.2 fWAR, which was sixth among starting pitchers over that stretch. 2009-2012 Sabathia struck out 8.16 hitters per nine innings and walked only 2.45. His home run rate was a slick 0.77, even pitching half his games at hitter-hugging Yankee Stadium and his ERA- was a stellar 75.

At the start of this season, even after a disappointing 2013 that witnessed his first over 4.00 FIP in a decade and the worst ERA and fWAR of his career, there was room to hope that the old CC would return. Sure, he was a few pounds lighter, his fastball had lost a lot of its zip and he would turn 34 in July, but Sabathia's always been known as a consummate pro, a diligent worker and a student of the game. Why couldn't he follow the path of many who came before him and transition successfully from a power arm into a crafty finesse lefty?

It wasn't long, though, before most of those hopes were dashed. Sabathia was rocked for six runs on eight hits, two of them homers, in his opening day start against the Astros. Over the next six weeks, his velocity abandoning him even more so than last year as his average fastball clocked a career-low 88.8 mph, CC allowed four runs or more in six of eight starts and recorded an out in the seventh inning only twice. In 46 innings, he gave up 10 home runs and opposing hitters slashed .301/.346/.528, good for an .874 OPS, which would have ranked 12th, just below Adrian Beltre on this year's MLB charts.

As Sabathia's stuff failed him, his health soon did, too. After his May 10th start, he was placed on the 15-day DL with knee inflammation and soon transferred to the 60-day shelf. A fluid drain and a stem cell injection both proved ineffective during a brief rehab attempt in July and talk began to escalate about microfracture surgery - a potentially career-ending operation from which very few pro athletes have successfully returned. In the end, Sabathia managed to avoid that procedure in favor of the less invasive alternative of arthroscopic repair. While his 2014 campaign was aborted, he left with expectations of a comeback at full force in 2015.

Of course, that's easier said than done. The Yankees are committed to Sabathia for a minimum of $53 million over the next two years and it's likely that his 2017 vesting option worth $25 million will kick in, too, since it can only be voided in the case of a left shoulder injury - something he's avoided thus far. When the Yankees signed Sabathia to a reworked $122 million deal on November 1st, 2011 to buy out the opt-out clause in his original contract, they probably didn't give much thought to the idea that only one of the five or six seasons included would be anything CC-like. Now, three years in, that's exactly the reality they're staring down.

There aren't a lot of reasons for optimism about Sabathia's future, but a few strands of hope are still worth clinging on to. Despite his disastrous results early this season, CC's peripherals were actually quite good. He struck out 9.39 batters per nine in 2014 and walked only 1.96. He kept the ball on the ground at a rate of 48.3 percent, topping his career standard of 45.4. Even without much of a fastball to work with, he notched a respectable 10.5 percent swinging strike rate, and enticed hitters to chase 34.4 percent of his pitches outside the strike zone. Some portion of his poor stats can be attributed to brutal numbers in luck-based categories. CC was victimized for an unsustainable 23.3 percent home-run-to-fly-ball rate and opposing batters hit .350 on balls in play, a mark .57 higher than what they've hit over his long career. This all comes from a very small sample, of course, but Sabathia's xFIP in 2014 was a hopeful 3.11.

As can be said for far too many of his teammates as well, the Yankees should view anything they get from CC Sabathia in 2015 as icing on the cake. If they count on him for a major contribution, they're asking for trouble. Still, if he can take the mound next year in a healthy state, keep the ball on the ground more and supplement his vanishing fastball with a slider that was still highly effective as recently as 2013, Sabathia could prove a useful fourth or fifth starter behind Masahiro Tanaka, Michael Pineda and whomever else the Yankees come away with this off-season just by recreating his performance from a year ago. Back-end reliability isn't exactly what you want for $25 million per year, but the sad truth about the kinds of contracts the Yankees are known for handing out is that if you're getting anything at all in the final few years, you're not doing all that badly.

Frank White hates catchers, modern players

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Frank White's romanticized view of his career and baseball history is dangerous for today's catchers.

Second base is a tough position. The men who play it often have their backs to the runners barreling in on them, ready to break up an impending double play, and can get wrecked by a well-executed takeout slide. One of the best at hanging in on those slides was Frank White, undeniably one of the top fielding second basemen that baseball has ever seen. This photo is one of my favorites, with White looking like a ballerina, balanced on a leg to avoid the incoming runner and to ensure that he still got off a strong and accurate throw. There is a lot to admire about Frank White.

Finally, with the Royals returning to prominence, White is receiving some of his due outside of his home town of Kansas City, with recent articles by Yahoo! Sports' Jeff Passan highlighting his ongoing feud with Royals management and raising his visibility. He's talking quite a bit this week, including to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, and... well, it's safe to say he isn't as graceful speaking as he is turning a pirouette:

Literally since before baseball was a professional sport, former players have romanticized how the game was played "back in my day," implying that players were tougher and that their motives were purer than the generations that followed. I understand that, and I don't mean to single White out for enjoying a little nostalgia. It just so happens, however, that in this case his nostalgia is dangerous.

It certainly is true that stolen bases are down compared to where they were when Frank White, Willie Wilson, George Brett, and Hal McRae ruled the American League, presumably along with some extra aggression on the bases. I can understand missing that aspect of the game that can make it increasingly dynamic and fun to watch, but we will likely see some of that ramp up if scoring around the game remains low. Offense goes in cycles, and someday we'll loop back around to the game of White's day when it's convenient for teams to do so. It's the other part of his statement that's the problem.

First, it's not true. It hasn't been true since the moment Frank White entered the majors. In 1973, White's rookie season, Carlton Fisk took issue with Thurman Munson after the Yankee great bowled Fisk over trying to score on a missed squeeze bunt. In the ensuing brawl, Fisk "had his left arm across [Gene Michael's] thoat and wouldn't let up... I had to crawl underneat the pile to try to pry Fisk's arm off his throat to keep him from killing [Michael]. All the while, he had Michael pinned, he was punching Munson underneath the pile. I had no idea Fisk was that strong, but he was scary," according to Yankees manager Ralph Houk. In 1976, Lou Piniella tried to test Fisk again, inciting a 10 minute donnybrook that left Bill Lee with an injured throwing arm. So no, catchers have long had problems with runners barreling into them.

More importantly, catchers and runners didn't complain as loudly back in White's day because we didn't know nearly as much about the dangers associated with running into the catcher. I'm not just talking about damaged limbs, like Buster Posey suffered in 2011, but the severe trauma caused by concussions. As I discovered the other week, catchers are incredibly vulnerable to severe head injuries, far more than any other players, so the rule change designed to make them less vulnerable to that kind of injury is exceptionally important, both for the long term quality of the sport and the quality of health of the men who play it.

Plus, regardless of what White might think, the ways in which the sport has changed since he retired in 1990 make these catchers much more vulnerable to brain injuries due to baserunners (and baserunners more vulnerable to brain injuries due to catchers). In 1973, when White debuted, the heaviest position player was Frank Howard at 255 lbs. Of the 402 position players who played in at least 20 games that year, 51 were listed at 200 lbs. or greater and catchers (with more than 10 games played) averaged 192 lbs. In his entire career, from 1973-1990, just 169 total position players appeared in at least 200 games and weighed at least 200 lbs.

Conversely, in 2014 the heaviest listed position player with at least 20 games to his credit was Adam Dunn at 285 lbs. And of the 441 players who played in at least 20 games, 299 of them were listed at 200 lbs or more. The average catcher who appeared in 10 games or more was 217 lbs. There simply is no getting around the fact that players are bigger and stronger today than they were when White played, and while their aggressiveness is down, their speed is similar if not greater. This means that collisions are more violent, and potentially more devastating than at any other time since catchers started wearing protective headgear.

There was ample reason for the rule change to keep catchers safer, and to reduce the danger both for them and for runners. It doesn't eliminate head injuries for baseball's backstops, of course -- perhaps nothing ever will. It does eliminate one of the chief ways they get continually beat up, however, and acknowledges that while things may have been "better" back in White's day, they are fundamentally different now. Asserting otherwise is wrong and minimizes the risks that catchers have faced historically and still could face in the future, and worse, it could influence others to think the same thing.

(Thanks to Baseball Reference's invaluable Play Index for the information on player listed weights from 1973-1990 and 2014.)

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