MANNY BANUELOS "TO THE BULLPEN" ISN'T A NEW IDEA

ESPN has reported that Manny Banuelos will compete this spring but could most likely be a candidate for the Yankee bullpen come the 2014 season.  That comes from their source.

They write:"... the soon-to-be 23-year-old remains the only top prospect in the Yankees' farm system who might -- just might -- have a chance to impact the major-league club in 2014.  'Banuelos has got that big arm,' a front office source said. 'If it's still there and the lightning still strikes then you're going see people say, 'F--- it, bring him with us [on Opening Day].'"  The source said that as soon as this season, Banuelos -- who has yet to distinguish himself even at the Triple-A level and still projects as a starter long-term -- might turn out to be a useful part in the Yankees' bullpen."

Now let me state for the record that I have thoroughly enjoyed the series that Andrew Marchand and Wally Matthews have put out on the Yankees farm talent over the last several days. I told Marchand as much today on Twitter:

@BleednYankeeBlu thx
— Andrew Marchand (@AndrewMarchand) February 6, 2014

I'm not a hater, let's get that out there, although Marchand always seems so uninterested in what I say...feelings mutual I guess...I kid, I kid.  But don't be fooled Yankee fans, this idea of Manny Banuelos "perhaps" starting in the pen isn't a new idea... it's an old idea and Bleeding Yankee Blue had suggested it a while back as part of what we considered to be a learn curve for the youngster.

Read THE EXTRA LEFTY THE YANKEES NEVER HAD from all the way back in 2011 when we wrote:  

"Then comes this report suggesting the Brian Cashman doesn’t want to bring up Manny Banuelos this season...read HERE, another lefty who I believe is worth giving a shot. Yes, I understand Cashman’s mentality here, but let’s just see what the kid has, right? Should we bring up Manny Banuelos to help?"

Now, we're not know-it-alls here at BYB.  The point I'm making is, it is absolutely logical to give Banuelos a shot in the pen, groom him, work him, especially now after coming back from Tommy John surgery and give him the "Bigs experience" all the while working him out and prepping him for the future.  Let's not forget, this was a kid the Yankees had high hopes for. Our point is, it's worth seeing him start out in the pen and then figure out later where he'd be valuable, he's young.

One thing we CAN'T do though is jerk the guy around.  If we do bring him up and put him in the pen, there is only 1 other move we make; Either we groom him to be a future starter, or we keep him in the bullpen. I think it's safe to say we learned our lesson with Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes.  That's my opinion anyway.

Once again, I applaud Marchand and Matthews for a great series on ESPN.  Good work. 

Thank you to all the Bleeding Yankee Blue readers for continued success.  You've made BYB the fastest growing Yankees fan site in the history of Yankees fandom.  Thanks for reading, sharing and enjoying. Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.