Can Fernando Martinez Actually Help Right Now?

For as long as he's been an organizational depth piece instead of the former top prospect he was, there was understandably little fanfare when the Yankees traded for Fernando Martinez from Houston a few weeks back.  The real goal of that move was to make sure the team had enough warm bodies out there in the Triple-A outfield after the rash of injuries they suffered.

But since being acquired, Martinez has somewhat surprisingly hit incredibly well for SWB.  In 54 plate appearances, Martinez has a batting line of .378/.463/.667, good for a .484 wOBA.  Considering he was hitting just .219/.291/.371 for the Astros' Triple-A affiliate prior to the trade, that's borderline unbelievable.  Martinez has looked much more like the elite prospect he was expected to be than the complete disaster he'd become as a hitter in the last few weeks, and with all the problems the Yankees are having in their lineup it begs the question of whether or not they should consider calling him up.

Growing Pains For The Top Outfield Prospects

(Some early struggles for Mr. Austin.  Courtesy of Beverly Schaefer)

The Yankees entered this season with what appeared to be very good prospect depth in the outfield.  At best, 4 of their top 10 organizational prospects were outfielders, with 3 of them showing up in almost every respectable top 5 list.  Anticipation and expectations were high for this group based on what they did in 2012, and it was starting to look like the outfield was going to be one spot where the team would have good options for the future if they were planning on committing to a reduced payroll.  Almost 2 months into the MiL season, it appears as though the first potholes in this group's development have been hit.

It's Still Important To Stay Grounded With Ichiro & Gardner

(Can this trio carry enough offensive weight?  Courtesy of Getty Images)

ESPN NY's Spring Training countdown series got off to a pretty crummy start, but he's been a little better lately.  Earlier this morning, Wally Matthews took a break from handing out fictional punishments on Alex Rodriguez to discuss the 2013 outfield, which is actually a worthwhile topic.  The Yankees are looking at a serious offensive downgrade from that group this year, and the ability of Brett Gardner and Ichiro Suzuki to be productive in their ways could be a big determining factor in the level of success this season's team can have.  Wally, to his credit, thinks Ichiro and Gardner can get the job done, and maybe they can.  But Wally's reasoning for why leaves much to be desired.