WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN TO MIKE FORD?

This season has been a wild and crazy ride. The frustration I felt from all of the early injuries quickly turned into the excitement of watching "no name" guys step in, kick butt and help the Yankees win games while our biggest rivals like the Red Sox struggle. I can't believe it is September already.

This season has been all about guys stepping up and getting the job done while all of our heavy hitters were out injured. It sucks when big names like Aaron Judge and Miguel Andujar miss time but we've had a long list of new guys to watch and get excited by. One of my favorites lately has been Mike Ford. He's been pretty clutch, he has good plate discipline and his defense at first base has been good. In fact, so good that we should all be asking "Greg Bird WHO?" Seriously, I don't even know why I even mentioned him.

But it is worth mentioning that while Luke Voit missed time Ford was the best fill-in that the Yankees could have asked for. Seriously, thank you to the Mariners for leaving him unprotected so we could grab him in the Rule 5 draft. But what happens to him next?

The Yankees have a few weeks to figure things out thanks to September expanded rosters. Thankfully Voit seems to be healthy for now, and hopefully he stays that way but once the Yankees start making decisions about the postseason roster and eventually next season where does that leave Ford?

It's been a relatively small sample size but the 10 home runs have been exciting to see, especially his hit against the Oakland A's this past weekend. Some media sources like New York Post and other blogs like THIS one are calling him a "savior" I wouldn't go that far, but I will say he's been a productive clutch hitter. Is that enough to stay in New York?

I don't envy Brian Cashman's position right now. He is going to have a very busy November before the rule 5 draft. He is going to have quite a few decent players with some trade value that he won’t be able to protect. Ford has already experienced Rule 5, question is will he have to do it all over again? It seems early to think about but November will be here before we know it.

Ford's had some nice moments for us, but is it enough to keep him on the 40-man roster? Let's give him Bird's spot! Okay, all joking aside....he deserves a shot somewhere even if it isn't with us.

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @nyprincessj