WEIRDEST BASEBALL INJURIES

As we all know baseball can be a very unpredictable sport. You never want to see a player on the disabled list, but sometimes accidents happen. Typically these accidents happen on the field, during practice, or during a workout. But sometimes players make their way to the DL for injuries that have nothing to do with the game itself.

The Mets are always...a mess. As a Mets fan myself I know this firsthand. Remember that guy Yoenis Cespedes? Yeah me neither. But he has not actually played a game since July 20, 2018 due to multiple ankle fractures. It has just recently come to light that he suffered these injuries from stepping into a hole after being frightened by a wild boar. You read that correctly. A wild BOAR!

Another interesting injury happened to Carl Pavano in 2013. At the time he was a free agent and was still looking for work, he was a Yankee at one point in his career. He was shoveling his driveway after a bad storm and fell into the shovel's handle. Although it hurt, he did not think anything of it until a few days later when he had a sudden wave of abdominal pain and nausea. It turns out he was bleeding internally the whole time and his lung had collapsed! He then retired from baseball, and hopefully now hires other people to shovel his snow.

A memorable injury happened to Trevor Bauer of the Indians in 2016. During the ALCS, his pitching hand was dripping blood onto the mound. Why? He cut his right pinkie trying to repair his drone, and was sliced by the propellers. His stitches opened in the first inning and he had to leave the game.

For the last one I will throw it back to the 90s. Glenallen Hill of the Blue Jays showed up to the ballpark on crutches, covered in bruises, cuts, and rugburn all over his body. The night before he claimed to have a nightmare where he was trying to get away from spiders. In his sleep, he ran out of his bedroom and crashed through a glass table and bounced off a wall. Hill also had a one year stint with the Yankees in 2000!

Let us keep our fingers crossed that none of these injuries happen to any of the Yankees players this year. Want more freak injuries? Let me know!

--Missy O'Rourke
BYB Contributor
Twitter: @missy_orourke

CLINT FRAZIER STRIKES & LEADS THE MLB ROUNDUP THIS WEEK!

Source: Newsday

Another great week to be a Yankee fan as they completely humiliate the Orioles in another series.
Clint Frazier, has been on a roll. Smacking two out of the park on Tuesday night improving his line from .259/.293/.463 to .268/.300/.518. Gleyber Torres joined in the fun Monday night with his fourth multi-homer game of the year.  Red Thunder and Gleyber Day stole the show this week for sure!

ALERT! Fun Factoid: Frazier’s home runs helped the Orioles yield their 100th home run in their 48th game. The previous record held by 2000 Royals, achieving this in 57 games. It really doesn’t mean anything, except that it is embarrassing, and our team helped them get there.

Source: NYDailyNews

Some bad news for the Yankee round up is that our veteran lefty CC Sabathia was placed on the 10-day IL even though he earned the win against the Orioles Wednesday night. The injury does not seem very severe, so a short stay on the IL seems likely at the moment.

The Mets in proper fashion are plagued with injuries. Most interestingly, Yoenis Cespedes, allegedly falling into a hole on his St. Lucie ranch, fractured his ankle. Yea. Remember that guy? I don’t. Guess we won’t be seeing him ever.

Mets have also lost Jeff McNeil, Robinson Cano, Michael Conforto, and Brandon Nimmo. The IL is becoming a little too full for my liking.

Source: CBS Sports

In better news, Rajai Davis has a call-up story he will never forget. Hopping into his Uber from Pennsylvania to Queens, Davis bonded with his driver for the next two hours. Six innings after arriving at Citi Field, Davis hit a three-run homer in his first Mets appearance.

“I’m just really grateful and thankful for the opportunity that the front office gave me,” Davis said. “I appreciate it. I’m trying to make an impact right away, and I was fortunate enough to be put in that position to make something happen,” reported MLB.com.

Source: CBS Sports

Zack Greinke, former Dodger and current Diamondback, still not a favorite of Suzie Pintstripe and me, has joined the 2,500 strikeout club. Greinke is the 37th pitcher to reach 2,500 strikeouts and the fifth active. Others include CC Sabathia (now at 3020), Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, and Felix Hernandez.

“I think we all need to sit back and appreciate what that means and who we have throwing for us every fifth day,” D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said. “He’s a very special, special pitcher,” reported MLB.com.

Source: NBC Sports

The White Sox had a very rare feat in their game on Wednesday, getting a triple-play and grand slam in one game. The triple-play was performed by Yoan Moncada, Yolmer Sanchez, and Jose Abreu.

“There's a lot of things that have to go well for that to occur,” manager Rick Renteria said. “You have to be well within range of that bag and be able to release it. They got it out of their gloves, getting it in and out quickly. Marisnick's fleet of foot. Everything had to be perfect.”

 

Source: The Chicago Tribune

Charlie Tilson is responsible for the grand slam, which also counted as his first big league home run. The White Sox are only the fourth team in the last 40 years to have hit a grand slam and turned a triple play in the same game.

Another week in the books! Cannot wait to sit with a glass of wine by the beach this weekend and watch our teams get some wins.  Happy Memorial Day Weekend!!

--Missy O'Rourke
BYB Contributor
Twitter: @missy_orourke

MAKING BASEBALL FUN AGAIN

Source: CBS Sports

The World Series has not disappointed as far as keeping things interesting even without the Yankees.  The game last night with the back and forth banter between each team besting the other was crazy fun to watch. The night before, watching Walker Buehler get excited with a fist pump as he completed a 2-hit 100+ pitch 7th inning carrying his Dodger team into the 8th with a 1-0 lead was fun to watch.  18 innings may not have been fun, but it was two good teams going at it and that I like.  The competition between two well matched teams is making baseball fun again. But there are other parts of baseball that are taking that fun right out of it.

Source: Sporting News

It was not fun to watch Manny Machado slump up to first base after smashing a deep single into the outfield on Friday night.  "Machado got caught watching a long fly ball that he thought was heading into the seats, only to watch it bang off the wall. He had to settle for a single and missed out on what looked like a potential double," reported CBS Sports. The same article reported that "Manny Machado has not been shy about admitting he'll never be Johnny Hustle. "That's not my cup of tea," he said after jogging out a routine ground ball during the NLCS." 

Source: KNBR 680

The spotlight lens has been focused more closely on the Dodger shortstop over the last several weeks, revealing some undesirable qualities in the young player. These include failure to hustle, cleating the first baseman after crossing the base and just an overall cockiness, which is just not appropriate and only collectively takes away from baseball as a fun competition between two teams, highlighting the player as an individual.

Source: Newsday

He's not the only one taking the fun out of the game.  Guys like Yoenis Cespedes do it too.  I sometimes feel like Gary Sanchez does this when he appears not to hustle down the base paths or behind the plate.  Even the mere appearance of laziness is undesirable.

Source: USA Today

There was an article published a little over a year ago about how baseball needs to brand the "Face of Baseball" in order to take the sport to the next level as far as leveraging star power for more dollars for the game.  According to ESPN, "What this sport needs now, to get back into the Face of Baseball business, is the sort of culture change that will allow the game to give people what sports fans demand in the 21st century -- a culture built around players who aren't afraid to express their personality." But to what extent?  Guys like Machado hurt the sport with their "real personalities" and Kris Bryant and Mike Trout, make baseball fun again with their behaviors both on and off the field.

When I see exciting games and inviting ball parks that welcome fans in, it makes me feel that baseball is reaching out to today's fans and making the game fun again.  When I see attitudes and lack of hustle, it takes the game down a road that it really needs to avoid.  Making baseball fun again is a trend I hope advances as the World Series winds down and a new season begins later this spring.

--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @Suzieprof

THE POST GOT IT RIGHT

Joel Sherman had me from the first paragraph of his piece from the NY Post Saturday evening. "The Mets have taken on so many characteristics of what was anticipated for the Yankees — namely, winning a whole lot early." By a show of hands, how many of you agree?  Exactly.  Sure, we have a rain out to reflect further on the losses to Baltimore and Boston and near-loss in the first game against Detroit but we can't argue that when you look at the Mets, you are saying to yourself, "This should be us."

Sherman gives three main areas/reasons why the Mets are progressing in a way that the Yankees were predicted to do so: Managing, Bullpen and Outfield Depth.

Source: Michael Reaves/Getty Images North America

The Mets have had incredible management from new skipper Mickey Callaway.  It was anticipated, as Sherman points out, that "Callaway — a pitching coach by training — would be more of a wonk." Instead, he has been brilliant with the caveat, he has not had to deal with any issues, yet.  And the leadership he is receiving from new additions Todd Frazier and Adrian Gonzalez has been effectively on point.  This is not downgrading the Yankees' clubhouse leadership but I will say, Aaron Boone does not appear to have the managerial experience necessary to navigate the variety of players on the team.  I don't blame him for the team losing, but I don't think the team is being managed the way it needs to be.  Callaway on the other hand has "helped the Mets keep their prized arms healthier and outfitted with better strategy," reports Sherman.  I have to agree.

Source: Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images North America

Their bullpen does not have the talent that the Yankees' pen has, but yet, their relief pitchers have kept opponents in check.  "The Mets’ pen was 5-0 in the early going and the Yanks’ 1-4. The Mets also had a 1.57 ERA, as converted starters Robert Gsellman and Seth Lugo have been valuable, and Jeurys Familia again has the feel of an elite closer. The Yankees’ pen had a 4.71 ERA — third worst in the AL — with Dellin Betances and Tommy Kahnle particularly raising concerns," reports Sherman. Facts, folks, nothing but facts.

Source: Gregory Shamus/Getty Images North America

Finally, when you look at the Mets outfield, you have to be envious of their depth.  I can't believe I am saying this but it is true.  We had to call up multiple players over the first week or so of the season because of injuries.  911s were sent down to the farm with Jacoby Ellsbury and Aaron Hicks going down early.  And remember at the beginning of the season, we were stacked in the outfield.  Now, the Yankee outfield has been productive at the plate.  The Yankees ".871 group OPS second in the majors to the Pirates. The Mets were fourth at .808, and that is with Yoenis Cespedes mainly struggling at the plate. The quicker-than-publicly-anticipated return of Michael Conforto has benefited the Mets."

Source: NorthJersey.com

When you add up managing, relief pitching and outfield depth, you get the Mets in first by a wide margin while the Yankees are struggling- an unanticipated switch at the birth, of the 2018 season that is.  Let's hope this is just an anomaly and the real Yankees take the field in a double-header with the Tigers today.  Michael Kay has been fired up about this year's team and not in a positive way.  He's been concerned about poor fielding and base running, which should never be underestimated.  I hope Boone and the clan can get it together otherwise it is going to be a long season with an unhappy ending.

--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof

ARE THE YANKS READY TO CHASE JAY BRUCE?

What's going on with that other New York team? As of the writing of this post at least six Mets have been put on waivers, cleared and are eligible to be traded. Many players clear waivers. Some clear because management considers the player to be less valuable than his contract while others because it is a waste of time or energy. The Mets entered Sunday with a 49-59 record, 15 games behind in the NL East so they are ready to move on.

So as the Mets look ahead, are they ready to move on with some of their big names and heavy hitters? Possibly. Now that Curtis Granderson, Yoenis Cespedes and Jay Bruce could be moved, is it likely that they will be moved or just pull them back off of waivers and keep them? While two of them are of no interest to the Yankees.....one might be.

Credit Kathy Willens/Associated Press         

Jay Bruce could be an interesting pick up. He makes sense for the Yankees in a lot of different ways:

1) adds another lefty

The Yankee lineup leans heavily to the right side. Now that Jacoby Ellsbury is an expensive bench player and Chase Headley is also inconsistent the Yankees have few options. Until Aaron Hicks comes back and assuming Greg Bird does make a return this season the lineup is pretty unbalanced. Adding Bruce gives the lineup more length and certainly the ability to build a more strategic lineup.

2) Bruce could mash in Yankee stadium

Photo: Newsday

Believe it or not, Bruce is among the 2017 Home Run leaders you can see for yourself HERE. Along with his 30 home runs he also has 75 RBI's so he's having a very good season. His pull happy swing would be a big benefit in Yankee stadium. The short porch would see some action and that would be nice to see. He could give a nice little kick to a very lackluster offense we have seen lately.

3) He adds a first base / DH option

Photo: Newsday

Now that Matt Holliday is on the DL (again) the Yankees could add not only another good bat, but they can play him as a DH or let him fill in at first base. He's done it multiple times this season and it gives the Yankees another interesting lineup option. Despite the recent good news about Greg Bird back in his rehab phase and possibly being back by September the Yankees can't count on that now. First base is still a concern and we still need more production from it.

4) He is consistent

He is a power hitter with 20-plus homers in all but one season since 2008, and is on pace to blow past his career high of 34 this season and has averaged 96 RBI's a season. Sign me up.

5) Mets want to free up a spot to their best prospect

Sandy Alderson is rumored to be anxious to get the Mets best prospect Dominic Smith a spot on the roster. Trading Bruce away allows the Mets to get younger and give their first baseman of the future a taste of big league action.

How likely is it that the Yankees could get Bruce if they wanted? Who knows, but it might be a long shot. The Mets weren't ready to trade with the Yankees for Lucas Duda at the deadline so who knows why that would change now. Not only that, it is rumored from Bob Klapisch that Hal Steinbrenner has been firm with Brian Cashman about spending money now that the trade deadline has passed: the payroll is frozen for the remainder of 2017. Read more on that HERE.

Photo: Lexington Herald-Leader

If payroll isn't an issue, Bruce would still have to waive his no trade clause that blocks a move to the Yankees. It's rumored that he would waive it to go to a contending team.....and the Yankees are just that. The AL East is still very winnable and who doesn't like winning?

So could the Yankees land Bruce? Maybe.....who knows. Anything is possible in baseball.



--Jeana Bellezza

BYB Managing Editor 
Follow me on Twitter: @NYPrincessJ

ANOTHER "CUBAN SENSATION" WE NEED TO HAVE!

Since the 1990's, there has been a steady influx of Cuban players, defecting to the USA to try their hand in professional baseball. Many of them have been highly touted and gone on to have prominent careers. I was recently asked by Casey to do a write-up about a kid that is supposed to be the next great one.

He is a 19 year old outfielder by the name of Luis Robert.

Scouts that flock to his workouts believe Robert has the talent level to be labeled as one of the best ever. One American League scout called the 19-year-old "the best player on the planet, and that's no exaggeration", MSN writes.

Source: On Cuba Magazine

Standing at  6'3" weighing 205, Robert is said to be better than Yoenis Cespedes. He became a star player in Cuba at the age of 14, playing in the 16 and under league. At the age of 15, his first year in the under 18 league, he hit a robust.325 while leading the league with 21 stolen bases. This kid definitely has all the tools needed to make it in the MLB.

In November, Robert left Cuba and has since established residency in Haiti. He now awaits to be cleared by the commissioner so that he can become a free agent. Where he will end up and for how much could very well come down to the date he's cleared. I found some of this Baseball America piece is a little more in-depth.

"What will dictate Robert’s future goes beyond his talent. Robert left Cuba in November. Soon after his departure, MLB and the union agreed to a new Collective Bargaining Agreement that overhauled the international signing rules. The rules from the previous CBA remain in effect until the current 2016-17 international signing period ends on June 15. Until then, international amateur players like Robert are subject to bonus pools, though teams are allowed to exceed their pools and pay penalties (in both future signing restrictions and tax money), something many of them have done."

Is there any chance we could see this kid in pinstripes one day? As you know, there is always a chance when it comes to free agents and, the Yankees. The way things have been playing out in the Bronx these days though, I'm not so sure.

I was having a conversation with BYB fellow writer Dan Lucia about Luis.  During our conversation, he gave me the idea of including this video of him in action.  Thanks for the tip Dan. Check this out guys.



Good Luck, Luis wherever you end up.

--Michael Carnesi
BYB Writer

Twitter: @sevn4evr

GARDNER RANKED 9TH ACCORDING TO MLB NETWORK!

(Aug. 1, 2016 - Source: Rich Schultz/Getty Images North America)    

Not that this is a major deal, but it makes me feel good that Brett Gardner is getting some love.  So many people want to hammer this guy suggesting it's over for him and saying he should be shipped out or traded for something else.  The fact is he's doing his job.  He's a ferocious player, very hungry and he works hard. 

MLB Network ranks players as we get closer to the 2017 baseball season.  With that, they shared this with us here at BYB... and I wanted to share it with you:

(July 19, 2016 - Source: Al Bello/Getty Images North America)

"New York Yankees left fielder Brett Gardner was ranked 9th on MLB Network’s Top 10 Left Fielders Right Now! program...

Taking into account player performance over several seasons with an emphasis on 2016, a number of offensive and defensive metrics both advanced and traditional, and projected performance for the upcoming season, MLB Network’s Top 10 Right Now! series ranks the top players at each position heading into the 2017 season.

The complete ranking of left fielders is listed below, and an embeddable video recap on Gardner can be seen here:

Top 10 Left Fielders Right Now!

Photo: Cespedes / Getty Images

1.    Ryan Braun, Milwaukee Brewers

2.    Yoenis Cespedes, New York Mets

3.    Starling Marte, Pittsburgh Pirates

4.    Khris Davis, Oakland Athletics

5.    Michael Brantley, Cleveland Indians

6.    Randal Grichuk, St. Louis Cardinals

7.    Justin Upton, Detroit Tigers

8.    Carlos Beltran, Houston Astros

9.    Brett Gardner, New York Yankees

10.  Adam Duvall, Cincinnati Reds"

Interesting list. I don't agree with some of it, but whatever, glad the dude's in the top 10.

Happy Monday.

DON'T UNDERESTIMATE THIS WELCOME MATT

Photo Credit: USA Today

Good morning, Yankee Universe. It’s Day 3 of the winter meetings where you surely have heard by now that Brian Cashman has already taken a Holliday from his search for a DH this coming season. Get it? Read THE YANKEES SIGN MATT HOLLIDAY! for more. Anyway...  

MLB.com

Apparently, the $13-million welcome Matt was rolled out as soon as it became clear switch-hitting ex-Yank Carlos Beltran was a $3-million bridge too far for Hal’s wallet. And so, he flew south for $16 million to swing his big hairy for the 'Stros who knocked the Bombers out of the postseason in their brief one-and-done October two years ago.

Here’s hoping the Yankees have the good sense to keep the former Cardinal who turns 37 next month and has played in just 183 games over the last two seasons miles from a first baseman or outfielder’s glove as some suggest.  That's right, let's keep the dude healthy, not hurt.

Chris Lee/St. Louis Post-Dispatch/TNS via Getty Images

Now, for those bumming about losing out on Beltran, or perhaps still scratching their heads over our recently departed DH-in-waiting Brian McCann, here’s some sneaky geeky stats to keep in mind about this new bird that should help ease your mind. Casey hate stat nerds... but I got permission on this one... that's because these are fun. Check it out:

The first is that, unlike the aforementioned Bombers that got away,Holliday's power translates to all fields, as the attached Home Run Tracker charts from last year illustrate. And, to put it delicately, his big balls are better because they go further quicker, which translates to superior hard contact that over a full healthy season should translate into big numbers on both sides of the wall more befitting a career .303 BA and .897 OPS that has averaged 25+ dingers and 100+  RBIs over more than a decade spent in a power-draining ball yard. 

Indeed, last month in his Top 50 Free Agents piece, when Fangraphs’ Dave Cameron listed him among his top 10 rated position players (and 16th highest available free agent overall) he wrote: “His downturn in offense is almost entirely BABIP-driven, and while he’s going to have to transition to 1B/DH, he’s not that much worse of a hitter than the expensive guys at the top of the list. For a team looking for a good right-handed bat on a short-term commitment, Holliday could be a steal.”

In other words, he was extraordinarily unlucky when it came to the number of batted balls he hit in fair territory that happened to be right at the guys wearing gloves. A strong indicator all his offensive stats are likely to rebound. Interesting, right? And as for those "expensive guys at the top of the list” Cameron compared him with, you know who they are, right? 

(Oct. 4, 2016 - Source: Elsa/Getty Images North America)

(Looking at you Cespedes, Turner, Encarnacion and Bautista.)

So, let’s all finally move on from this whole DH convo, shall we? Let's get the next two to-do’s on Brian’s winter meeting list over with pronto as outlined in Suzie Pinstripe’s recent piece, 3 GOALS FOR CASHMAN AT THE WINTER MEETINGS..., which were, and please pardon my personal spin, Suzie: 

(Sept. 29, 2016 - Source: Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images North America)

1. Hire a DH that hopefully does NOT do anything Zobrist-like other than hit the snot out of the ball – ESPECIALLY if he’s a fragile injury-recovery case named Holliday 
2. Get Chapman locked up because, frankly, there’s no excuse not to as both team and player have raised the expectation. And anyone else would never survive the backlash unless they became the next Mo. 
3. Dump Brett and Chase for what he can get, because it’s inevitable... the waiting only reduces their return value and hinders the rebuild... and hurts this year’s competitiveness.

(Sept. 10, 2015 - Source: Rich Schultz/Getty Images North America)

If Cashman can take care of those three little chores before he checks out of Gaylord National Resort on Thursday, then he can spend the next 115 days before Opening Day devoting all his time to fulfilling MY "3 Goals For Cashman AFTER The Winter Meetings"….

1. A big arm.  
2. An even bigger arm.
3. The biggest, hairiest arm out there.

 --Barry Millman
BYB Writer
Follow me on Twitter:  @nyyankeefanfore