Yankees minor league notes

[26 Reasons to Hate Us]

from nomaas.org:

Tabata Watch
Jose (18, RHB ) had a tough week, going just 3 for 24 with 6 Ks and 0 walks. He currently is hitting .300 / .358 / .433 / .792 in Tampa.


Hughes Watch

Phil (20, RHP) put together his first terrific outing of the season on Thursday against Syracuse:

6 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 10 K.

For the season thus far, his numbers are

16 IP, 11 H, 4 BB, 17 K, and a 3.94 ERA.


Catcher Watch

Charleston: Jose Gil (20, RHB ) .270 / .308 / .432 / .740
Tampa: Francisco Cervelli (SHB, 21) .302 / .362 / .395 / .757


Start of the week contenders:

Brett Smith (23, RHP) for Trenton against the Binghamton Mets – 7 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 7 K. Smith now has 17.1 IP on the season in three starts, giving up only 9 H and posting a 20:8 K:BB ratio.

Intriguing youngster Angel Reyes (20, LHP) in Charleston on Friday: 4 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K

New England native Tim Norton (23 RHP) turned in an exceptional outing in the second game of Charleston’s doubleheader on Friday, going 6.1 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, and 10 K.

Tampa’s George Kontos (21, RHP) went 6.1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 11 K on Tuesday.


Relief appearance of the week

Jonathan Ortiz (21, RHP) made his professional debut with Tampa on Friday, and pitched 3 scoreless and hitless innings, while walking none and striking out 7.


What’s going on?

Brett Gardner (23, LHB ) went 2 for 17 this past week, dropping his already low numbers to .204 / .295 / .352 / .647. On the positive side, he has walked more than he has struck out (7/6).

Tyler Clippard (22, RHP) got knocked around in his lone start on Friday (5 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 3K), but Steven Jackson (25, RHP) one-upped him, going 3.2 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 1 K on Saturday.

Eric Duncan (22, LHB ) went 2 for 5 in his last game on Thursday raising his season line to .211 / .326 / .395 / .721, but he also struck out 3 more times, bringing his total to 13 in just 38 ABs.

Eric Abreu (23, RHP) looks done, as he has not regained his mid-nineties velocity. In his two starts this week he has gone 6 IP, 15 H, 8 ER, 1 BB, 2 K

Tim Battle (21, RHB ) also looks finished. His season line is currently .145 / .209 / .161 / .370 in 62 ABs, and he has struck out 26 times in contrast to his mere 5 walks. .


Worst Line of the Week:

Justin Pope (27, RHP) had a nightmare relief appearance for Scranton on Saturday, posting the worst line of the week: 0.1 IP, 5 H, 7 ER, 1 BB, 0 K.


Keep an Eye On Me

David Robertson (22, RHP) is dominating in low A Charleston much the same way he did in the Cape this past summer. After Saturday’s 2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K performance, his season line now stands at 11.1 IP, 4 H, 5 BB, 16 K and a 0.00 ERA.

Venezuelan reliever Edgar Soto (22, LHP) is also dominating in Charleston, putting up a season line of 9.2 IP, 8 H, 4 BB, 17 K, and a 1.86 ERA.


Injury Dossier

Charleston OF Austin Jackson (20, RHB ) was DL’d with a hamstring injury.

Marcos Vechionacci (SHB, 19) left Tuesday’s game in Tampa with a hand/wrist injury.


Non-Prospects Performing Well

Edwar Ramirez (26, RHP) – Relieving in Trenton, Ramirez has 6.2 IP in 4 appearances this season, giving up only 1 hit while striking out 12.

Gabe Lopez (27, RHB ) – The diminutive Trenton second baseman went 2-4 on Saturday, keeping his season average at the .500 mark. In 24 ABs this year Lopez is .500 / .536 / .792 / 1.327

Shelley Duncan (27, RHB ) – The monster first baseman is hitting .326 / .431 / .721 / 1.152 on the season.

this looks to be a new segment on nomaas. Weekly I think.

[26 Reasons to Hate Us]

Meyer's Minors #2, nomaas.org

Tabata Watch
Jose (18, RHB ) went 7 for 25 this past week, with no extrabase hits. He walked 6 times and struck out 4. On the basepaths he stole his second base of the season, but was caught 3 times.

For the year so far, Tabata is .294 / .384 / .388 / .772


Hughes Watch

Phil (20, RHP) is still with the big club, scheduled to make his next start against the Rangers in Arlington on Tuesday. He has struggled just a bit when moving up a level in the past, so he might take a start or two to settle in. We expect him to stick with the Yanks though, so there may not be many updates on Hughes going forward.


Catcher Watch

Charleston: Jose Gil (20, RHB ) .222 / .250 / .333 / .583
Tampa: Francisco Cervelli (SHB, 21) .290 / .371 / .371 / .742


Batter’s Game of the Week

Tampa shortstop Reegie Corona (20, SHB ) went 2-3 with 3 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB, and 2 SB on Thursday. Corona really turned it up a notch this week, going 11-28 and raising his season line to .286 / .347 / .363 / .709.


Start of the week contenders:

Michael Dunn (21, LHP) the converted first baseman went 7.2 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, and 6 K for Charleston on Monday night, and then came back strong again on Sunday with a 6 IP, 9 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K line.

Daniel McCutchen (24, RHP) returned to Tampa from his 50 game suspension on Tuesday, and went 6.1 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K. McCutchen has the makeup and stuff to move through the system quickly.

First round draft pick and Tampa Yankee, Ian Kennedy (22, RHP) went 5.1 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 9 K against Sarasota on Friday. Kennedy is averaging over a strikeout per IP, but his GO/AO ratio of 0.60 is a bit troubling.

Alan Horne (24, RHP) threw a gem for Trenton on Thursday: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K.

Rising from the ashes like a phoenix, Matt DeSalvo (26, RHP) has looked good thus far. On Thursday in Scranton he went 6 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K.

Jeff Marquez (22, RHP) was dealing on for Trenton on Sunday, going 7 IP, 7 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K.


Relief appearance of the week contenders

Josh Schmidt (24, RHP) got knocked around pretty good on Friday night, giving up 3 ER in on 0.2 IP, but he came back strong for Tampa on Saturday to post a line of 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K.

David Robertson (22, RHP) continued his complete and total dominance of the Sally League on Friday, going 2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K. He still has not allowed a run on the year, has a H/9 of 2.93, and a K/9 of 12.91.


What’s going on?

Anthony Claggett (22, RHP), the third piece of the Sheffield trade, had a rough week. He took 2 losses in 3 days, going a combined 2 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 1 K in both appearances. He did right the ship in his third appearance of the week, going 3 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K on Thursday, and earning his second save of the year.

Brett Gardner (23, LHB ) went 7-24 this past week and actually dramatically improved his season line. He did manage to steal 5 bases in the times that he actually made it safely out of the batter’s box.

Randy Johnson trade centerpiece, Ross Ohlendorf (24, RHP) has not looked good recently. His stuff is there, but the results are not. On Tuesday he went 5 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 4 K. For the season he has given up more hits than innings and has a 12:14 K:BB ratio.

Steven Jackson (25, RHP), another piece to the RJ deal, got rocked this week again. At former Yankees’ affiliate Columbus he went 3.2 IP, 8 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, 2 K. If there is a silver lining in Jackson’s 7.27 ERA this season, it is that he is getting groundballs. Currently his GO/AO rate is 2.55.


Keep an Eye On Me

Zach Kroenke (23, LHP) has yet to allow a run this season in 11.1 IP. Although his K:BB of 11:6 leaves a bit to be desired, he has only allowed 6 hits on the season.

Gabriel Medina (23, RHP) has thrown 9 IP this season and has an awful 7.00 ERA, but he does have an intriguing K:BB ratio of 15:2.


Injury Dossier

Eric Duncan (22, LHB ) returned on Sunday and went 2-4 with his third homerun of the season.

Austin Jackson (20, RHB ) returned to Charleston on Saturday and went 0-4.


Non-Prospects Performing Well

Shelley Duncan (27, RHB ) – He’s still killing the ball for Scranton to the tune of .339 / .418 / .695 / 1.113 on the season.

Shawn Garrett (28, RHB ) – He had a great week, going 10-19, with 6 XBH. On Saturday he hit for the cycle in Trenton’s 8-2 victory over Harrisburg.

[26 Reasons to Hate Us]

Meyers minors #3

Tabata Watch
Jose (18, RHB ) was limited by injury this past week, playing in only 3 games. He was only 2 for 13, with a BB and 2 K. He has shown an alarming lack of power thus far in 2007.

For the year Tabata is .276 / .363 / .367 / .730


Hughes Watch

Phil (20, RHP) got good news on his MRI, which revealed a grade 1 strain of his hamstring and encouraged Yankee fans everywhere that he could be getting back on the mound a bit sooner than expected.


Catcher Watch

Charleston: Jose Gil (20, RHB ) .185 / .221 / .277 / .498
Tampa: Francisco Cervelli (SHB, 21) .358 / .429 / .444 / .873 (went 11-19 this past week)


Batter’s Game of the Week Contenders

Austin Jackson (20, RHB ) had quite a night on Tuesday, going 2-3 with a HR, 2 BB, and 3 SB. In the 7 games Charleston played last week, Jackson had a hit in each one, going 10-26 (.385). He also walked 7 times, while only striking out 3.

Reegie Corona (20, SHB ) led the way for Tampa on Wednesday, going 3-3 with 2 BB and a SB.


Start of the week contenders:

Grant Duff (24, RHP) had a nice outing for Charleston on Thursday, going 7 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 1 K. For the season he has given up only 24 H in 33 IP, but he has a troubling 14:16 BB:K ratio.

Daniel McCutchen (24, RHP) had his second strong outing of the season on Thursday by posting 6 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K.

Michael Dunn (21, LHP) again appears in an edition of Meyer’s Minors with his outstanding Friday night start of 6 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, and 7 K. For the year Dunn now has a K/9 of 10.38, while yielding less hits than IP, and posting a K:BB ratio of 5.0. He could be a diamond in the rough, especially given that he’s a lefty.

Ian Kennedy (22, RHP) had another great start this week, going 8 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K in a 4-0 shutout for Tampa on Wednesday night.

Tyler Clippard shut Toledo down on Wednesday, only to see his bullpen blow the game for him. He went 7 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, and 11 K.


Relief appearance of the week contenders

Free agent, scrap-heap pickup John Axford (24, RHP) had a outing for Charleston, going 2.2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K.

David Robertson (22, RHP) actually let his first run of the year up this past week, but that was before he threw 2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K for Charleston on Monday night. For the week he made 3 appearances posting 6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K.

Zach Kroenke (23, LHP) has graduated off the Keep an Eye On Me list. Tuesday night in Tampa he went 2.2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K. Despite giving up 4 runs on the year, none of them have been earned, and Zach is still sporting a 0.00 ERA in 16 IP.


Most Bizarre Line of the Week

Former Yankee, Chase Wright (24, LHP) made his AAA debut Thursday night for SWB. He worked into the 7th inning and gave up only 1 hit, but took the loss as he gave up FIVE ER as well. His final line looked like this:

6.2 IP, 1 H, 5 ER, 6 BB, 3 K.


What’s going on?

Anthony Claggett (22, RHP) remains in this section again this week after having another rough outing on Tuesday for the TY. He took the loss in going 3.0 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, and 1 K.

Cuban free agent signee Juan Miranda (24, LHB ) has been pedestrian at the very best for high-A Tampa. In his 110 ABs this season he is .245 / .298 / .391 / .689 with 9 BB and 34 K.


Keep an Eye On Me

Jose Valdez (24, RHP) made three scoreless appearances for Tampa this past week, totaling 6.1 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, and 6 K. In his 16 IP this year Valdez has struck out 17 while walking only 3.

Brett Smith (23, RHP) has had a stellar season for the Trenton Thunder thus far. In 5 starts he has thrown 29.1 IP, 17 H, 12 BB, and 29 K, with a 0.92 ERA.


Non-Prospects Perfoming Well

Jason Jones (24, RHP) is throwing really well in Trenton. On Thursday night he made his best start of the season going 8 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K. He currently has a 1.37 ERA.

[26 Reasons to Hate Us]

http://www.nj.com/yankees/ledger/ind...360.xml&coll=1

[26 Reasons to Hate Us]

Meyer's Minors, special edition:

If there's one word that comes to mind when you hear the name "Red Sox," it is most certainly GENIUS. From the financial acumen of their Other Department, all the way down to the artful squatting of Jason Varitek, the organization is thoroughly awash in eruditeness. Nowhere has this advantage been more heavily impressed upon the subconscious of the baseball world than in the Boston team's selections in the annual Rule IV draft, otherwise known as the amateur draft.
In last year's draft the Red Sox turned a lot of heads when they selected Bryce Cox, a RHP from Rice University, with a 3rd round selection. While there was a bit of confusion over the pick itself seeing as Cox had actually seen his usage decline greatly due to wildness and a climbing ERA, we all knew better. There was more behind this pick than could be seen on the surface; there always is when you're dealing with an entity as formidably cerebral as the Boston Red Sox.

When the smoke cleared, it was obvious to everyone with a modicum of intelligence that Bryce Cox was the best pick of the entire 2006 draft. It turns out that the Red Sox had really done their due diligence on the fireballer from Rice, finding out that he had refined his mechanics in the period that he was not being used out of the bullpen, and subsequently had turned into a veritable force of nature. No longer was he wild and hittable, instead now becoming a hurler of precision and power – he walked almost no one and struck out almost everyone in the last few weeks of Rice's season. Of course, the Red Sox were the only team to really pick up on this .

The draft experts soon were showering well-earned praise upon the pick. Baseball America's Jim Callis said that when he watched Cox pitch at the College World Series, "his slider moved more than any slider I have ever seen." It doesn't really matter that it wasn't actually a slider that Cox was throwing (it was a slurvy variation of a knuckle curve), the point is that the pitch breaks a lot! ESPN's resident baseball draft expert, Keith Law, a man who has unparalleled wisdom regarding the assessment of command issues that may plague pitching prospects, said that because of his mechanical corrections, Cox was a "strike-throwing groundball machine," and that he was "a good bet to be the first pitcher from the draft to show up in the majors."

Bryce Cox was such an impressive pick by the Sox FO, that even the bloodthirsty Boston media was persuaded to write glowing articles about the kid. The Providence Journal reported of his mechanical fixes that he "has changed arm action without much difficulty," and The Boston Herald said that " the 22-year-old right-hander has skyrocketed to the upper echelon of Sox pitching prospects and has been tabbed by many in the organization as the team's likely closer of the future."

After throwing 30 innings of dominance in his professional debut at the A and A+ level last season, 2007 was Cox's time to shine. It was also time for the genius that flows through the Red Sox organization to reach even more revered status. In his first appearance of 2007, pitching in AA for Portland, the draft moxie was on full display as Bryce served notice of his employer's prowess:

2 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K.

He was on his way. The Red Sox fans rejoiced at having one of the best relief prospects in all of baseball. The Craig Hansen Debacle™ was a distant speck in the rearview mirror now that Theo & Company had excecuted such a calculated maneuver by selecting Cox in the 3 rd round.

A month later, it doesn't matter that his ERA is currently 5.14, or that he has let up more hits than innings pitched since that first appearance. It doesn't matter that he hasn't struck anyone out in 4 weeks, a span of 7 appearances and 12 innings. Nor does it matter that he sports a K:BB ratio of 3:11 on the year, and a BB/9 of 7.07. What matters is that Bryce Cox will be good because of the GENIUS that permeates the ebb and flow of all decisions crafted by the Boston Red Sox. Logically, how could the Sox seemingly reach for a pick and be wrong? The Boston FO put too much time into finding a sleeper, the experts think too highly of the heist itself, and the fanbase knows in their tiny, Irish hearts that there is no way Theo & Co.'s brilliance can fail. It has become very clear that both corrupt umpires and HGH fueled hitters in the Eastern League are feebly attempting to make a mockery of the cunning and vim that the Sox personify. It will not matter in the end though. Genius is omnipotent.

See you in The Hall, Bryce. Godspeed!

[One Red Seat]

The grapes must be awful sour there 8 games back. Interesting choice of forums to post it in too. Keep up the good work.

[TheKilo]

Hahaha what the fuck was the point of that?

[Rdsxmbnt]

ya lets dump this scrub for a real baseball player like Kei Igawa

[26 Reasons to Hate Us]

Originally Posted by One Red Seat

The grapes must be awful sour there 8 games back. Interesting choice of forums to post it in too. Keep up the good work.

Honestly, I didn't even get a chance to read it before I posted it. I figured it was just another Yankee report. But whatever, it was mildly entertaining i guess.

[jacksonianmarch]

Ian Kennedy is a beast. 6.2IP 0ER 2H 11K 3BB

On the season, he is

4-1 1.43ERA 44IP 27H 18BB 47K in A+ ball. May be time for a callup.

Also, Joba Chamberlain has made 2 starts since recovering from, you guessed it, a hammy pull. He has thrown 9IP allowed only 3 hits, 4 walks and 11K's. Both of these guys are throwing really well in A+ ball in their first season.

[jacksonianmarch]

Kennedy dominating again

7IP 5H 2BB 9K 0ER. His era is down to 1.24.

[AlexanderTheGreat13]

Call that man up to AA.

[jacksonianmarch]

Originally Posted by AlexanderTheGreat13

Call that man up to AA.

Even though Marquez had a rough start today, he should be brought up to AAA and Kennedy should be brought up to AA. Kennedy isnt even being tested. Scout.com is saying that Kennedy's 4 seamer is back up into the low 90s and he is incorportating a high 80s 2 seamer into his arsenal. A big issue with his dropoff in his final collegiate yr was a drop in velocity into the mid to high 80s. Seems like they figured it out.

[AlexanderTheGreat13]

Originally Posted by jacksonianmarch

Even though Marquez had a rough start today, he should be brought up to AAA and Kennedy should be brought up to AA. Kennedy isnt even being tested. Scout.com is saying that Kennedy's 4 seamer is back up into the low 90s and he is incorportating a high 80s 2 seamer into his arsenal. A big issue with his dropoff in his final collegiate yr was a drop in velocity into the mid to high 80s. Seems like they figured it out.

Thats great news about his velocity. I remember wondering why they drafted a guy who suddenly lost velocity. He was quite good I college the year before his last year. Joba is the guy I really like. You gotta love the pitching depth in the minors.

[jacksonianmarch]

The pitching depth has been very impressive. Hughes and Clippard are the last of the big minor league cannons to fire, though, in terms of depth for this yr. If anyone else goes down before Roger and Hughes return, it would likely be between Horne, Wright, White, or Marquez for the start. I still cannot believe the storm we are weathering.

#1- Wang - missed a month
#2- Mussina - missed 2 weeks
#3- Pettitte- effective and healthy
#4- Pavano - out for season
#5- Igawa - in Tampa, very ineffective
#6- Karstens - missed 3 weeks, returned and now will miss 3 months
#7- Rasner - Will miss 3 months
#8- Wright- one shaky start, one awful start, in AAA right now
#9- Hughes - has missed 2 weeks, likely will miss 2-3 more
#10- DeSalvo- 2 effective starts, one poor one
#11- Clippard- One Effective, dominating performance in Shea.

That is ridiculous to have used 11 different pitchers in the first 6 weeks of the season.

Our #3 pitcher has stayed healthy and effective all season. Our #1 and #2 have returned. DeSalvo,