WHY THE YANKEES ARE 3-1 AGAINST PHILA SO FAR

Although these spring training games don’t matter in terms of the wins and losses, it’s pretty nice to get a win against the Philadelphia Phillies. With strong pitching from CC Sabathia, Mariano Rivera, Boone Logan, Cory Wade, Clay Rapada, and others, the Yankees were able to shutout the Phillies at the Boss.CC Monster was rusty his first time out (which was to be expected), but he was anything but against the Phillies. The big man pitched 3 scoreless innings, allowing no runs on two hits, two strikeouts, and just one walk. Following Sabathia was Mariano Rivera—who was making his spring debut—and he pitched a scoreless fourth inning. Boone Logan and Cory Wade followed the great Rivera and the pair pitched a scoreless fifth and sixth, respectively.(In Photo: Cory Wade)
Lefty Clay Rapada allowed a hit and a walk while striking out two in a scoreless seventh inning. Rapada has been sharp thus far this spring, and I can definitely see him making the team as the second lefty out of the bullpen. After Rapada, finally, were Chase Whitley and Kevin Whelan, both of whom pitched scoreless innings to finish off the game.
(In Photo: Chris Dickerson)
Most of the offense came off the bat of Chris Dickerson. Dickerson went 2-for-2 with two RBI and a run scored. The Captain, Derek Jeter, also picked up two hits while Robinson Cano got a base knock as well. The Yanks were able to outhit the Phillies 8-3.

Yankees won 3-0 this afternoon and they’re now 3-1 against the Phillies and 5-4 overall this spring. The Yanks will host the Houston Astros tomorrow at GMS.




--Jesse Schindler, BYB Lead Staff Writer
Follow me on Twitter @SchindlerJesse



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WHY I HAVE THE YANKEES SPRING TRAINING INVITES LIST

Just a quick note. Here's the list of the 27 guys invited to Spring Training. In this list they have invited 13 minor leaguers which is always fun to watch, as well as some of the guys they just signed like Manny Delcarmen, Bill Hall and Russell Branyan. Check it out... this is in no particular order:
DeWayne Wise: Wise is a terrific outfielder. He'll be a good asset to the Yankees outfield if he makes the Bigs again. The problem with Wise is he has a horrendous career average of .211 in 9 seasons.Russell Branyan: Great lefty power. He was signed yesterday, read HERE. He had 31 homers in 2009. With the Yankees short right field porch, this season could be fun for Branyan and the Yankees.

Manny Delcarmen: A former Red Sock but don't hold it against him. He could be helpful in the pen if he makes the big club. Read all about his signing HERE.Hideki Okajima: I've always like Okajima but it appears that batters have figured him out. In 5 years he has a career 3.11 ERA. Read about his signing HERE.

Doug Bernier: Bernier is an infielder that played for Scranton Wilkes Barre in 2011. He batted .237 last season with 13 doubles and 29 RBIs. He's 31.Manny Banuelos: What can we say about Banuelos other than we can't wait to see him again. I expect to see him up this season at some point. Read about him in THE GUMPTION OF MANNY BANUELOS.

Juan Cedeno: The New York Daily News has this on Cedeno: "has not pitched during the regular season in each of the last three seasons, appearing only in the Dominican Winter League. In 2011, he made 15 relief appearances with the Tigres de Licey and went 1-0 with a 1.04 ERA (8.2IP, 1ER)."

Matt Daley: We got Daley from the Colorado Rockies and he's played in the minors with them. He's 29 years old. In 92 games with the Rockies (MLB) he is 1-2 with a 4.71 ERA.
Colin Curtis: Colin is a solid outfielder and I expect to see him at some point this season. The Yankees are holding on to him believe it is my opinion they believe in him. He did have an injured shoulder in 2011, but in 2010 he has 11 hits in 59 at bats with 3 doubles and a home run.

Kyle Higashioka: Kyle was drafted in the 7th round of the 2008 MLB June Amateur Draft. He's a 21 year old catcher, one of many in the Yankees farm system.

Brett Marshall: The New York Daily News has this on Brett Marshall, "played the entire 2011 season with Single-A Tampa and went 9-7 with a 3.78 ERA (1401.IP, 59ER) in 27 games (26 starts)."
Jayson Nix: We wrote about Jayson Nix HERE when the Yankees signed him. Nix is an infielder who is better defensively than he is with his bat. Maybe he can be useful for the Yanks at some point this season.

Daniel Burawa: a 23 year old right handed pitcher with a lot of potential. Between Charleston and Tampa he was 5-4 with a 3.64 ERA.

Cole Garner: Garner was with the Colorado Rockies minor league system and has 76 home runs in 7 years in the minors. He has a career .286 AVG and is 27 year old outfielder.

Jose Gil: A catcher for the Yanks. The New York Daily News has this on the 25 year old catcher: "has appeared in 506 career minor league games, all in the Yankees organization, hitting .240 (405-for-1,691) with 98 doubles, 34 home runs and 224 RBI over 8 seasons."
Bill Hall: A strong second basemen and outfielder with some pop in his bat, I believe Bill Hall is a low risk pickup the Yankees will be thrilled to have signed down the stretch. Read about Hall HERE.

Adam Miller: We got Adam Miller this winter and he is a former Cleveland Indian. He's never gone pro. His minor league career with the Indians is 33-30 with a 3.71 ERA.
Gustavo Molina: Molina was helpful last season in the beginning of the year when we needed him. He is a solid catcher and a likable guy. Last year he batted .253 with 4 home runs and 21 RBIs for Scranton Wilkes Barre.


JR Murphy: Many expect big things from this kid, another catcher in the Yankees organization. He's only 20 and has a career .274 AVG. Drafted in the 2nd round of the 2009 MLB June Amateur Draft.

Mike O'Connor: O'Connor is a lefty pitcher from the Mets organization. I believe we'll see him this season to help out our lone lefty in the pen, Boone Logan. Read about Mike O'Connor HERE.Ryan Pope: The New York Daily News has this on Pope: "combined to go 2-3 with a 5.12 ERA (45.2IP, 26ER) in 40 combined relief appearances with Single-A Tampa, Double-A Trenton and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2011."

Gary Sanchez: BYB likes Sanchez but we don't care for his attitude and there has been plenty written about it. We just wrote a recent piece about Sanchez and you need to check it out HERE. In Charleston this year, he had 17 homers and 52 RBIs. There is no doubt he could be a star, but I'd prefer that he lose the attitude and become a team player.

Adam Warren: Warren was in Scranton the entire season and racked up a 3.60 ERA and a 6-8 record. He's only 24 and I will bet we see Warren at some point this season, even if it's brief.

Graham Stoneburner: The Daily News has this on the 24 year old righty pitcher: "owns a career 10-13 record with a 3.03 ERA (234.1IP, 79ER) in 45 combined minor league games in the Yankees organization since 2009. In 2011, he combined at three different levels (GCL, Single-A Tampa and Double-A Trenton) to go 1-5 with a 4.04 ERA (91.1IP, 41ER) in 18 games (16 starts)."

Jorge Vasquez: We love Vasquez and his bat and we believe he can do a lot of damage, but his strikeouts are incredibly high and we wonder at Bleeding Yankee Blue is there is a way for fix that. We wrote about Jorge back in December...read HERE.
Kevin Whelan: Whelan had 23 saves and a great 2.75 ERA in Scranton this season...that was in 45 appearances. He can improve but that's not bad, he's 28. We recently wrote about Whelan HERE.

Chase Whitley: The New York Daily News has this in Whitley: "has appeared in 72 combined career minor league games (one start) with the Yankees since 2010, going 7-7 with a 2.17 ERA (128.1IP, 31ER). In 2011, he went 3-5 with seven saves and a 2.47 ERA (91.0IP, 25ER) in 42 combined games at Single-A Tampa and Double-A Trenton."

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YANKEE RUMORS & BYB: PART 29

Johnny Damon: According to Andy Martino of the New York Daily News, the Mets are looking at Johnny Damon. Read HERE. I don't see it. At this point the Mets are lucky to get Damon Wayans. That being said, I guess you never know. The Yankees / Damon rumors have seem to cooled as of late. I'd still love to see the guy back in pinstripes. We wrote about it here at BYB in a piece called WHY JOHNNY DAMON NEEDS TO COME HOME. We'd love him back and we'd love him to abuse that right field porch, or Damon's Deck, if he returned to the Bronx. Did you know he has 77 home runs with the Yankees in his 4 years in New York? He also played 4 years in Boston...his home runs there you ask? Only 56. Just sayin'.Hiroki Kuroda: An interesting nugget in Kuroda's 1 year deal with the Yankees. There is a full no trade cluase for him now that he's with the Yanks. That report comes from Ken Rosenthal from FOX Sports HERE. Look, good for Kuroda, I guess, but if the Yankees want to flip him now, if they thought they could get a pitching upgrade come the trade deadline, they couldn't. No biggie I guess, just thought it was interesting.Roy Oswalt: I bring up Oswalt, not because the Yankees are pursing him. I don't think they ever really considered him. I'm bringing up Oswalt because the Red Sox, Cardinals and now the Rangers have all been attached to rumors involving Oswalt. Read the Rangers connection HERE.
It will be interesting the way this one pans out, only because as of Friday, the Cardinals looked like they had a deal or were damn close. Stay tuned for this one.Kevin Whelan: Sorry I didn't write a full write up about this, but it's important just the same. Bryan Hoch reported that the Yankees designated Whelan for assignment when they officially wrapped up signing Hiroki Kuroda. This comes from Bryan Hoch, read HERE. In 2 games for the Yankees this season Whelan pitched in 2 games, 1.2 innings and had a 5.4o ERA.

Check back here for more updates on MLB players and of course, Yankees as we inch closer to Spring Training.

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WHY IT WAS NICE & EASY

(Photo: Getty)
After getting swept by the Red Sox, it looks like the Yankees are right back on track after their third straight win against the Indians. The Yankees got some great contributions from up and down the lineup as well as a very good performance on the mound by the Chief, Freddy Garcia.
(Photo: Getty)
Let's start with the offense. The Yankees did not hit a single home run today and they were still able to pound out nine runs. That's a great sign, considering they are far and away leading the majors in homers with 95. A full team contribution today.
(Photo: NY Daily News)
The Captain--Derek Jeter--had a two hit game, and is now just seven hits shy of 3,000. Curtis Granderson went 4-4 with two runs and two RBI. A-Rod had three hits and three RBI. Robinson Cano, Nick Swisher, and Jorge Posada, who continues to tear the cover off the ball, each had a pair of hits, while Brett Gardner had three extra bases, including a triple, accounted for the rest of the offense. Overall, the Yanks went 7-15 with runners in scoring position.On the mound, Freddy Garcia had a bad taste to get out of his mouth from his previous start against Boston. He was great, going 6.2, allowing just one run and punching out six--a big outing for Freddy. Boone Logan, Luis Ayala, and Kevin Whelan each had scoreless outings to seal the win. And as a staff, the Yankees held Cleveland to 0-12 with RISP.

Final Score today: Yankees 9- Indians 1. The Yanks will look to complete the four game sweep on Monday as A.J. Burnett (6-4, 4.37 ERA) will look to bounce back following his ugly start against Boston and will oppose Carlos Carrasco (5-3, 4.52 ERA), who the Yankees have never seen before. It will be interesting to see how they handle the young right hander.



--Jesse Schindler, BYB Staff Writer




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SIX NAMES YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT

Yankeeland feels confused right now, and I get it. Many things are happening. Yes, we won 2 in a row to the Cleveland Indians after a horrendous series against the Red Sox, but injuries are piling up and rumors are floating around like crazy. What to do, what to do. Let's break this down:

• Bartolo Colon: Add him to the list of Yankee injuries. Colon has a strained left hamstring and got the injury today. He was rolling before it happened. He was into the 7th until he hurt himself covering first. It stinks. Read about it HERE. A hammy is never a good injury because it takes alittle while to get better, plus add Colon's age into it and who knows when the guy would be back. Maybe he could shoot some stem cells into that. I'm joking, but this is serious because the New York Yankees have injury after injury and Colon was our guy. But if you think about it, many of us have had this concern in the back of our minds about Bartolo and Freddy Garcia. Can they sustain a full season, or will they break down? Well, I guess we know at this point, huh? We'll try and keep you posted on this story the best we can.

• Joba Chamberlain: If you live under a rock and didn't realize it, Joba will be having his Tommy John Surgery on Thursday, according to Joe Girardi. Read it HERE. This is a blow to the Yankees bullpen, no doubt, and you have to worry about what's going to happen next. To me, you don't want to over work Robertson, but you also don't want to rush the kids up from the minors and blow their arms out due to immaturity. Tough call. Glad I'm not the GM. Get well soon Joba.

• Kevin Whelan: Speaking of kids, Whelan took take the place of Joba and Chris Dickerson will go down. I'll miss Dickerson, I liked the kid. Anyway, in Scranton, Whelan had 27 innings pitches and has a 1.67 ERA with 30 strikeouts. Read HERE. Nice. Lets see how he does. In his first game in pinstripes, Whelan pitched 0.2 innings and walked 4 and gave up 1 earned run.

• Carlos Zambrano: It's the rumor that won't go away. Carlos Zambrano to the Yankees maybe? Few have reported on it, but lord knows there is the Joe Girardi, Chicago connection and it wouldn't surprise me if Zambrano was one day a New York Yankee. Reports are from Cubbies Crib. Zambrano would be willing to waive his no trade clause if it meant going to the Yankees, among other teams. This rumor just keeps on ticking. I wrote about it in HERE COMES MR. FIX IT back in February and I must say, rumors are usually true, especially if they last this long. Stay tuned.
  

• Phil Hughes: Joe Girardi said that Hughes had thrown 30 pitches and looked good. Reports are his velocity is up the 90 to 92 mph. Girardi also said that next Tuesday he will make a start in the Gulf Coast League. Coincidentally, I stated in WHY THERE'S A HUGHES FACTOR that it would be unfair to move Colon out of the starting rotation once Phil Hughes comes back. Strangely, the timing of Colon's injury and the progress of Hughes is in sync. It is possibly that Hughes comes back before Colon does, therefore would be back in the rotation, but I guess we'll just have to see.

• Grant Balfour: Balfour has been solid this year, and his name came up this winter as a possible Yankee get and now it seems he's being discussed again. Read HERE. The rumor is the Yankees have asked about Balfour, now it's just a question of whether or not they go for it.

Rumors and updates everywhere on Bleeding Yankee Blue. We may not be the biggest blog, but we try to give it to you short and sweet, and with a smile.

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