HOW DUMB IS THIS?

The Red Sox drive me nuts.  This one takes the cake.

NESN has this one.  Sweet Lord...

"The Pawtucket Red Sox will host the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, the New York Yankees Triple-A team, at McCoy Stadium in what’s being called “Evil Empire Weekend.” The promotion stems from the Red Sox-Yankees brawl between Joe Kelly and Tyler Austin earlier this month at Fenway Park."

PawSox will host "Evil Empire Weekend" at McCoy Stadium on May 5 and 6. Any fans named Joe or Kelly will be admitted for free to the weekend's games, while any fans self-identifying as Tylers or Austins will be banned from the premises. #RivalryRenewed https://t.co/LQYnGQSzJ6 pic.twitter.com/XtllPNvgYz

— PawSox (@PawSox) April 19, 2018

So let's keep this real. This "promotion" doesn't get more people in the door. It just gets under Yankee fans skin.  And sure, that's what the damn Sox want, but what's the purpose of calling it a "promotion" then?

I find this tactic stupid. It shows immaturity. It shows bad business. After all, this was started because the Red Sox infielder Brock Holt was "offended" because Tyler Austin allegedly broke up a double play and touched his leg with his spike.

By the way... THAT'S PART OF THE GAME.  And in fairness, if you look at that slide, like I did about 100 times since then, there was nothing outrageous about it.

So when that Nancy Joe Kelly threw at Austin, it made perfect sense that Tyler would want to bash his porcelain face in.

Photo: New York Post

Look... baseball is about athletes playing hard.  It's not about being upset or offended by players spiking or getting too close to their opponent. I'm over all of it, and I sure as hell hate this ridiculously, stupid "promotion".

Can't we all just get along?

TYLER AUSTIN IS BRINGING THE RIVALRY BACK!

"The Yankees grab the headlines every time!"

-- Billy Joel, Zanzibar

Photo: USA Today Sports

I loved what Tyler Austin did last night!  He just energized a Yankee team and brought back a slowly dying rivalry!  The dude's bad ass, there is no question about it.  Was it over the top? Maybe... but it was also necessary.  And it all started because someone was "offended" by the way Tyler slid into second base.  I am tired of this new culture. Play the damn game...and play it hard!

If you don't know what I mean,  The New York Post writes:

"(Brock) Holt apparently took exception to Austin’s slide into the bag on a Tyler Wade grounder to third. Austin was called out on the play."

Photo: NorthJersey.com

So right there it all started. Not by Austin, but by the Red Sox and sissy Holt.  If you watch the play, it's debatable.  Did he spike Holt on purpose? Maybe, but it wasn't blatant and for crying out loud... now we can't break up double plays? Why don't we all wear skirts too?

But the best part of last night, besides the win in Fenway was when Austin went friggin' nuts after Joe Kelly threw at him.  USA Today writes:

Benches clear, punches thrown in Yankees-Red Sox after Tyler Austin is hit by a pitch from Joe Kelly. pic.twitter.com/wvqoak8QMV

— MLB (@MLB) April 12, 2018

"The brawl began when Red Sox reliever Joe Kelly threw inside toward Yankees designated hitter Tyler Austin on one pitch, and two pitches later drilled Austin with a 97-mph fastball aimed at his back. Austin yelled and angrily threw his bat to the ground. Austin took several steps toward the mound, looked at Kelly, and Kelly motioned for him to come at him.

Photo: New York Post

And before you knew it, everyone was in on the fray, with the bullpens, coaches, and players began pushing and shoving as Kelly and Austin exchanged punches. Austin was punched several times by Kelly and was left with a fat lip. And Austin connected with Red Sox coach Carlos Febles."

Now fighting in baseball has been going on forever and when it comes to the Yankees, there are plenty of great ones.  But this one takes the cake.  Tyler was angry, and energized not only this sometimes stale Yankee club, but a Yankee fan base that has been looking for this team to wake up.

As my buddy Chris said last night... "The Yankees are back!"  Let's hope so...

Smart, Strategic move, Tyler.

IT'S A TEAM FULL OF TYLERS

Source: Jon Durr/Getty Images North America

Tyler Austin, Tyler Wade and Tyler Webb (I'm not focusing on the other Tyler who got booed off the mound last week- blacking that one out) are representative of our team's future and our team's youth. Exciting to see these guys make it to the Big Leagues after proving themselves in Double and Triple-A respectively.  We have a team full of Tylers and I am loving it...here's why.

Source: Jim McIsaac/Getty Images North America

Tyler Austin: our brand new first baseman who fought hard to make it here after breaking his foot in mid-February. According to CBS Sports, "The 25-year-old slashed only .241/.300/.458 in his first taste of the big leagues in 2016, so he could still require further seasoning before receiving regular at-bats with he Yankees again." He made a lot of noise while at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre where he batted .287/.357/.494 in 24 games since returning from his foot injury in May.  Although he took on the DH role in last night's game due to a sore hamstring, the Yankees are hopeful that this Tyler will comfortably find his way into the first base role and alleviate any anxiety this position has given the team since Mark Teixeira's retirement at the end of last season.

Tyler Wade: 22-year-old utility player who the Yankees called up last night after the crushing injury to Starlin Castro, one the team's best hitters this season.  "As of Monday night, Wade was hitting .313 with five home runs and 24 stolen bases in 70 games at Triple A. He had put himself in the conversation to start at shortstop at the end of spring training with Didi Gregorius on the disabled list, but the role went to (Ronald) Torreyes," reported NJ.com.  Earlier this spring, Joe Girardi asked the front office "if they had anybody they could turn into a super-utility type in the mold of the Red Sox's (Brock) Holt or the Cubs'  (Ben) Zobrist" and the head of player development, singled out Wade. The Yankees see a lot of promise in this Tyler, who may have found window of opportunity while Castro gets healthy.

Source: Andy Marlin-USA TODAY Sports

Tyler Webb: A left hand pitcher who the Yankees brought up to face the Texas Rangers this past weekend.  He pitched shut out innings on Saturday and Sunday for us and he may be the middle reliever we have needed (a worthy replacement for that other Tyler).  "Webb was drafted in the 10th round in 2013 from the University of South Carolina. He was a shutdown reliever in college, posting a 1.47 ERA with a 60/14 K/BB and 17 saves in 43 innings in his senior season, and has remained effective in pro ball, notably in 2016 when he fanned 82 in 72 innings in Triple-A with a 3.59 ERA," reported SB Nation.  The 26-year-old could be used in a specialty role against left-handed hitters. This Tyler may also be in a position to do some great work for Yankees with the bull pen needing some revision as we head into the final days of June.

Source: Jim McIsaac/Getty Images North America

That's my preview of the team full of Tylers.  Let's hope they help the Yankees reinvent themselves as they move into the mid-part of the season and look to rebound from injuries that have set them back tremendously.  As fans have said to me over Twitter, it is a long season, be patient.  I'm OK with that as long as I know we have relief in a few guys named Tyler.

--Suzie Pinstripe

BYB Managing Editor
Follow me on Twitter: @suzieprof

EVEN HARDCORE YANKEE FANS DON'T KNOW THIS PROSPECT!

Photo: Times Leader

Do you know who this is? It's OK if you don't. A lot of Yankee fans don't....but after this story you won't be able to say that anymore.

It's an exciting time to be a Yankee fan! We have a lot of promising young kids that could potentially form the NEW Core 4 and that makes it hard to keep up to date on all of these guys. Not everyone has fiery hair and a matching personality like Clint Frazier. Some guys lay low for awhile and then suddenly seem to appear out of nowhere!

Photo: MiLB.com / Wotherspoon, left- Joe Harvey, right

There are some guys that just naturally make their way in the spotlight. They have the skills and the personality, like Frazier. On Tuesday, Chance Adams and Justus Sheffield showed why they are two of the best pitching prospects in the system. You know their names but then there are other guys that also pitched that day like Matt Wotherspoon.....wait WHO?! Yeah, maybe you are asking that same question. No, we didn't just make up a random name. Matt Wotherspoon is a legit pitching prospect who has been flying under the radar until now.

Photo: Augusta Chronicle

Wotherspoon was just a kid who pitched between Adams and Sheffield at Tuesday's split squad game against the Red Sox that walked lead off hitter Brock Holt. That would be his only blip because after that he retired the rest of the order. Baseball's number one prospect Andrew Benintendi lined out to left, Holt was caught stealing on his way to second and Hanley Ramirez flied out to center to end the inning.

One inning is all it took to get everyone asking....who is this kid?! The Yankees have an exciting pitching prospect with a successful track record but they almost didn't get him. Back in 2013, the Detroit Tigers drafted him in the 20th round during his junior year at the University of Pittsburgh. He was 9-3 with a 3.70 ERA at the time but elected to return to university to finish his senior year of college. His last year his record slipped to 5-6 with a 4.44 ERA when the Yankees drafted him in the 34th round of the 2014 draft. His last year of college had some growing pains, but now he is pitching at Spring Training. That counts as a win in my book!

(Kim Klement | USA TODAY Sports)

Last year we were not talking about Wotherspoon, but he had good numbers. At Double-A he was   4-2 with a 2.66 ERA in 26 games. Two of those games he started. He was eventually promoted to Triple-A and went 2-0 with a 2.01 ERA in 10 games, and one of those he was the starter. The numbers at Triple-A may be a small sample but if he continues to pitch this successfully he may look back at the end of his season and be able to say he started the spring in big league camp and was eventually called up to the Bronx.

There's a lot of hype surrounding Wotherspoon right now. As the Yankees continue to think about their options to add more depth to their pitching the fans have another pitcher to watch closely. Even the biggest farm fanatics out there may have overlooked this kid....but after Tuesday's game I really don't think people will ask "WHO?!" when they hear his name.

The future just keeps getting brighter. We have another pitcher to watch closely down in Triple-A and I bet there will be many more stories to come on this kid, especially on Bleeding Yankee Blue. Next stop, Yankee stadium?

Stay tuned!

--Jeana Bellezza
BYB Managing Editor
Follow me on Twitter: @NYPrincessJ

AN UPDATE ON THE BABY BOMBERS

(In Photo: Ronnier Mustelier)
I got a chance to see the Baby Bombers visit the "Pawsox" here in Pawtucket 2 night ago! I also wanted to take the opportunity to bring you, the readers, an update on the farm club! Sorry no Derek Jeter sightings as I hoped for. But I did get to see a good ball game and some familiar faces. You heard the names, David Adams, Bobby Wilson and Ronnier Mustelier?

Scranton took an early lead scoring in the first. The Pawsox answered back in the bottom of the 1st with a run to tie it. Bobby Wilson crushes a 2 run shot in the top of the 2nd giving SWB the lead 3-1. Scranton scores a run in the top of the 3rd and 4th taking a 5-3 lead. Pawtucket ties it at 5 a piece on a two run double by Jonathan Diaz. Pawtucket's Brock Holt goes deep to right to take the lead 6-5. David Adams went 1-4, he had a single and a walk. Ronnier Mustellier and Bobby Wilson both went 2-4. Pawsox win it 6-5. But it was a gorgeous night for baseball, I got a 2013 Topps Yankees team card set. 

Don't ask why they sell that at a Red Sox affiliated park but they do. My son got an autograph from Brett Marshall and Chris Bootcheck, and my daughter was promoting BYB to her best friend who came along with us. 

I couldn't ask for a greater night at the ballpark with my family. At least the New York club pulled off a win earlier in the day. I just can't get enough of this sport or this team.

-- Rudy Laurens, BYB Writer
Facebook: House of Champions


 

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