Let's Talk Roster Expansions

Specifically who will and won't be called up when rosters expand in a couple of days.  There are plenty of potential candidates, some deserving and some not, and some wildcards who the Yankees could choose to bring up if they were so inclined.  For the sake of time and space, I'll break this down as simply as possible.

4 Who Will Get The Call

- Jesus Montero- Pretty much a no-brainer.  The dude has been crushing the ball lately, raising his season line up to .290/.350/.471 with 38 XBH.  He probably should have been called up at least a month ago, and there's really nothing left for him to learn at Triple-A, so a September call up and cameo appearance as a C/DH should be a good starting point to determine how he fits into the 2012 plans.

- Chris Dickerson- He's been useful in his limited time on the Yankee roster already thanks to his speed and athleticism.  At the very least, he gives the Yankees a competent defensive option/late-game replacement to use down the stretch to rest their everyday OFers if Joe decides he wants to do that.

- Hector Noesi- Has more than proven his worth as a Major League-caliber pitcher this year out of the bullpen, even if he probably should have been sent down to stretch back out and work as a starter.  But the contributions he's already made as a long reliever make him a viable candidate for the postseason roster, so it only makes sense that he would be brought back to continue to audition for that role.

- Greg Golson- See above explanation for Dickerson.  Golson filled that role admirably in 2010 and would give Joe even more bench depth to play with in situations where he can get his everyday guys a little extra rest. 

4 Who Should Get The Call



- Kevin Whelan- He made a brief appearance earlier in the season and nerves were probably a factor in his subpar performance.  But given his age (27) and tremendous body of work as the SWB closer this year, Whelan has earned another look.  If he gets some opportunities to pitch and pitches well in September, he could at least get himself into contention for a 2012 bullpen spot.

- Lance Pendleton- Never a guy you want on the mound in high-leverage situations because of his tendency to not miss bats and walk guys, Pendleton is the perfect call up option to fill the lowest of leverage situations in blowouts.  He can eat up innings and preserve the more important bullpen arms for closer games down the stretch and has the flexibility to throw multiple innings if needed.

- Brandon Laird- His brief appearance as a Major Leaguer earlier in the summer hardly did enough to paint an accurate picture of what his Major League potential could be.  For the Yankees to get a better idea of how he fits into their long-term players as either a roster piece or trade bait, they owe it to themselves to get Laird some more time against Major League competition.

- Andrew Brackman- An interesting case because he's been so awful this year (5.83 FIP, 7.02 BB/9), Brackman has actually seemed to turn things around lately as a reliever.  This month he's allowed just 3 ER and 7 H over 15.1 innings of relief work while striking out 15 and walking just 2, numbers much more in line with what the Yankees were hoping to see from him after 2010.  The fact that he was expensive, is 25, and is out of MiL options makes Brackman an ideal candidate to come up and audition for a spot on the 2012 team as a last chance to justify his 1st-round pick status.

4 Who Won't Get The Call

- Manny Banuelos- I'm sure people were creaming their jeans after his sparkling performance last night (7 innings of shutout ball), and justifiably so.  It was his best start of the season at any level and arguably one of the best of his career.  But ManBan is approaching his innings limit for the year, is still very young, and so does not need to be rushed.  And as I discussed earlier in the month, attempting to make Banuelos a temporary LOOGY would be incredibly stupid.  Let him finish this year and start next in Triple-A and then see where he's at.

- Dellin Betances- Same logic applies for Betances, who could probably use more MiL seasoning than Banuelos because of his ever-present command issues.  Betances is young, talented, and right on line with becoming a Major Leaguer.  There's no need to sacrifice his development in an attempt to recreate some 2007 Joba-type spark that this year's Yankee team doesn't need.

- Austin Romine- While still acknowledged as a better defensive catching prospect than The Jesus, Romine is still in Double-A and a jump from there to the Majors when Montero is still ahead of him on the unofficial depth chart would be useless.  Once Montero gets the call, Romine's spot in Triple-A will open up for 2012 and then we can see how he progresses at the next level.

- Steve Garrison- The Yankees would love to have another lefty option in the 'pen, but it won't be Garrison.  For one, he's hurt right now and on the 7-day DL.  For two, he's nothing special and probably doesn't factor into the Yankees' future plans.  No sense giving innings to him when there are more intriguing/productive options available (see: Kontos, George or Pope, Ryan).

Just my personal thoughts on the matter.  In a few days we'll see how it plays out.