Gardner on DL with Broken Thumb

As you have probably heard by now, Brett Gardner broke his thumb in yesterday's game while sliding into a base. He then, of course, stayed in the game, hit a triple and made two spectacular catches.

Go figure.

At any rate, he'll be in a cast for two weeks, so cue discussions on whether or not the Yankees should promote Austin Jackson.

It's a hard decision because Jackson is seen as the organization's closest-to-ML-ready-legit-prospect, and bringing him up too early might set him back.

Then again, the Yankees also have the miracle of Francisco Cervelli, who wasn't supposed to do anything and ended up holding his own quite nicely...

My money would bet that Jackson ends up getting the call up. After all, the Yankees are replacing Gardner's bat, speed and defense--not A-Rod's or Posada's.

Bad Field for Scranton Creates Problems for Big Boys, Too

Today I went with my friend Brent and longtime blog reader Gayle to Scranton for the second-annual LoHud blog group meet up.

We had only just parked when those in the car next to us told us the doubleheader was canceled due to unplayable field conditions.

After having driven for two hours none of us were in the mood to turn back immediately, so we got out and ended up eating lunch at the Legends Restaurant which is attached to the ballpark.

From the restaurant, large windows look out onto the field, and we could see, first hand, the unplayable field.

In right field, which was closest to us, the field was torn up as though someone had kept stomping the grass with their spikes.

The infield was still wet--even after two days of sun and a helicopter that--somehow (ask Shelley Duncan, he knows)--tried to dry the field.

Some of the Pawtucket players came out to try to have a catch; as we watched we could see them sinking into the ground.


Scranton Yankees' officials acknowledged that the problem is a drainage problem that dates back to when they replaced the turf field with a grass field; the problem has been made all the more the worse by the absurdly wet June.

The problem has gotten so bad, now, that there is talk of finding somewhere else for the team to play. Simply put, too many games are getting postponed or canceled outright. It's not just that it makes it hard for the league, which has to reschedule all of the games, or the team, which has to manage the logistics of double headers and the like, but it also means that players that need to play don't.

For example, Jose Molina was supposed to do his rehabbing at Scranton. Because the field has been so bad, he is instead doing his rehabbing at Trenton.

Pitchers that need to pitch have their slot pushed back and prospects that need to play to develop aren't getting the chance to do so.

Every team, except those with domed or retractable roofs, has a game or two delayed by rain or rained out, but what has happened in Scranton is certainly abnormal.

There are rumors now that the team may consider playing games at Syracuse or Lehigh Valley, which are the only other "close" places with facilities that could handle an AAA team. The other option is to find a field--any field--and play, but Scranton, like the big boys, has season ticket holders to appease.


One can talk all he or she wants about how a professional ballclub, especially one associated with the Yankees, should never have to worry about an unplayable field, but right now, that's not the immediate concern.

Right now, the Yankees need to solve the problem.


While the Yankees' top prospects right now may be at the lower levels, AAA does have Austin Jackson, Mark Melancon and Ivan Nova.

All of them need to play.

They deserve a field to play on.

Peña to try out centerfield in AAA

As expected, Ramiro Peña has been optioned to AAA Scranton to make room for Eric Hinske.

This is not a bad thing. Peña is still a prospect and will clearly benefit--especially in terms of his bat--from playing every day.

What has attracted my eye, however, is Pete Abraham's update in tonight's game post, that Peña will get some time at center field.

The astute among you will know that heretofore Peña had been primarily a 3B-SS-2B defensive whiz kid; if he can play center field then he can very possibly play left or right as well, at least from a defensive standpoint, and increase his versatility.

That Peña will get time at CF means that Austin Jackson--the Yankees' top prospect--will probably find himself playing some more corner outfield.

I asked if this was a reflection on Peña or Jackson; the astute commenter CB had this to say:

It’s all Pena. They must be very impressed with his athleticism, defense and specifically his ability to play balls in the air to try this.

Let’s put it this way – he’s only 23 and has never played in AAA. Rather than concentrating his time at SS they’re willing to challenge him to learn an entirely new position and the third hardest position on the diamond.

And 23 while not old isn’t exactly young to try to pick up a new position like that.

It’s very hard to do. But if he can do it they’ve got a great bench player for the future.

I guess you could say, then, that Peña got the Yankees to open their eyes. And they like what they see.

At the Deadline, 2009 Looks Like 2008....Sorta...

With the All Star Break fast approaching, teams are beginning to have to make that most-crucial of decisions: buyers or sellers at the trade deadline?

With the Yankees, there isn't much of a question--with the third best record in MLB and first place in the Wild Card race (though no one's looking at this quite yet), it's clear that the Yankees are buyers.

So now the question becomes threefold:

1) What do the Yankees need?

2) Can they solve this problem from within?

3) What price are they willing to pay to solve the problem from the outside?


Strangely, although in many ways this season has felt much different than 2008, the needs in 2009 are strikingly similar at the same point in the season.

This might be attributed to the fact that Xavier Nady and Dámaso Marte have been non-entities this season (although credit should be given to Nady for trying to come back ahead of schedule and avoid a second TJ surgery, though that no longer looks possible).

Thus, the Yankees need, right now, the same sort of thing that they needed last year: an additional bat that can spell some of the outfielders if need be, due to age or slump, and a reliever.

The good news is that the Yankees do not necessarily need a left-handed reliever (although they wouldn't say no, I don't think, if the right one is available); but I'm thinking that the idea here is to have another decent (ie, not Veras/Ramirez/Albaladejo) reliever so that the Yankees have the option of bringing Hughes back to the rotation and not substantially weakening the bullpen.

Or, you know, giving the Yankees the option to not have to pitch Brett Tomko, or Proctor Phil Coke or Alfredo Aceves.


The bat is simple here: you want someone better than Cody Ransom available to come off of the bench if need be. As Ramiro Peña can field well, run well and is not an automatic out, I can't see the Yankees sending him down to AAA, even if that would ultimately benefit him the most, unless they can land a bat that can do these things, also. The cost for that, however, would likely be prohibitively high, and while I can't see the Yankees mortgaging the farm for anyone, they would like something better than what they have.




Could the Yankees solve this issue from within?

For a while it looked like the Yankees would be able to solve the relief pitcher issue from within, with Mark Melancon, but after a short stint in the majors where nerves seem to have gotten to him, he's struggled again in AAA. Some other relievers have performed well, but nothing that is that inspiring--except, perhaps, for the ambidextrous Pat Venditte, and he is only just promoted to High A. Certainly not Major League ready.

As for the suggestion that Austin Jackson should be promoted to the Major League level, the answer is a resolute: No. He is progressing nicely at AAA. He is not blasting through the system a la Chamberlain, but everything seems to be coming in time. He is performing well for his level of competition, but he is not, in no way, shape or form, overmatching it. The worst thing the Yankees could do right now is mess with his development.

John Rodriguez is another name that's been thrown around, but he's recently been placed on the DL with a hamstring injury, and as fun as Shelley Duncan is to root for, he's not really as versatile defensively as the Yankees would probably like--not to mention he strikes out way too often.



It's still pretty early, in terms of the trade deadline, and we're not entirely sure which players are available for the right price.

For the Yankees the price is always going to be high--since every other team out there knows the Yankees can pay it.

Let the speculation begin.

Just Say No to AJax (Before September)

I'll start this post with a story, whose moral should be readily apparent.

Once upon a time, there was a girl named Rebecca.

Now, Rebecca was a decent student. She excelled in English and, surprisingly (when she thinks about it so many years later) art; she was decent in Social Studies and Science, and average in math. She had a career goal of being a meteorologist, or maybe even a doctor.

When Rebecca reached the tender age of 13, some people who loved her very much thought that it would be best for her to take Algebra in the next year, eve though she was only on pace to take Algebra two years from then, the year she turned 15.

Although Rebecca argued that missing an entire year of math was probably a bad idea, the people that loved her very much wouldn't here of it, and, the next year, she was in Algebra, dealing with concepts that sailed over her head.

What happened? As you might expect, the math grades plummeted. Math went from being something she, if she didn't like, didn't mind to something she couldn't stand. Her grades went from A- to struggling to make a B-, and by the time Precalc rolled around, she struggled to make Cs. Her career goals shifted from math/science oriented to writing and history. Okay, so that's not really important here.

It was only one year of math she missed, but the consequences were forever pronounced.



See where I'm going with this?

****


There was an ESPN Insider quote going around that a source told Andrew Marchand that Austin Jackson could make an appearance in New York sometime this season.

Now, that actually doesn't say a whole lot.

Many believe Jackson will be a September call-up, after he's haed most of a season at AAA and thus would be primed for a 2010 debut.

Thus, no need to panic.

However, there is a contingent-alas, a growing one-that would like to see Jackson up sooner. This may have less to do with Jackson's potential (though he is the Yankees top position prospect and the only one remotely close to major league ready) than it does growing frustration with Melky Cabrera and Brett Gardner.

These people are, to put it politely, misguided.

So far, in 53 ABs, despite a high average, Jackson still has 15 strike outs. It might simply be the type of hitter Jackson is-he's always been streaky-but to bring him up now would be a disaster.

It won't take major league pitchers long to find his weakness and sit on it.

Jackson is a legitimate prospect, but it's likely that some fans automatically think he is destined for greatness without realizing that his ranking as a top prospect might have more to do with there being no one else major league ready than pure talent.

Let us not forget than in the past ten years our top prospects included CJ Henry, Drew Henson and Eric Duncan.

Now, Jackson will probably not go the way of Henry or Duncan, or abandon baseball for another sport like Henson, but there's no guarantee that he'll be great at the major league level.

With that in mind, it would make sense to give Jackson as much time to develop in AAA-where he can play every day-as possible.

People wonder why Hughes had trouble despite showing flashes of brilliance; he's never had a full year at AAA.

Jackson projects to be a major improvement over the Gardner/Cabrera platoon, even if he doesn't project to be DiMaggio or Mantle or even Bernie.

The Yankees really, really shouldn't mess with that at this point.

Nady needs surgery; Russo and Jackson pulled from AAA game

As you likely know by now, Xavier Nady will likely need surgery and may miss the rest of the season.

Kevin Russo and Austin Jackson have been pulled from the AAA game; it's worth noting that the Jackson move may not mean anything as he had been HBP in the first.

***

No liveblogging today, I've been feeling under the weather and need to save my strength to do my coursework.

You know it's bad when...

...When you turn on the Yankee game and see empty seats behind home plate during the last homestand at Yankee Stadium, ever.

Whether this is a reflection of the Yankees' poor performance or the current financial crisis, I have no idea. It's probably a little bit of both, but it's still telling.

***

Congratulations are due to Derek Jeter for breaking Lou Gehrig's record for hits at Yankee Stadium. He needed just one more at bat to do it.


***

Congratulations are also due to the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Yankees and the Trenton Thunder for winning the International League (AAA) and Eastern League (AA) playoffs, respectively.

There is a lot of young talent at both levels, and if you're reading this, chances are you're already familiar with some of the names--Melancon, Jackson, Curtis, et al.

This year might be bleak, but the future is not--as far as baseball is concerned, anyway.

Two-Way Street

The Yankees have traded Brett Gardner, who many believe will make a significant impact, if not in 2008 then in 2009, and prospects Austin Jackson and Dellin Betances to the Oakland Athletics for relief pitcher Huston Street and outfield prospect Ryan Sweeney.


Source

Now, I know that the rain out addles neurons, but I can't quite see the benefit of this trade. I mean, for Oakland it's easy enough when your outfield is Mark Kotsay, Chris Denorfia and Jack Cust and you have some starting pitching questions, but that's like Billy Beane, fleecing the farm system. I mean, I've heard nothing but good about AJax and Betances, and if you look at Sweeney's career numbers, we don't seem to be getting too much in return.

I'm generally a Cashman fan, but this one has me baffled.