Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Hawkins Traded
LaTroy Hawkins who was recently released and placed on waivers, was picked up by the Houston Astros and worked out a deal to send minor leaguer (A) 2B Matt Cusick to the Yankees farm system.
This will be updated until the final release.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Labels: Houston Astros, LaTroy Hawkins, Matt Cusick, minor leagues, trade, trade deadline, Yankees


Posted by Steve Kenul at 8:10 PM

Friday, June 20, 2008
Switch-Hitter vs Switch Pitcher
What happens when your pitcher can throw from both sides of the mound? And what happens if your hitter can bat from both sides of the plate?
Now, what happens if hose two meet each other in a game?
You get this result:
This happened recently in a Staten Island Yankees v Brooklyn Cyclones minor league game.

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Labels: Cyclones, funny, minor leagues, switch hitter, switch pitcher, video, Yankees



Posted by Steve Kenul at 8:57 PM

Monday, April 23, 2007
Did I Say That?
After mentioning to the press all through spring training, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman has officially stated the he would not have Philip Hughes pitch in the majors this season.
Officially.
With the exception of Tuesday.
The 20-year-old was probably fairly surprised to have his phone ring on Monday with a message that he'd be starting in pinstripes on Thursday against Toronto.
The Yankees' rotation has taken some blows early on this season, with Mike Mussina on the disabled list with a sore hamstring, Carl Pavano watching from the dugout with tightness in his right forearm and Chien-Ming Wang out with a strained hamstring. Torre said he wasn't sure what would happen with Hughes, or how long the youngster would stay up, but he said the team would take it "a start at a time."Hughes fanned 10 last Wednesday, but Torre was more impressed with how the right-hander was able to fight through rough patches.
Taken in the first round of the 2004 First-Year Player Draft, Hughes was the only Minor League pitcher recommended to Torre by his advisory staff.
Across 26 starts at Class A Tampa and Double-A Trenton last season, Hughes went 12-6 with a 2.16 ERA, striking out 168 batters and walking 34 in 146 innings.
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Labels: minor leagues, Philip Hughes, pitching, Yankees



Posted by Steve Kenul at 7:32 PM

Monday, April 16, 2007
Analyzing a Loss

The Yankees have had some tough breaks with their pitching.
Well, not breaks, but a repeat of last year.
Four starters landed on the disabled list, and the bull pen is showing signs that the Death Star can blow up again.
Chein-Ming Wang, last years Cy Young runner up and TYIB Pitcher of the Year started the season on the DL and is expected to return after a rehab start this Saturday in AAA Scranton.
If his rehab goes well, expect him to pitch for the Yankees next Wednesday or Thursday, just after the Yankees and Red Sox battle.
Mike Mussina returned to the DL with a strained left hammy, and for a pitcher, a hamstring injury can affect a pitcher's push-off or his stop, depending on what hand they throw with. For Moose, it's the stopping that is affected.
Carl Pavano....well, he's Pavano, this was expected.
The Yankees fifth starter, Jeff Karstens was sent to the DL with Wang before the start of the season with tendinitis in his right (throwing) elbow. However, he is young and can overcome this injury quickly and is expected to return around the same time as Wang.
As for the bullpen, better than last year, but still, lacking essential winning power.
Kyle Farnsworth was a laugh last year, but has improved dramatically to be a great set-up man for Mariano Rivera.
His last two appearance have been less than noteworthy allowing tying and winning runs to cross the plate and earning a loss in a game in which he allowed four runs through. He is making an effort to resolve this problem going over video footage of his pitching and spotting mistakes, one of them being releasing the ball to early and rushing pitches.
Mariano Rivera, who gave up last nights game to a rare home run was cold as far as preparedness goes.
He has only pitched four innings before last night striking out six and getting a few splinters from sitting on the bench too long.
In my personal diagnosis, I think sitting on the bench may have convinced Rivera that innings only last two outs since that's all he pitched before allowing two on base and sending a moon shot from a .050 hitter over the fence for the game-winning home run.
As for the "new" starting line up, Andy Pettitte and Darrell Rasner will be joined with AAA pitcher Chris Britton and AA pitcher Chase Wright who leads the Eastern League with 19 strikeouts in 14 scoreless innings and is already on the 40-man roster.
Do not expect to see Philip Hughes till late this season or even next year, Brian Cashman has made it clear he wants to build for the future and having Hughes rush into the majors will be a huge mistake.
It's about time some one in the Yankees front office read my blog.
Recent forum talk: Woe is Us: Pitching
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Labels: bullpen, Chein-Ming Wang, loss, Mariano Rivera, minor leagues, pitching, starting rotation, Yankees



Posted by Steve Kenul at 9:35 PM
