CAMPOS ON THE MOVE AGAIN

You all remember Jose Campos who suddenly became Vicente Campos. He was the guy who came over to the Yankees when we shipped Jesus Montero and Hector Noesi to the Mariners when we received Michael Pineda.

Campos had injury and while the sports media touted him as being the better end of the deal, Pineda finally pitched and Campos was given up.  He went to the Diamondbacks this season.  And now, according to n Arizona Diamondbacks beat writer, Nick Piecoro, He's on the move again:

Dbacks lose right-hander Vicente Campos on waivers to the Angels. Campos was acquired from the Yankees in July for reliever Tyler Clippard.

— Nick Piecoro (@nickpiecoro) November 4, 2016

Hey, that's life in the major leagues. The MLB is where you see what teams need and if you can hack it... and it's hard as hell. Campos is now trying to make it again.  According to MLB Trade Rumors:

"...The 24-year-old Campos made his Major League debut this season, tossing 5 2/3 innings of relief for Arizona (in one appearance) and allowing three runs on four hits and two walks with four strikeouts. He pitched across three minor league levels this season between the D-backs and Yankees systems, ultimately spending most of his time at Double-A. In 142 2/3 minor league innings this year, Campos notched a 3.22 ERA with 7.6 K/9 against 2.7 BB/9."

OK then. Maybe the Angels can figure it all out.

CLIPPARD'S BACK IN THE BRONX!

I didn't see this one coming, but in reality, when you trade away all your closers, you need a guy with that type of experience to get through the season.  I guess Tyler Clippard will be that guy. Here's the worst part... They gave away a guy that's been improving dramatically in the minor leagues... Vicente Campos. 

You remember Campos, right? He was the better half of that Montero-Pineda deal a while back.  So much for replenishing and grooming our future, right? I kid, I kid. 

Anyway... ESPN has the story:

"The New York Yankees moved quickly to add bullpen help after trading Andrew Miller, acquiring reliever Tyler Clippard from the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday.

The Diamondbacks received right-hander Vicente Campos in return for Clippard. Campos, 24, is 9-3 with a 3.20 ERA in 20 starts across three levels of the Yankees' minor league system this season.

Clippard signed a two-year contract with the Diamondbacks last offseason. He is 2-3 with a 4.30 ERA in 37⅔ innings this season. He also has one save."

Now truth be told, I believe at this point Clippard should be setting up Dellin Betances.  Let the kid close, you earned it.  But I guess we'll see what happens now.

Anyway... welcome back to the Bronx, Tyler.  Looking forward to seeing you back in pinstripes.

YANKEE PROSPECTS WILL SOON OPEN OUR EYES!

I just read a terrific article in NJ.com that I wanted to share with my Bleeding Yankee Blue audience. Here are portions of it...

(In Photo: Gleyber Torres)

"By day, Jorge Mateo, the Yankees' best prospect, met Gleyber Torres, the organization's new phenom as of Monday's trade that sent star closer Aroldis Chapman to the Chicago Cubs. And by night, these two Latinos whom scouts love were on the field together as a double play combination for the first time. Torres, a 19-year-old from Venezuela, was at shortstop playing Mateo's natural position, and Mateo, a 21-year-old Dominican, was at second, a position he's been learning this season and one in which he'll be playing a lot more of now....

(In Photo: Gleyber Torres)

Tuesday's game had the perfect finish for this possible middle infield of tomorrow, a groundball to Torres, a feed to Mateo and a throw to first for a game-ending 6-4-3 double play...Following the game, Osborn (Tampa Yankees manager Patrick Osborn) shed light on how he's going to handle having two prized shortstop prospects on one team until Mateo gets his expected promotion to Class AA Trenton sometime soon. The manager says that Torres will remain strictly a shortstop and Mateo will play four games at second and two at short weekly...

For now, they're big juicy strawberries with some green in them, some ripening to do that will take a couple years minimum. After that, who knows? Maybe they turn into something close to what Jeter and Cano were."

So what does that all mean? It means the Yankee future is coming!  We have an infield that teams will soon drool over if they aren't already.  We have guys like Greg Bird who has had a taste of major league experience last season and when he returns next year, he won't miss a beat.

We have the Iron Giant, Aaron Judge ready to kick ass and take names.  He is hours away from getting a shot at the major league level, because I have no doubt the Yankees will bring him up for September Call-ups. Once there, he will turn the tide and fans and Yankee execs will know that 2017 will be the Year of the Giant.

I read about Vicente Campos, that pitcher we got in the Montero-Pineda trade all those years ago (Jose Campos) really doing great things in the minors.  He will be up one day, and he will be great! From Tampa to Charleston, to 5-1 with Trenton, and just promoted to Scranton.

We have guys like Ty Hensley, Tyler Austin... this is our future folks.  You gotta be excited about this.  My point is, when we're all crying and bitching about how old the Yankees are, understand that all teams go through this... but this is now our turn. And it sucks, and we're impatient, but the tide will turn again.

Be excited.  Things are happening.

SLADE HEATHCOTT'S BACK!

Many speculated that when Jose Campos and Slade Heathcott were released, the idea was to eventually go back and re-sign them.  Well, shortly after Campos was cut, he was re-signed and we wrote: GUESS WHAT JUST HAPPENED TO JOSE CAMPOS ... That was written on December 15th.

Today were writing SLADE HEATHCOTT'S BACK! Boom! That's how that works.

What's the reasoning? Restructuring of their deals.Joel Sherman of the New York Post also writes this on Twitter:

Hear #Yankees have re-signed Slade Heathcott to minor lge deal with invite to spring training
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) January 5, 2015

Nice.

Look, the Yankees see potential in these 2 prospects. If they didn't, they wouldn't have brought them back.

Welcome back Slade.
 




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GUESS WHAT JUST HAPPENED TO JOSE CAMPOS?

Quick note, Jose Campos, the minor league pitcher that was non-tendered a few weeks ago, was resigned by the Yankees.

LoHud writes:

"A team source confirmed that the Yankees have re-signed pitching prospect Jose Campos. Acquired in the Pineda/Montero trade three years ago, Campos was non-tendered this offseason so that the Yankees could open a spot on the 40-man roster. Campos is still just 22 years old, and not so long ago he was one of the top pitching prospects in the system, but Tommy John surgery cost him all of 2014 and he’s pitched barely more than 100 innings since joining the organization. Brian Cashman has acknowledged the Yankees are also trying to re-sign Slade Heathcott, the other often-injured prospect who was non-tendered this winter."

Boom.

Carry on...

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HEATHCOTT & CAMPOS NON-TENDERED & MORE

Sometimes life happens and sometimes there are hard choices.  Yankeeland wanted to eventually see Slade Heathcott and Jose Campos make it to the Bigs... but it never happpened.

According to Joel Sherman, Slade, Campos and lefty David Huff were non-tendered. In other words, they were cut loose...

#Yankees non-tender Slade Heathcott, Jose Campos and David Huff
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) December 3, 2014

Just to explain to the newbies on BYB who are wondering what non-tendered means, check it out:

"Non-tendered means that an arbitration-eligible player was not offered a contract by their team. A non-tendered player becomes a free agent available to sign with any team."

Thank you Answers.com. The Internet has everything.

In tomorrow's lesson, we'll do an in-depth lesson on Respect.  It's fascinating.

In all seriousness... I wish those guys the best of luck.  As Ty Hensley's mom once told us:

"Marci Hensley: I do know that making it to the majors is more about a bunch of factors such as health, opportunity, and work ethic coming together.  That doesn't happen in one season with kids coming out of high school. It takes some time..."
 
That always stuck with me and it's so True. Many factors, plus you want to get there and stay there after that.  It's all these players ever work for. It's tough and fans don't get it. Great words from a great woman.

Good Luck to those guys!

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HECTOR NOESI IS STILL WANTED

Good for him.  You remember Hector Noesi right? A few years ago, he was being used by the Yankees quite a bit. At the time, I was suspicious, not because Noesi was bad, but I knew there were a few other guys in the minors that they actually liked alittle better.  My thinking back then was, "Why is Noesi up, and those other guys not?"

It became clearer and clearer to me that they were actually showcasing him to other teams.  It was confirmed when he was part of the trade that sent Jesus Montero to the Mariners in exchange for Michael Pineda and Jose Campos.

Anyway... that's old news.  The new news is that he was just acquired by the Texas Rangers.

According to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com:

#rangers gave cash to #mariners for hector noesi
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) April 12, 2014

Well there you go.  Noesi is still working.  Current Yank or former Yank... we like to keep our audience in the loop.

Wish Hector well... won't ya?

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THE YANKEE CUTS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT

With the regular season now directly in front of us, teams across MLB get on with the unappealing process of trimming their rosters to 25 players prior to Opening Day.

For the Yankees, it has been a spring training filled with competitive battles for spots at key positions in the outfield, infield, bullpen and starting rotation.  Given the disappointing results of last season, it is no wonder that many of the spots are being held open as long as possible.

Even so, the process of paring down the roster has begun for the Bombers and includes some familiar names.   Among the earliest “demotions” from the Major League roster were:

Jose Ramirez – optioned to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (AAA) on March 9^th.  Ramirez is a 24-year-old right handed hurler that has been in the Yankees organization since 2008 and started eight games for the Rail Riders last year with a 4.88 ERA.  Baseball America rates his fastball as the best in the Yankees’ farm system.

Slade Heathcott – optioned to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on March 12^th.  Heathcott is one of the Yankees top outfield prospects (his arm is rated the best in the team’s minor league system), but the 23-year-old has struggled through numerous injuries during his young career.  Last season he played 103 games at Trenton and hit .261 while stealing 15 bases in 23 attempts.

Gary Sanchez – optioned to Double-A Trenton Thunder on March 12^th.  Sanchez, according to Baseball America, is the franchise’s number one prospect.  Only 21 years of age, BA already rates him as the organization’s best power hitter.  In the Yankees’ system since age 17, the catcher has been promoted to a higher level of pro ball every season.  Expect him to make an appearance in Scranton before the 2014 campaign is over.

Nik Turley – optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on March 12^th.  Turley is a 24-year-old left -handed hurler who made one appearance with the Rail Riders last season after spending most of it at Trenton.  Turley is another prospect who has steadily risen through the ranks and is only a year or two off from making regular appearances in the Bronx.

Bryan Mitchell – optioned to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on March 13^th.  Drafted in the 16^th round of the 2009 draft as a 19-year-old, Mitchell is rapidly flying through the Yankees’ minor league system.  In a little over 18 innings pitched at Trenton last season, the right-handed pitcher struck out 16 and walked only 5.  The fact that he is being placed at the Triple-A level shows the confidence the Bombers have in him.  This is someone to keep an eye on!

Jose Campos – Optioned to Tampa (high-A) on March 13^th. Campos is the right-handed pitcher included in the deal that brought Michael Pineda to the Yankees.  He’s still young (21) and features a 93-mph fastball.  He has yet to break above the “A” level of the system because of injury issues and most recently has battled elbow injuries.  At Charleston last year he did manage to pitch 87 innings and had a decent 3.41 ERA, so there is hope.  If he can put the injuries behind him, Campos can get back on track as a rising star.

This past week the Yankees had a couple more players sent to the farm.  They were:

 Manny Banuelos - Optioned to Tampa on March 16^th.  Banuelos is half of the “killer Bees” – the highly touted duo of Banuelos and Dellin Betances - and while Baseball America still rates him as the team’s 12^th best prospect, it seems that his stock is falling.  He didn’t pitch in 2013 as he recovered from elbow surgery, and that clearly has set him back in his progress through the ranks.  This spring he made two appearances and yielded seven earned runs in one inning.  He still has work to do if he wants to achieve his dream of pitching for the Yankees.

Ramon Flores - Optioned to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on March 18^th.  The 21-year-old outfielder is another prospect working his way through the ranks, and Scranton will mark the highest level of ball he has achieved.  Last season he hit .260 and has shown decent speed on the base paths in stealing 56 of 80 bases during his five seasons in the minors.

Even though the aforementioned players aren’t coming to New York with the big league club, for many their assignments represent promotions from last season’s team.  In spite of rumors of its demise, these “baby Bombers” each show that the farm isn’t barren.

Look for the Yankees to make more decisions on players in the very near future as they define the team they will take to the Bronx for Opening Day.


    

--Steve Skinner, BYB Writer
Twitter: @oswegos1




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PINEDA: "I WANT TO BE ON THE YANKEES RIGHT AWAY!"

I read David Waldstein's piece about the Yankees and Mariners and that trade that went down a few years ago when Michael Pineda came to us for then, stud Jesus Montero.  I remember Yankeeland was in a tizzy... so was I, and I wrote: BRONX SHOCKER: MONTERO TRADED FOR PINEDA.

But now according to Waldstein's New York Times piece, the Yankees "might" have emerged as the winners:

"As unlikely as it seemed two years ago, the Yankees have a chance to come out ahead in the trade, in which they also received the pitching prospect Jose Campos. Pineda is a candidate to be the Yankees’ fifth starter...Pineda’s pitches were firm, and his command acceptable, and he even broke the bat of the switch-hitter Zoilo Almonte...The next test for Pineda comes on Friday, when he is scheduled to pitch in a game."

I'd like to wait and see what he has before I say we won anything, that's just my opinion. But it wasn't only about the Pineda progress that I liked about the Times piece, it's about Pineda's attitude and confidence in which Waldstein captured. Pineda said:

"I want to be on the Yankees right away... I don’t want to go to Triple-A. But I don’t have control over the situation. I am so excited... Long time, practicing, working hard. Now I’m ready to go.”

Pineda's ready, and while if he doesn't make it as the 5th starter and gets a chance to work more in AAA, you kind of want to see the guy go Pro.

It's time... Then we'll gauge.

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WOW... ARE CAMPOS & PINEDA RIPE FOR PICKING?

You know how this works here, at BYB, right? There are players that we are all interested in, so for your convenience, we do some digging, and present you with the information. We got your back like that!

We've been hearing for months that Michael Pineda has been working his way back. Honestly, he would be more than welcomed on the Yankees rotation. He was lights out in Seattle during his 2011 rookie season. In an article in The Wall Street Journal last week (HERE), Brian Cashman said: "He's definitely a choice for us depending on what's up here." Pineda is feeling better, and has been progressing nicely. He started for Triple-A Scranton, on July 28th.

He pitched 4 innings, with 3 hits, and 2 earned runs. David Phelps would be in line to come back before we bring in Pineda though, so perhaps we will get the chance to see him in the Bronx in September.

It's a little more difficult to find information on Jose Campos. To be honest, if you aren't looking at his stats on the MiLB website, you would probably never know how he is doing. It's surprising since he was the gem in the trade that brought both him, and Pineda to New York. Campos started for Single A Charleston on July 31st. He pitched 5 innings, with 4 hits, and 0 earned runs. It was the first time he pitched that many innings since April 22nd, 2012. He is now 2-2 this season. He seems to be doing better. Pitching more innings, and giving up less hits. Yankees on Demand did an interview with him early in July. You can watch it HERE. He currently has a 3.27 ERA.

Both Pineda, and Campos are young, talented pitchers. I hope that they continue to progress well. I'd like to have the opportunity to enjoy watching them in the Bronx. Especially since the trade that brought them to us caused such a stir among Yankees fans.



--Erica Morales BYB Senior Writer
Twitter: @e_morales1804

 

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HERE'S A CAMPOS & MUSTELIER UPDATE

It's a little difficult to get all the information you'd like to hear being Yankees fans these days. Let's be honest, we are completely bombarded with Mariano Rivera and his Farewell Tour injuries, Derek Jeter, injuries, Alex Rodriguez,etc.  Luckily for you guys, BYB has got your back.

I have been asked about Jose Campos, and Ronnier Mustelier recently. So I started digging. I can understand why so many people are curious on where these guys have gone. The info is a bit buried, if you don't know where to look.

Campos was supposed to be the "diamond in the rough" in that trade between the Yankees and the Mariners that brought us him and Michael Pineda. Campos has battled injuries, but has been working in Charleston and seems to be slowly coming back nicely. He currently has a 3.57 ERA, and a 1- 2 record. His last game pitched on July 14th and he went 4 innings with 2 hits, 1 earned run, and 5 strikeouts.

Mustelier, the outfielder and infielder that impressed Yankees fans during spring training, kind of disappeared. He was sidelined at the very end of Spring training with a minor grain strain. He missed making it to the Bronx because of that. He recently was activated to the RailRiders after another injury. He is currently hitting .260 with a .676 OPS.

Both Campos, and Mustelier are working hard in the minors. Perhaps, if the need arises, they will make it to the Bronx in September.  I sure hope so.  I really enjoy watching both of them play.

--Erica Morales BYB Senior Writer
@e_morales1804

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BANUELOS & CAMPOS WATCH

It's been a while since we last heard an update on both Manny Banuelos and Jose Campos. Both who have been nursing injuries and Banuelos had Tommy John surgery resulting both to sit for the year.

(In Photo: Jose Campos)
But it's a whole new year now isn't it? Let's start with Jose Campos. He was the 2nd trade chip in the Michael Pineda package which sent Jesus Montero and Hector Noesi to complete the trade with the Seattle Mariners. He is down at Single A Charleston where he is pitching out of the bullpen in relief duty. The soon to be 21 yr. old is pitching with 1 Win and 1 Loss with a 4.21 ERA in and 35 Strikeouts in 10 appearances in 2013. Campos is ranked the 12th best pitching prospect in the Yankees farm system going into this year. It's not sure when Campos can move up to the next level. But it takes progress somewhere even if it is a slow one. After all, he's only 20 yrs. old and there is a lot of time to get him rehabbed and developed before he is fully ready to finally make a jump to the Bronx.

(In Photo: Manny Banuelos)
Manny Banuelos, or as I like to call him "Man-Ban" last pitched in 2012 before undergoing Tommy John surgery back in October. Since his surgery, he is expected miss all of 2013 and probably the early part of 2014. He is rehabbing 3 times a week, and only has started to play catch. He has yet to pitch any bullpen or simulated and it could be a long ways away from that. For now, Manny has to stay in good physical shape and follow through therapy until he has no further pain before actually picking up a baseball. Banuelos was ranked at No. 5 among Yankees prospects going into 2013.

We here at BYB will closely watch both their progress as they continue to work their way up to the big stage. Stay tuned.

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



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ROB KAMINSKY: THE NEXT BIG THING SHOULD BE BRONX BOUND

"People keep telling me that I was great last year... but I don't have a (state championship) ring on my finger. I'm not too happy about that and I won't be happy until I get one this year." 

--Rob Kaminsky

You want to talk about a competitive nature, or a future champion?  Talk about Rob Kaminsky.  I know, you never heard of the guy. You will and when you do, you'll think back to Bleeding Yankee Blue and think I'm a genius.  Well, I wasn't the guy who found him. Many Major League baseball scouts already have, many North Jersey residents have, and the local New Jersey media is picking up on it big time. Trust me, this kid's a huge deal from where I'm from.

Jeff Roberts from the Bergen Record (HERE) had a great piece on this kid that will make you all drool.   "The Englewood Cliffs resident throws four pitches consistently for strikes, according to scouts: a four-seamer that has been clocked at 93-94 mph, a two-seamer, a curveball and a change-up. 'What makes Kaminsky so special? He's got an average to above-average fastball. He's got a major-league curveball, a swing-and-miss pitch,' an AL East scout said. If I was a hitter, I wouldn't want to face that curveball. And he's got a tremendous mound presence beyond his years.'"

But that's just a part of it, Roberts writes "Kaminsky is rated as one of the top high school pitchers in the country and the best in New Jersey...  Kaminsky has command. Movement on his pitches. A presence on the mound. And he's athletic." Last year he had 3 no-hitters, an 8-2 record and a 0.20 ERA. He struck out 103 batters in 53 innings... that's not great, it's outstanding and yes, I understand he's young, but it's all relative... the dude's in high school.

Not only that, Kaminsky does charity work too.  Much like my friend Ty Hensley, this kid is starting early, taking whatever small stardom he may have and harnessing it into helping others.  "He is raising money, in conjunction with Englewood Hospital and Medical Center, to fight pediatric cancer with every strikeout he throws."

(In Photo: Ty Hensley)
You want to get your children to latch on to positive role models as they become fans of this great game of baseball? Look at athletes like Ty Hensley, he has his head on straight and never loses focus in fulfilling his dream.  The same can be said of Rob Kaminsky, a kid with focus and a kid on a mission.

You want more? Read (201) Magazine, Brian A Giuffra's piece simply titled "The Natural". It's on newsstands in Bergen County, NJ. A great piece! Also, read Mark Czerwinski's piece on the April 2nd game that Kaminsky pitched the other day.  The place was filled with major league scouts, fans from all over the country.  In the end, St. Joseph's won, beating Don Bosco 10-0, read HERE. Kaminsky tossed a no-hitter striking out 8.  Damn... it doesn't get better than that.

Put it this way, if the Yankees don't have this kid on the radar... they better get on the stick.  I can see it now... 2016.  Manny Banuelos, Jose Campos, Ty Hensley, CC Sabathia and Rob Kaminsky... I just got chills. 

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YANKEE PITCHING PROSPECTS: WHO CAN IT BE KNOCKING AT MY DOOR?

Can’t believe I am quoting Men at Work but I am.  "Who can it be knocking at my door? Stay away, don’t come around here no more…"  Yes, it’s crazy and yes it’s true, but the injury door is flying open every five minutes, so I have to once again take a sip from the confidence potion and start thinking about our future pitching staff. 

(In Photo: Manny Banuelos)

Manny Banuelos, Jose Campos, Michael Pineda, Chien-Ming Wang, David Phelps and Ivan Nova- a motley crew of Pinstripers in training.  Senior ESPN baseball writer Keith Law ranks Yankee farm system 10^th in the league.  Incidentally, according to Law’s 100 top prospects, catcher Gary Sanchez is ranked 18^th and three of our outfield prospects are also ranked.  But what about pitching?  Who’s going to be the 5^th starter, frankly who is going to take Phil Hughes’ spot, at least temporarily?  

(In Photo: Vidal Nuno)

Who will the Yankees bring up periodically to fill in Clay Rapada in the bullpen and perhaps get some real time mentoring with Mo?  Lots of questions and lots of speculation, but let’s take a closer look at our farm system pitching prospects who may make a trip to the Bronx this year and perhaps stay for a while making way for some interesting combinations in 2014. 

Now I have to throw out one disclaimer- I am always about the farm prospects and I fight for their opportunity in my tweets and posts quite often, but I would like to say that I am slightly disgusted that the Yankees did not pick up former Cardinal pitcher now Brewer Kyle Lohse. (Read about Lohse HERE.) 

He would have made a solid addition to our club.  Again, it was not to be and Scott Boras got his man 33 million for three years with Milwaukee.  Maybe next time Brian Cashman- story of our lives this off-season. 

Onto the our farm prospects- Coming off of Tommy John surgery, Manny Banuelos was once thought of as next big pitcher for the Yankees.  But as we all know, nothing is a guarantee.  Banuelos is optimistic throwing three days a week now and is holding onto his dream to pitch for the major league club. “Every time I throw, it feels better,” said Banuelos, who will remain in Tampa for the rest of the year with an eye on pitching in 2014,” according to a New York Times article published last month.  The Yankees have protected their young pitching prospect by keeping him on the 40-man spring training roster.  There is still a lot of hope for him.  

His buddy, 6 foot 8 pitcher Dellin Betances is also fighting for a spot in the show.  “Betances will start this season in Class AAA, a litmus test of no small significance after he took what Cashman described as “a radical step back” last season. Larry Rothschild, the Yankees’ pitching coach, said Betances shortened his stride over the winter with the goal of making his delivery more consistent. “Being that tall, sometimes it takes time,” Rothschild said.”  Cashman is watching closely at his two stinging B’s and hopes to see some progress from both of them this year. 

(In Photo: Jose Campos)

Jose Campos, the added player in the Michael Pineda deal last season could be make good on a deal that many are calling sour grapes.  RHP Campos could be a Mariano Rivera in the making with his continuity and efficiency.  He is slated as a starter but he may have some possibilities beyond that post.  Unfortunately, because of injury, he will start the season with Charleston and look to move up to Double A Trenton sometime this season.  If he stays healthy and makes progress this season, we could see him late next season or in 2015. 

Finally, Michael Pineda- almost scared to utter his name as I am as sleepless as you when I think of Jesus Montero in Seattle.  What is going on with this guy?  There’s not much to tell.  Cashman keeps feeding us some little lines about him throwing off of the mound now and his velocity is coming back.  According to the New York Times article (HERE) Yankees Practice Patience With Pineda’s Return, the Yankees are hopeful that Pineda will begin a rehab assignment in June.  “Since that blockbuster deal, the Yankees have gotten nothing out of Pineda, who turned 24 last month. Last year he reported to camp 20 pounds overweight and wrecked his shoulder. Surgery ended his season before he threw a single major league pitch. A drunken-driving arrest in Tampa last August, after the police pulled over Pineda’s Nissan S.U.V. at 2:35 a.m. with the headlights off, hardly endeared him to Yankees management,” states, the Times.  The Yankees believe that investing in Pineda is the right thing to do based on great comebacks from injured pitchers like Curt Schilling and Chris Carpenter.  God, I hope they are right.  But I am not holding my breath.  

 I like what I see coming out of Trenton this year who by the way announced their starters for the season just this week.  And Scranton has the organization’s pitcher of the year in Mark Montgomery who we may very well see this season.  Keep an eye out for him!

Lots to anticipate this spring for pitching and sure we have our veteran staff but don’t give up on David Phelps, Ivan Nova and anyone of these rookies- we may see the likes of Montgomery, Zach Nuding (Trentonian HERE) and maybe even Betances this season.  Hopefully, anyone of these guys will knock on the clubhouse door with something to prove this season- might just be what we need to keep the Yankees in it this year!

--Suzie Pinstripe, BYB Opinion Columnist
Twitter: @suzieprof




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