Can Heath Bell Be Of Any Value?

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

The shuffling and re-shuffling of the middle relief deck has been a constant for the Yankees this year.  Early injuries to the rotation, some DL stints at the front end of the 'pen, and a lot of really poor performances have combined to a rotation of mostly mediocre characters through the last 2 spots and the Yanks are very much still in search of a couple of reliable options.  They've got rookie Jose Ramirez in 1 spot for the moment, and the recently-acquired David Huff in the other.  You'll remember him from his tandem starter duties with Phil Hughes last season.

Another move Cash made to add some organizational depth was signing Heath Bell to a MiL deal on Friday.  Bell was released by the Rays earlier in the season after putting up a 7.27 ERA in 17.1 IP and most recently he had been pitching some OK ball for the Baltimore Orioles' Triple-A affiliate (4.22/3.24 in 10.2 IP).  He's been on an accelerated downtrend for the last few seasons, so is there any reason to think he might have something offer the Yankee bullpen?

Draft Signing Updates: Lindgren, DeCarr And Foley

The Yankees signed a group of lower round draft picks earlier this week.  Yesterday they locked up 3 of their higher picks when 2nd rounder Jacob Lindgren, 3rd rounder Austin DeCarr, and 5th round Jordan Foley all agreed to deals.

Lindgren, via his dad's Twitter, signed for exactly slot value of $1,078,700.  Not much of a surprise considering the pick and his profile as a college pitcher.  Foley also signed for exactly slot value at $317,500, according to Chris Cotillo.  DeCarr signed for an even million bucks, not quite double the slot value of his pick (585.1k), but a good enough chunk of change to get him to pass on his commitment to Clemson.

DeCarr was the biggest and only real no-sign risk from the Yankees' picks in the first 10 rounds, so the rest of the signings should just be a formality now.  No word yet on where DeCarr will be heading, although my guess would be SS Staten Island.  Both Lindgren and Foley are ticketed for Low-A Charleston to start their pro careers.  Have to think there's a very good chance that neither stick there long.

Pineda To Be Out Until August

The news on the field has been all good in the last 4 games.  There was a bit of off-field news before last night's game that's not so good.  When speaking the media before the game, Joe said that Michael Pineda will be out of action until August as he works his way back from his back/should muscle setback.

According to Joe, Pineda has yet to resume playing catch after being shut down a few weeks ago in an ExST start.  Joe expects him to resume playing catch "fairly shortly" and from there the Yanks are going to take it slow with him and build him back up to a regular workload through bullpens, BP sessions, and some MiL rehab games.  They anticipate that process taking a month and a half, so it'll almost be like another Spring Training for Pineda.

Joe was quick to state that Pineda had not suffered another setback.  The team just wants to be careful with him and make sure they don't rush him and give him enough time to heal.  While it's good to know that there have been no further setbacks, the return of the kid gloves mentality with Pineda is not a good sign at all.  The injury is already in the vicinity of his shoulder injury and when all is said and done it's going to keep him on the shelf for 3+ months.  With all the health problems he's had, it's looking more and more like he's never going to be the pitcher the team expected him to be when they traded for him.

Game 66 Wrap-Up: NYY 7 OAK 0

(Next time on "Foul Territory", Mark learns how to high five properly.  Courtesy of the AP)

Check it out, people.  A real, actual winning streak.  Isn't it amazing??  The Yankees have played some brutal baseball since mid-May, but they've started to turn things around across all facets of the game over their last 4 games.  Their starting pitching has been much better, their relief work has been consistent and solid, they haven't been booting and throwing the ball all over the field defensively, and they've scored 4 or more runs 3 times in a row.  Last night's latest victory featured the up-and-down David Phelps outdueling Oakland's Sonny Gray in this weekend series opener.

Game Notes:

- Once again, the Yanks got off to a fast start.  3 straight singles by Gardner, Jeter, Ellsbury and a Mark Teixeira sac fly plated 2 runs in the 1st and another Gardner single scored Brian Roberts in the 2nd.

- Phelps was very sharp from the get go, and retired the first 10 batters he faced into the 4th inning.  He was locating his fastball down and on the corners for strikes and generating weak contact for his defense.

- The Yankee bats went a bit cold after the 2nd and allowed Gray to stick around through 6.  He gave way to the bullpen in the 7th and in the 8th against Jeff Francis was when the offense struck again.  With 2 outs and runners on first and second, the bottom of the order rattled off 3 straight singles to score 4 more runs.  Brian Roberts' base knock and the missed catch on the play at the plate was the big blow.

- The only thing Phelps wasn't was efficient with his pitches, and he exited with 2 outs in the 7th after giving up a double to Jed Lowrie.  Dellin Betances came in and did the fireman thing to get through the 8th.

- The 4 late runs put the game safely out of reach and gave Joe the chance to rest his regulars, so he went with Jose Ramirez in the bottom of the 9th and watched Ramirez retire the 3 best Oakland hitters in order.  This is why they kept  him up and not Daley.

Friday Afternoon Linkapalooza: 6/13/14

I can't explain why, but I'm feeling very good about the Rangers' chances tonight.  I'm almost irrationally confident in them and it's a little scary.  Most people felt that if they played a whole 60 minutes like the played the opening periods of Games 1 and 2, they would have won.  It's now Game 5 and they've still yet to accomplish that feat.  The 3rd period the other night was hide-your-eyes scary to watch, so maybe tonight is the night that they put 3 whole periods together and bring the series back to The Garden for a final time in the 2013-2014 season.  Win tonight and they have a real chance again.  1 shift at a time, 1 period at a time, 1 game at a game.  Now onto the links!

- On Monday, Mike Axisa offered up some simple lineup change suggestions to help ignite the unproductive lineup.  So far, the Yankees haven't implemented any of them.

- SJK of NoMaas had a few roster shakeup ideas of his own.

- On Tuesday, William Juliano of The Captain's showed how the Yankees' good luck has been hiding the truth of their weak performance over the first 62 games.

- On Wednesday, Katie Sharp of IIATMS/TYA identified all the unseen value coming from Brian McCann this season thanks to his elite-level defensive metrics.  Guy has been an absolute stud behind the plate.

- El duque of It Is High... noticed a somewhat unsettling trend in the Yankee organization.  W-L record isn't a huge deal in the Minors, but that top-to-bottom breakdown can't make you feel good, can it?

- On Thursday, Michael Brown of Pinstripe Alley examined the Yankees' offensive performance in the clutch.  Whether you believe in the idea or not, we can all agree that ranking in the lower half of MLB in that category is not good.

- Delia Enriquez of Bronx Basebally Daily commented on Masahiro Tanaka's competitiveness and desire for perfection and how it makes him a better pitcher.

- On Friday, Chad Jennings of LoHud got some collective thoughts on Chase Whitley's start to his Major League starting career, from guys like Joe, Jeter, and Whitley himself.

- Chris Mitchell of Pinstripe Pundits used the newest scouting report on Ian Clarkin to search for accurate pitcher comparisons.

It's been all rock so far this year, so let's change it up with a little hip-hop this week and an underrated classic from Blackstar, "Redefinition".  Most people know and prefer "Definition", but this song is just as tight and deserves some recognition.  Too bad Mos Def went all religious psycho and got on the outs with the US government.  A Blackstar reunion would be sweet.



Enjoy your weekends, everybody.

Whitley Mixes It Up Against Lefties

(Courtesy of the AP)

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

When I was giving props to Chase Whitley earlier in the week, I made reference to the 2 approaches he's featured against right and left-handed hitters.  His changeup had been his biggest weapon against lefties and he was setting it up well with his 4-seam fastball.  Seattle stacked their lineup with lefty hitters for last night's series finale, putting them in the top 4 spots in the batting order as well as 6th, 7th, and 9th.  In response, Whitley mixed up his routine a little to counter them and keep them at bay.

D-Rob Striking Out Everybody And Their Mothers

David Robertson gave up 5 ER in 0.2 innings on June 1st, blowing a save against the Twins in spectacular fashion.  Everybody threw up their hands, cried to the heavens, and called for him to be ousted as closer so that Dellin Betances, the new Mariano Rivera, could be ushered into his rightful spot on the throne.

Funny thing, D-Rob has picked up right where he left off before that bad outing.  You know, when he was dominating the American League with his curveball and striking out anything with a pulse and a bat in its hand.  He's made 5 appearances since the last blown save, converted 4 straight save opportunities, and has given up no runs, 2 hits, and 2 walks in 4.2 IP over that stretch while striking out 9 of the 18 batters he's faced.

That gives D-Rob 41 Ks in 22.2 IP for the season, a cool 43.6% K rate that's nipping at the heels of the almighty Betances.  Since the start of May, he's struck out 36 of the 72 total batters he's faced, a perfectly even 50.0% K rate.  The lesson, as always, is don't worry about D-Rob.

Game 65 Wrap-Up: NYY 6 SEA 3

(Courtesy of the AP)

Well how do you like them apples?  I wasn't expecting more than 1 win in this series, if I'm being honest.  The Yankees have been absolutely brutal to watch for the last 2-3 weeks and the Mariners were playing pretty good ball.  But behind another outstanding start from Chase Whitley and another encouraging offensive performance, they pulled off the road sweep.

Game Notes:

- Didn't want long to score again last night.  Derek Jeter singled to right in the top of the 1st and 4 pitches later the scorching hot Jacoby Ellsbury laced a 2-run homer into the right field seats to put the Yanks up early.

- Whitley gave 1 back in the bottom of the 2nd when he hung a first-pitch slider to Logan Morrison.  There's his first MLB home run allowed, exactly as I predicted.

- His offense got him that run back and then some in the 3rd on an Alfonso Soriano 2-run double, then tacked another on in the 4th on a leadoff walk, a base hit, a sac bunt, and an RBI single by Jeter.  Where did this offensive flexibility come from?

- Whitley did give up 1 more run, but set a new career best by working into the 8th and leaving with 2 outs so Matt Thornton could face Robinson Cano.  Of course Thornton walked him, but he recovered to get Kyle Seager out.

- Thornton handed over to Shawn Kelley for the 9th.  In his first appearance since coming off the DL, Kelley gave up back-to-back 1-out doubles for the third Seattle run, forcing Joe to use D-Rob for the save.

Report: Yanks Already Have Agreements In Place With 3 Top International Free Agents

The Yankees' draft strategy was very transparent this year.  They were focused on loading up on college players with high probabilities of at least reaching their production floors who would be easy and cheap to sign.  That focus was with the goal in mind of spending big on the international free agent market, something we've heard about for months.

Well that plan may already be starting to take shape.  According to Andy Martino of The Daily News, the Yankees have agreements in place with 3 big-name international free agents.  Martino's unnamed source stated that the agreements are with shortstop Dermis Garcia for $3.6 million, shortstop Christopher Torres for $2.6 million, and third baseman Nelson Gomez for $2.8 million.  All 3 players are 16-year-olds and from the DR.  Garcia and Gomez have plus raw power according to most scouting reports, and Torres has the tools to stick at short long-term.

If these values are accurate, that's $9 million on 3 players right there.  The original estimate of the Yankees' spending spree was in the $12-15 million range, so we'll see how many more players' names pop up over the next few weeks.  The international signing period doesn't officially start until July 2nd.

Thursday Late Morning Food For Thought: Home Field Blues

It seems clear Yanks don't win at home because they don't hit home runs and other teams do. On the road, their pitching can dictate outcomes
— David Waldstein (@DavidWaldstein) June 12, 2014

David Waldstein tweeted that thought out earlier this morning in response to last night's victory, and while it's not 100% accurate, there are shreds of truth in there that can help explain some of the team's offensive struggles.

It's not that the Yankees don't hit home runs at home.  Of their 52 total HR to date, they've hit 35 of them at home in 29 home games and 17 in 35 games on the road.  But the suggestion that the Yankees are not taking full home field advantage at YS3 is a valid one.  They've scored 106 runs in their 29 home games, good for 3.65 runs per game, compared to 150 runs in their 35 road games, good for a 4.29 R/G average.  In 6 more road games, they have 50 more total hits, including more doubles and triples and more stolen bases as a result.  The value of the higher power output at home is not being maximized because there haven't been as many guys on base to drive in.

Game 64 Wrap-Up: NYY 4 SEA 2

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

Lineup stayed the same, but the Yankees did make some more roster moves to activate Shawn Kelley off the DL.  He returned, Matt Daley was sent back to Triple-A to clear a 25-man spot, and in a related move the Yanks also jettisoned Wade LeBlanc after re-acquiring lefty David Huff.  They had their best starting pitcher on the mound in Masahiro Tanaka, and he was facing the Seattle Mariner lineup for the first time this season.  For the first time in what seemed like forever, the Yankees gave their starter some real run support.  They didn't score more than 4 runs, but 4 is plenty when, for the second time in his Major League career, Tanaka threw a complete game gem.

Game Notes:

- Junk baller Chris Young got himself in trouble in the top of the 3rd when he gave up a leadoff single to Brian Roberts and walked Brett Gardner.  The red hot Jacoby Ellsbury came up and knocked the first Yankee run in with a single to center.

- In the 5th, it was the power tool that did the work.  Gardner and Ellsbury each singled around a Derek Jeter lineout, and Mark Teixeira smacked a 3-run home run to make it 4-0.

- While all this was going on, Tanaka was putting the Seattle bats in a diaper.  They were swinging early and he was throwing all kinds of different stuff early in the count to keep them off-balance.  He recorded 6 of his first 9 outs on the ground and didn't give up a hit until the 4th inning.

- After giving up 2 hits in that inning, Tanaka went on a run of strikeouts, retiring 5 of the next 6 batters through the 6th via the whiff. 2 on the split, 2 on the slider, 1 on a fastball.

- It was a little surprising to see Joe send Tanaka out for the 9th.  He had given up 2 htis and 3 hard-hit balls in the 8th.  But he did and Tanaka left a sinker up that Robinson Cano crushed for a 2-run HR to make things interesting.  Tanaka recovered nicely to strike out the final 2 batters on perfectly-placed 4-seamers.

2014 Draft: Signing Updates (UPDATED)

With last weekend's draft in the rearview, the focus now shifts to player signings.  The Yankees had a handful of guys make it all but official yesterday and another 1 or 2 strongly indicate that they would be signing in the near future.  Here's the latest:

- All but official: RHP Matt Borens (11th round), 1B Bo Thompson (13th), RHP Sean Carley (14th), RHP Corey Holmes (20th).  Thompson will start at Low-A Charleston, Carley and Holmes with SS Staten Island.

- Strongly indicated: RHPs Jordan Foley (5th) and Jonathan Holder (6th).  There are reports and tweets from multiple sources that state both are expected to sign this week, including Holder tweeting a picture of himself wearing a Yankee hat.

- Austin DeCarr (3rd) was expected to report to Tampa to sign today, according to the NE Baseball Journal.  Slot money for his pick is $575,000 and the report says he'll sign for twice that amount.

- Jonathan Lindgren (2nd) is also reportedly on his way to Tampa to take his physical and make his signing official, and that will take place on Thursday.  No word on what he'll get.  Slot value is 1.0187 mil.

** UPDATE 4:47 PM- A few more updates that came out today: Jordan Montgomery (4th) has agreed to sign and is heading to Tampa.  He'll be going to SS Staten Island.  Damon Oppenheimer has confirmed that 10th round pick Ty McFarland has been signed.  No word on the amount. **

Kelley's Return To The 'Pen A Very Welcome One

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

It's been exactly 5 weeks since Shawn Kelley was put on the disabled list with back stiffness and 5 weeks and a day since he last pitched in a Major League game.  Before he hit the DL, Kelley had been a critical part of what, at the time, was an overachieving bullpen.  He had a 3.52/2.36/3.83 line and 16 strikeouts in 15.1 IP, all of them worked as either the setup man or closer.  The Yankee 'pen has stayed afloat and even flourished in parts without Kelley for the past month, primarily because Dellin Betances and Adam Warren have proven that their strong April starts were no fluke.  They've teamed up to build a very sturdy bridge to D-Rob, but the return of Kelley to the late-inning mix tonight should help reset the workload arrangement for the group and make the Yankee 'pen even deeper and better.

Inside Ellsbury's Hitting Streak

Jacoby Ellsbury went 1-4 last night, the 1 hit being the eventual game-winning one, and in the process extended his current hitting streak to 14 games.  To my knowledge, that's the longest hitting streak of the season for the Yankees and it's been a very reassuring stretch for Ellsbury after a lackluster month of May.  He's racked up 21 hits in 56 at-bats over the last 14 games (.375 BA), boosting his slash line back up to .286/.351/.406 from the season-low level of .258/.330/.379 before the start of the streak.  After looking like he had something wrong with his swing for all of last month, Ellsbury now looks like he's back to where he was at the start of the year and back to being the player the Yanks hoped they were getting.

Game 63 Wrap-Up: NYY 3 SEA 2

(Courtesy of the AP)

Joe was mixing and matching with his lineup on Monday night for the Royals series finale and got rained out before his newest creation could take the field.  He bailed on that plan for the series opener out in Seattle, instead opting to return to the "business as usual" setup.  In one of the least unpredictable outcomes in baseball history, that failed to produce more than 3 runs.  In an outcome that actually was unpredictable and unexpected, Vidal Nuno pitched well enough to overcome that and get a win.

Game Notes:

- The Yanks did most of their damage in the top of the 1st, all of it with 2 outs and both run-scoring hits coming off the bat of slumping guys like Carlos Beltran (RBI double) and Brian McCann (RBI infield single).

- Seattle got 1 back in the bottom half on a 2-out Robinson Cano double (remember those?) and a ribbie single by Cole Gillespie.  It was 2-1 Yanks after 1 and those were the only runs they'd score for a while.

- As usual, the Yankees had their chances.  Jacoby Ellsbury was called out on strikes with 2 on and 2 out in the 5th and they shut themselves down with 2 inning-ending double plays in the 2nd and 6th.

- Nuno dodged a few bullets of his own through 5, and exited after getting Cano out for the 2nd out int he 6th.  I figured Joe would have wanted Betances for Cano, but whatever.  Betances wasn't at his sharpest again, giving up the game-tying run in the 7th on a hit batter, wild pitch, and RBI single.

- The Captain led the charge to pick him up in the top of the 8th, roping a hanging first-pitch slide for a ground-rule double into left to end Hisashi Iwakuma's night.  The M's went to Charlie Furbush and he couldn't get it done, giving up a base hit to Ellsbury to put the Yanks back front.

- Adam Warren and David Robertson made that stand up with solid 8th and 9th innings.  D-Rob struck out the side again with a walk mixed in for fun.

Jeter Getting Beast Moded By Fastballs

It's been an ugly final season for The Captain to say the least.  While he has managed to stay almost completely healthy and on the field for the entirety, he's looked like an extremely weak and watered down version of the player he was as recently as 2 years ago.  Father Time has caught up to Derek Jeter in a big way and easiest way to see that is to look at how bad he's been against fastballs.  That's a topic that Mike Petriello of FanGraphs covered earlier today, and while I invite and encourage you to read the whole thing because it's great, the standout of the piece is this statement:

"In April, Jeter saw just 30.9 percent fastballs at or above 92. Since May 1, that’s jumped by 10 percent, and while there’s something to be said for the overall velocity of the sport tending to increase past April, the fact is simply this: Jeter can’t catch up to good fastballs any longer, and teams are increasingly taking advantage of it. It’s getting to the point than other than the occasional breaking ball just to keep him from timing it, you wonder why he’s ever not seeing fastballs."

There it is in a nutshell, folks.  The word is out that Jeter ain't what he used to be and pitchers are just dialing it up knowing that he can't do anything with it.  The signs have been there since April, when his solid start was almost entirely right field-focused, and they've been coming to the forefront ever since.  The Farewell Tour appears to be the priority for the Yankees over winning games, so whatever, maybe it's not that big a deal.  As long as that continues and Jeter stays in the 2-hole, the Yankee offense will continue to underperform because there's nothing to indicate he's going to turn this around.

What To Do With Cervelli When He's Ready To Be Activated?

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

(Originally published at IIATMS/TYA)

While daily updates on Shawn Kelley's back, Carlos Beltran's elbow, Mark Teixeira's wrist, and what impact level of treadmill CC is walking on have become a common part of the Yankee news cycle lately, Francisco Cervelli has been quietly working his way back from his April hamstring strain.  It started a few weeks ago when he began running the bases and taking BP at the team complex in Tampa and it's continued over the past week as he's played in a handful of MiL rehab games.  Cervelli is eligible to be activated off the 60-day disabled list this Saturday and Joe is going to have a tough decision to make on what to do with him.  On a team that has holes everywhere, there doesn't seem to be a clear way for Cervelli to come in and help.

KC Rainout Morning News And Notes

The weather didn't cooperate last night and the series finale against the Royals was rained out, leaving the Yankees in a position where they will lose another off-day later in the season.  Now they move onto Seattle for 3 games and here are the big things to come out of last night:

- The makeup date has been announced for August 25th.  That was supposed to be a travel day into Detroit and now the Yanks will stop off in KC again to wrap this one up before going to the Motor City.

- Joe has decided to keep his rotation in order, pushing Vidal Nuno back to tonight and Masahiro Tanaka to Wednesday.  By doing this, he throws off a potential big pitching matchup between former Japanese teammates Tanaka and Hisashi Iwakuma.  Oh well.

- Jacoby Ellsbury would have been held out of the lineup last night with a sore hip after hurting himself running the bases on Sunday.  He is expected to play today.

- Shawn Kelley threw a scoreless inning for SWB last night and the plan is still for him to rejoin the team on Wednesday.

- The recently DFA'd Alfredo Aceves accepted an outright assignment back to Triple-A, so I guess he's going to be around for a little while longer.  Yaaaayyyyy...

Catching Up With The 2014 AB4AR Top 30

(Do it, Luis.  Do the damn thing.  Courtesy of MiLB.com)

The completion of the draft marks an unofficial checkpoint of sorts for the Minor League season.  With a fresh crop of players ready to join the organizational ranks, start their pro careers, and insert themselves into the prospect conversation, the timing is perfect to look back at the crop of pre-existing prospects and gauge how they've performed over the first few months.

The 2013-2014 edition of the AB4AR Top 30 was released on the final week of January.  A lot has happened to those 30 players since then, some good, like Rob Refsnyder's Double-A breakout, and some bad, like Jose Campos' Tommy John Surgery.  Here's a quick check-in on all 30 prospects to see where they sit and how they're trending towards the second half of this season.

Monday Late Morning Food For Thought: Enough Is Enough, And It's Time For A Change*

Yesterday's game was the culmination of 2 weeks of horrifically bad offensive production.  There were some legitimate excuses for that while guys like Teix and Beltran were out of the lineup, but they both returned last week and those returns did nothing to change the piss poor performance.  1-17 with runners in scoring position is almost unfathomable, even more so when you consider the fact that the 1 hit they did get with RISP yesterday didn't even score a run.  Heading into tonight's game, here's where the Yankees find themselves offensively:

• 13th in the American League (out of 15 teams) in Runs Scored with 249
• 12th in OBP (.315)
• 10th in SLG (.382)
• 12th in wOBA (.309)
• 13th in wRC+ (91)
• 14th in total position player fWAR (4.4)

The Yanks left themselves vulnerable to this when they tried to fill out their roster on the cheap, they took a passive wait-and-see approach with the injuries and lost out on a player who could have helped the offense, and now they're reaping what they've sewn.  The time for excuses is gone now and all that matters is fixing this.  I'm not sure what can or will be done but it better be something.  Despite their poor offensive output, the Yanks are only 5 games out in the loss column in the AL east and 2 out in the Wild Card.  If they're going to stay committed to contending, which is what they said they were doing when they had the big offseason spending spree, maintaining this status quo ain't going to cut it.

* P.S.- If you got that Owen Hart reference in the post title, I want to be friends with you.

2014 MLB Draft Thoughts And Afterthoughts

(The right-handed Ian Clarkin?  Used courtesy of The Foxboro Reporter)

The Yankees wrapped up their 2014 draft on Saturday by following the formula they had set in the first 2 days.  They were focused primarily on college players and pitchers, with over 80% of their 39 picks making up that first category and over 60% the second.  It was hardly a gambling man's draft by the Yankees, with signability reigning supreme over upside.  That said, I think the Yankees did a pretty good job selecting players in the first 10-20 rounds who have good chances of helping the team in some capacity in the very near and very distant futures.  I feel better about that possibility than I did after the 2012 or 2013 drafts, so in that respect I guess I have to call the Yankees' draft a success at this point in time.  After the jump, some more thoughts on the players, the possibilities, and the plan from here as a final wrap-up of this year's draft.

Report: Kelley To Return This Week

Shawn Kelley began his MiL rehab assignment over the weekend after making it through another throwing program without further injury to his back.  He pitched 0.2 innings for the Trenton Thunder on Saturday, recording both his outs via the strikeout and walking a batter in 19 pitches.  His back came through that perfectly fine and so the team has decided he can return this week after 1 more rehab appearance.

Joe told reporters before yesterday's game that Kelley would make that final rehab appearance tonight, possibly for Triple-A SWB, and then travel to Seattle to rejoin the team on Wednesday against the Mariners.  I'm a little wary of Kelley pitching and then having to sit down on a cross-country flight with a recovering back, but the Yankees need all the help they can get right now and Kelley will provide a lot for the bullpen.  His return means fewer innings for the mediocre middle relievers and a much-needed break in workload for Betances and Warren.

Game 62 Wrap-Up: KC 2 NYY 1

(Courtesy of the AP)

I'm running out of things to say about this offense or ways to try to look at it from a positive perspective.  The Yankees flat out don't hit.  They don't hit for average, they don't hit for power, they don't get on base, they can't lay down a sac bunt when they need to, and they very rarely string hits together at opportune times.  They haven't hit well when they've been healthy, they haven't hit well when they've been beat up.  They had opportunity after opportunity to score runs and easily win by a comfortable margin today against James Shields and the Royals and they didn't.  They suck.

Game Notes:

- The Yanks blew their most golden opportunity in the top of the 2nd when they loaded the bases with nobody out only for Kelly Johnson to strike out, Brett Gardner to ground into a force play at home, and Derek Jeter to whiff to strand all 3 runners.

- The Royal lineup capitalized on that free pass by stringing some hits together against Hiroki Kuroda in the bottom of the inning.  4 straight hits, a Lorenzo Cain double and Mike Moustakas single the run-scoring ones, led to 2 KC runs and a 2-0 lead.  All of them came with 2 outs.

- The blown chances by the Yankee lineup didn't end in the 2nd.  They wasted a leadoff double in the 3rd, a 1-out double in the 4th, and a 1-out triple by Brett Gardner in the 7th.

- The one time they did manage to not fuck up with a runner in scoring position was the 6th, when Yangervis Solarte hit a 1-out double down the right field line.  He moved to third on a wild pitch and scored on Ichiro's RBI groundout.

- Hirok was pretty good after the 2nd.  He held them to just 1 more hit and 1 more walk in his final 5 innings of work and kept the team in the game.  He still doesn't have the killer slider/splitter combo of the last 2 years, but he pitched good enough to win.

- Of course, the Yankees had to tease one more time in the 9th.  Ichiro singled, moved to second on a wild pitch, and stood there while the next 3 hitters failed to even move him over.  Like I said, they suck.

BOOOOOO...

32 runs scored in the last 12 games.

Boo!

3 runs scored or fewer in 15 games since the start of May.  3-12 record in those games.

BOO!!

1-17 with RISP today.

BOOOOO!!!!

BOOOOOOOO!!!!!!

Still batting 2nd:

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!

Draft Day 3 News And Notes

The Yankees' strategy was clear on the first 2 days of the 2014 MLB Draft.  Easy-to-sign college players and pitchers with big frames.  The implication was that they were going to take a few chances and make a few reaches to try to find some young, high-ceiling HS talent on day 3, but instead they stuck to the script from the first 2 days and kept loading up on college players and big-bodied hurlers.  The highlights from the third and final day of the draft are after the jump.