NICK SWISHER IS STILL IN SCRANTON, FOLKS

There was a moment where on June 15th, Yankee fans panicked because they knew that Nick Swisher would most likely opt-out of his minor league contract with Scranton and the Yankees and go find another team to latch onto and eventually make it to the majors with.  After all, when Tex got hurt, it almost seemed like a no-brainer that Swisher would be coming up to man first.  But Chris Parmelee did instead... and then he got hurt.  Then Rob Refsnyder filled in, and it was almost like an instant fix... until Ike Davis took over.  That left Swish in the minors with his opt-out date approaching.  But that date has passed.

Nick is still in Scranton, folks.  In fact, just before the opt-out date, he was on a role Yankees 101 writes: "In the last 48 hours, Swisher has also gotten his average up from .238 to .254 and has seven home runs on the season and 23 RBI." That was written June 12th and clearly Swish was making a final push.

In a piece in The Lantern, they speak about Swisher's journey. Here's a portion... "Swisher is currently in his 13th season as a big-leaguer but currently resides in Yankees’ triple-A affiliate Scranton/Wilkes-Barre hoping to don the pinstripes again soon.

Known as one of the more boisterous alumni of OSU, Swisher has never been one to shy away from showing his pride for his alma mater. This past weekend, he played two games against the Cleveland Indians’ triple-A affiliate, Columbus Clippers, at Huntington Park in downtown Columbus. Swisher swung a blistering bat smacking three home runs and six RBIs while going 5-for-9 at the plate.

After each of his home runs, cheers were heard around the stadium for No. 33, causing him to throw up the “O-H-I-O” to the delight of the Columbus-area fans.

'I always try to be a crowd pleaser,' Swisher said."

Be sure to read the full article about Swish in the Lantern, it's a good piece.

In the end, Swish is still playing for Scranton.  Who knows if the Yankees ever DO plan on bringing the guy up. But maybe for Nick, reality has set in.  Maybe he realizes he's not needed and maybe he's at peace with that and enjoys playing in Scranton. Who really knows.  I do know this, he is a crowd pleaser because he's got an amazing personality.  Whether or not he still has the talent to go back to the pros is another story.

We'll just have to see...

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