This one hurts, just because I'm a fan. Plus, I got to know the Jones family alittle bit over the season, and of course you know about the BYB interview with G and Cassie, EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: GARRETT & CASSIE JONES. Plus, I really like them as people. Bottom line, Garrett Jones was designated for assignment today. That sucks.
According to MLB.com, "...the Yankees designated first baseman/outfielder Garrett Jonesfor assignment.
New York also reinstated outfielder Slade Heathcott from the 60-day disabled list and outrighted left-hander Chris Capuano to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Heathcott was also optioned to Triple-A."
Say what you will about Garrett Jones. I say the dude is a fierce competitor and had a huge opportunity to come to the New York Yankees and play and went for it. The role wasn't the right one for him, but he had a big shot here. If Jones was playing more consistently, you'd see more production, that's the bottom line. It didn't work out.
I personally want to see Garrett succeed wherever he ends up, and I want to thank Cassie for being great in our constant chatter back and forth throughout the season. No one's a bigger fan of Garrett's than she!
Whatever happens, good luck Garrett from everyone here at BYB!
Now look, this is mad exciting. Think about it this way. We could have had David Price pitching next, and no Severino or Aaron Judge. Think about that.
Anyway look, this is a big brave move by Yankee brass. They're not used to holding onto the kids... but they did.
According to Hardball Talk: "The exact date hasn’t been announced yet, but Hoch surmises it could be August 4 at home against the Red Sox."
I thought this was cool and so we posted it for your enjoyment. This is my friend Paul Chivari from Chicago. He's the guy that came up with this terrific BYB jingle:
We wrote about it in THE BYB JINGLE YOU CAN'T GET OUT OF YOUR HEAD. Anyway, he wanted to share a preview for the Yankees - White Sox Weekend. I hope you enjoy it. Be nice, he's a good dude. -Casey
The last time the New York Yankees visited Chicago it was for back-to-back series against the Cubs and the White Sox in May of last year. That was when I reached out to Robert Casey to have him appear on my radio show and gain the New York perspective on what that road trip would mean for the Yankees. At that time I had no idea that I was in store for one of my most treasured friendships that I’ve gained in the world of sports. After all of our interactions and contributions to each others projects it feels like more time than just fourteen months have passed.
Now that the Yankees are back in Chicago I felt that it would only be right if I gave my Chicago perspective on what the forthcoming White Sox-Yankees series means to me. So I present to you, BYB nation….
The White Sox are finally playing their best offensive baseball all season. In their last eight games they outscored their opponents 56-17 while winning seven of those contests. All of those games were on the road, but they were against weaker American League squads in Cleveland and Boston. Ace right hander Jeff Samardzija, who is in a contract year, started the road trip as a big trade piece for a team towards the bottom of the league standings. Now, with the trade deadline falling just hours before this series kicks off Samardzija is in a position where he may stay with the team for the remainder of the season. Only 3.5 games out of the final Wild Card spot, the White Sox front office feels that they are contenders and choose to remain buyers rather than the sellers many expected them to be at the deadline. With both teams looking to add help to their respective rosters in the hopes of a run to a title, anything can happen to either the White Sox or the Yankees at the deadline. Both teams may stand pat, though both have been linked to big names.
Trade rumors?
The Yankees did acquire outfielder Dustin Ackley but they desperately need some starting pitching. This was a known fact before right hander Michael Pineda was scratched from his Thursday start in Texas then placed on the 15-day DL. Despite this setback to the rotation, the Yanks were linked to San Diego Padres closer Craig Kimbrel.
The school of thought is that by adding Kimbrel the Yankees will have a formidable back of the bullpen with Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances. That never happened. The biggest names of the starters that were connected to the Yankees were David Price and Cole Hamels. They're both gone now. James Shields is still available, but with three years remaining on his deal, the cost may be too rich for even the Yankees. Who knows….maybe Jeff Samardzija could switch locker rooms this weekend.
The White Sox trade hopes aren’t as bright. With the Detroit Tigers in demolition mode the only viable option for the White Sox would have been Yoenis Cespedes, but he's a Met apparently. The Sox did land Justin Sellers for infield depth, but probably won’t be the boost their offense could use.
What to expect
The White Sox recent success shouldn’t scare anybody right now. A home stand against the Yankees and Rays followed by a three game series in Kansas City will more than likely bring them back to where they were a week ago - at the bottom portion of the American League standings. This weekend will be a big series and they may have run out of momentum after Thursday’s loss at Boston. Their 24-22 home record needs to improve and their starting pitching has been good all year, but if the Yankees are anything like the team that posted an average of nearly nine runs a game in Texas this week the White Sox pitching staff could be in for some long games. The Yankees will face two left handers in Rodon and Danks and are 18-11 against lefties this season.
While the White Sox may be hot, they have yet to prove themselves against any major contenders at US Cellular Field. Melky Cabrera has been on fire and Jose Abreu brings a ten game hitting streak into Friday’s contest. Rookie lefty starter Carlos Rodon may struggle against the veteran Yankee sluggers unless his slider is dominant. John Danks has been better recently but is 2-3 lifetime against the Yankees and has had trouble against Mark Teixeira and Jacoby Ellsbury.
Jeff Samardzija is the only real x-factor the White Sox have to combat the Yankee power bats only allowing five home runs in nine starts this season at home.
Prediction: Yankees take two out of three
--Paul Chivari, White Sox fan & Friend of Robert Casey
Twitter: @PaulChivari
Now however, the idea of Chapman or Craig Kimbrel could be a reality and I am thrilled about it, especially if we can pull it off and not lose our big 3 prospects. Check this out... from USA Today's Bob Nightengale:
The #Yankees are one of five teams aggressively pursuing #Reds Chapman to be their closer.
One thing about being a Yankee fan...we always have a lot of crap to endure from baseball fans in general. If it's not the generic "Yankees Suck" comment, it's a comment about how we have 26 rings and a pocket watch but we aren't relevant anymore. Or, our team is a bunch of dinosaurs and we are cheaters. I can go on and on....we've all had these debates. It's tough being a Yankee fan, we wear our own uniforms and battle gear too.
So old news, but last Monday night Mark Teixeira had a meltdown. You can read more about that HERE if you need to but now it is as Joe Girardi puts it a "non-issue" in the organization. As far as the fans and Yankee haters go it is FAR from over. So after the picture of Teixeira beating up a trash can surfaced next my cell phone starts to light up like a Christmas tree, and my Facebook and twitter got private messages on them. Yes, let it be known I am a Mark Teixeira believer but seriously, can't these people antagonize someone else?
::Red Sox fan:: Hey Jee! I told you that SUCKteira guy you like so much is a jackass. That is disrespectful to his team. ::Me:: I will be sure to tell him next time we talk. ::Red Sox fan:: I am serious! Carrying on like that is unprofessional. ::Me:: What do you have a problem with exactly? Yelling at the Coach or the trash can? ::Red Sox fan:: The trash can and his temper tantrum. Get a grip Paul O'Neill wannabe. ::Me:: Yeah, because David Ortiz never beat the heck out of a phone in the dugout before. ::Red Sox fan:: Well....that's different. ::Me:: How convenient....get outta here!
Or how about this one?
::Yankee hater with multiple "favorite" teams:: GET THAT MAN A PED's TEST! ::Me:: Right....because a reformed Gluten free .259 hitter is on the roids! That is a ground breaking idea right there. ::Yankee hater with multiple "favorite" teams:: Well Asprin doesn't cause that. ::Me:: Asprin....not a bad idea right now with how many of these messages I am getting. ::Yankee hater with multiple "favorite" teams:: Well you guys like your steroids. ::Me:: Oh that's right....Yankee players are the only ones that take PEDs. ::Yankee hater with multiple "favorite" teams:: Maybe Alex Rodriguez hooked him up. ::Me:: Yeah, maybe he knows Tony Bosch!
But this one is my personal favorite, especially after today's breaking news of Jenrry Mejia second failed drug test this year, read more on that HERE.
::Mets friend:: Check your boy, that is Roid Rage no doubt about it. ::Me:: Did he share it with Mejia? ::Mets friend:: What are you talking about? He served his time. He's back. ::Me:: Check the news homey. ::Mets friend:: LIES! ::Me:: Ok, if that is what helps you sleep at night.
So no people...the Mark Teixeira is on Roids is not funny and in fact, my friend the Mets fan was living under a rock. It's called PASSION people. That's right the stoic Mark Teixeira himself showed some emotion. The world must be coming to an end. I don't know what to do with myself. This temper tantrum changes everything.....except the amazing score last night and the leader in the AL East.
Keep searching haters. Carry on Yankees!
--Jeana Bellezza, BYB Senior Writer and Editor Twitter: @NyPrincessJ
"According to Jack Curry, the Yanks just got Dustin Ackley"
--Steve B., BYB reader
The hardest part of my job as Chief of Bleeding Yankee Blue is this: I can't type as fast as the news comes out! That's on me. I can't exactly just reach out to my writers, who work and have children and activities and all that stuff and say hey, "Stop what the hell you're doing and write this!" This is a volunteer shop... we do what we can.
Luckily for us, we have awesome, dedicated fans and readers who help me out. I tip my cap to Steve B. Oh yeah... and to Jack Curry:
It will be Ramon Flores and Jose Ramirez to the Mariners for Dustin Ackley, source says.
Yes, the Yankees got Dustin Ackley, a second baseman, sometimes outfielder and that only means 1 thing to me. Maybe Stephen Drew's days at 2nd could be over for the New York Yankees. Oh yeah, and expect Rob Refsnyder to be traded eventually. That's not my wish when it comes to RR, it's just the way things appear to be going. Bottom line, I'm confused by Ackley mainly because these days he plays more outfield than second base.
Here's the other part of the puzzle, Ramon Flores and Jose Ramirez are going to the Mariners. Ugh. I didn't want to part with Flores... but it is what it is at this point.
"I kinda wish we had David Price right about now."
--Erica Morales, Senior Writer, BYB
The Yankees have placed Michael Pineda on the DL with a forearm strain injury. According to Hardball Talk:"Pineda began the season 5-0 with a 2.72 ERA, but has a 4.77 ERA in his
last 12 starts dating back to mid-May. He also has a lengthy history of
arm problems, missing all of 2012 and 2013, so there’s a lot of reason
to worry."
Look, the Yanks are doing well... but we need a pitcher. Now with Pineda hurt, I think it's important to get an ace.
So much for the Yankees getting David Price. According to ESPN Toronto Blue Jays are giving up Daniel Norris, Matt Boyd and Jario Labourt and will receive Price. Toronto recently got Troy Tulowitzki from the Rockies. Price went to the Tigers last year before trade deadline, but with their current record of 49 - 52, and being fourth in the AL Central, they are looking to completely reboot.
Meanwhile, the Yankees are staying true to their claims that their top four prospects - Luis Severino, Aaron Judge, Greg Bird, Jorge Mateo - will not be available. It's what prevented us from getting Cole Hamels. I wouldn't be surprised if that's also what kept us from Price. Or maybe we weren't making a serious bid for him in the first place. Who knows!
Bright side to this? The Yankees are pretty constantly productive against Price. So there you have it folks. Price to the Blue Jays, and the Yankees still get nothing.
Baseball and PEDs is like a hamster on a wheel sometimes... it keeps going and never stops and never changes.
Bleeding Yankee Blue said it and we've been saying it for years. Bud Selig wasn't about cleaning up baseball at all. He was about making Alex Rodriguez the example because he just didn't like him. Guess what? It didn't work, and now, with recent news about Jenrry Mejia and now 3 Yankees minor leagues being busted for drug use... let's call Selig what he is... a jack ass.
"New York Yankees Minor League right-handed pitchers Anderson Acevedo,Anthoniris Santana and Carlos Santana
have each received a 72-game suspension after testing positive for
metabolites of Stanozolol, which is basically old fashioned anabolic
steroids."
OK, so let's review. Stiffer drug penalties don't work in baseball. Why? Because getting suspended for PEDs is like pushing the reset button.
What happened to cleaning up baseball? Bug Selig was about smoke and mirrors. Bud Selig was hell bent on being the Commissioner that "cleaned up baseball", but it seems to have gotten worse, hasn't it?
Right... right... Bud can't hear me.
Look, I'm not naive. I know what goes on in sports and it's been going on forever, but it was crystal clear to me that the strike in 1994 nearly ended baseball, and then, when players started hitting home runs and got bigger, the fans came back. Bud saw the money rolling into MLB. His thinking was "Why complain now?"
Everyone loves a home run, right? And so baseball was back and bigger than ever. Home run records were broken and "Wow... isn't this great for baseball?" Well, under Bud Selig's own definition... no it wasn't, but why say anything then? Crook.
When people started noticing, Selig began to pretend there was concern. He went through the dog and pony show, Congress, "stricter drug penalties", but as players went away to serve their fines and new players returned, all it showed me was MLB was still selling violators jerseys in their stores, and baseball and those punished players stats would stay intact and continue to play. In essence... nothing happened.
Nothing until Bud Selig decided to treat ARod as the example, "So this kind of thing wouldn't happen again." Selig netted and punished the biggest villain in baseball, who also happened to use PEDs.
With Alex Rodriguez down and out... it was over and Bug could ride into the sunset. He accomplished his goal.
One problem... Alex came back better than ever this season, and hey Bud, steroids in baseball is still here.
Message to Bud Selig; You destroyed the sport and you wasted everyone's time doing it. This ones on you. If I was Manfred, I'd find away to fine you!
The commissioner who cleaned up baseball... right... not buying it.
What happened last night to Mets player Wilmer Flores should never happen. In fact, there are procedures in place so it doesn't happen. The Mets were trying to hammer out a deal, I get that, but if a player is involved in a deal, that player is pulled for 2 main reasons; They don't want to player about to be traded get hurt and jeopardize the trade, and secondly, emotionally, they want you at your best. The Mets proved to many of us last night that they are not a well oiled machine and have no regard for the players they employ, as well as their manager, who apparently was left out of their decision. Sad.
Now the trade never happened. Apparently there was alot of chatter about Zack Wheeler and 'concerns' over him after Tommy John Surgery. That was quickly dismissed. It turned out the real issue was Carlos Gomez. The Mets were concerned about his hip:
Sources: #Mets backed out of trade due to concern over hip issue with #Brewers’ Gomez.
Now Scott Boras tried to squash it saying that Gomez has never had a hip issue and said: "Carlos Gomez has never seen a hip doctor and has never had a hip
issue in his playing career. Anyone who suggests that is inaccurate and
baldly misrepresenting the truth of the player’s condition..." What's the truth? I don't know, it's a mess, and that leads to speculation...
Did the Mets make it up because the whole trade went down so badly on social media and on their broadcast? I mean, think about this; In the post game, Terry Collins claimed he didn't even know Flores was traded. The Mets look unorganized and unprofessional at that point. So maybe when the world saw Flores in tears on the field, Mets brass realized they messed up big time and pulled out, claiming the Gomez hip was bad. Or, maybe Gomez DOES have a bum hip. Whatever the case, emotions ran deep last night.
Honestly, the scene of Flores crying on the field was heartbreaking. Of course, my big question is why was he left on the field if he was traded? I'd like to give the Mets the benefit of the doubt here, and say that maybe the trade wasn't as near completion as many are reporting it to have been. At the time, the basics of the trade seemed to have been laid out hours before the game started. Maybe they weren't expecting it to go through. Really tough to say.
Whatever the case... the deals dead and Flores lives another day with the Mets, an organization he'd been with since he was 16 years old. That being said, shame on the Mets... they blew this one, leaving Flores to be on display, analyzed, and perhaps ridiculed.
It was pretty crappy on the Mets part, I have to say. If I'm Flores... I now want out of Queens... it's about respect.
When Masahiro Tanaka seems off, he probably is, and that usually means it's not always a win for the Yankees. I think that was established last night.
Not alot to say here. The Yankees have been pretty good as of late and last night they could not pull out a win. Remember when I told you in THE BIG PAYBACK that they'd score 1 run tonight? I was joking, but the reality is, many times there are situations where teams rally hard for a few days scoring double digits and then they just look tired the next day. It happens, no biggie. Last night the Yankees only got 2 across the plate.
Masahiro Tanaka went 6 innings, gave up 9 hits and 4 runs. He struck out 3.
The Yankee run scoring went like this:
In the second, Carlos Beltran homered and then Jacoby Ellsbury singled knocking in Didi Gregorius. That was it for the Yanks. They had 8 hits on the night, they left 5 on base and were 1-4 with runners in scoring position. Truthfully, it wasn't a horrible night, they just didn't have their ace feeling exceptionally well. You know what? It happens. I refuse to get crazy about it.
