S.T. Game 18. Yanks fall 3-1 to Phils, make more cuts.

The Yanks made a few more cuts today. From MLB.com:

Right-hander Brooks Kriske was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Right-hander Albert Abreu and outfielder Estevan Florial were optioned to Double-A Trenton. Right-handers Luis Gil and Luis Medina have been optioned to Class A Advanced Tampa. In addition, right-handers Domingo Acevedo and Alexander Vizcaíno were reassigned to Minor League camp.

I think you may see Kriske sometime this year in the Bronx.

Gary Sanchez is expected to catch Friday after being shut down for a few days with a sore back.

As for the game Monday, the Yanks (10-6-2) lost to the Phils, 3-1. J.A. Happ was solid, giving up one run in four innings on a HR. But Mike King gave up a 2-run HR in the bottom of the eighth that lost the game.

So far, it’s an encouraging spring from Happ. If he gets back to 2018 or 2016 form, he helps make up for this year’s loss of Severino.

Happ 4 IP, 1 R, 3 H, 0 W, 5 K.  1.38  Gave up a solo HR.
Chapman 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 1 K.  0.00
King (L, 0-1) 2 2/3 IP, 2 R, 4 H, 1 W, 0 K.  3.86  Gave up 2-run HR.
Holder 1/3 IP 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K.  0.00

Just a hunch. I think Loaisiga gets the #5 starter spot (barring injury) and Garcia, Schmidt and King go to AAA. I have no clue as to what the Yankees do with Tropeano. Once Paxton is back, Loaisiga goes to the bullpen. The Yanks probably won’t push Loaisiga, but hope he gives four or five. Now what happens when German is ready is up in the air. For when Paxton does return, you have Cole, Tanaka, Happ, Montgomery and Paxton. Three lefties in the rotation, especially at Yankee Stadium, is a good thing so there is no guarantee that German gets his starting role back.

Of course, much could change with injuries and/or ineffectiveness.

S.T Games 16 & 17. A win and a tie.

The Yanks split the squad today (Sunday) and won one game and tied another. They are 10-5-2 in Spring Training.

First, the 1-0 win over the Braves, in which Yankees’ pitchers combined for a two-hit shutout.

Clint Frazier had 2 hits. Chris Iannetta with the RBI.

Concerns: Mike Tauchman .056; Tyler Wade .080

Tanaka 3 2/3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 4 K.  2.08
Kriske 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K.  3.38
Ottavino 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K.  0.00
Britton (W, 2-0) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 2 K.  0.00
Kahnle (H, 1) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 2 K.  0.00
Green (H, 1) 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K.  2.25
Acevedo (S, 2) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K.  0.00

Now the tie, 5-5 against the Orioles.

Tommy Milone 3 for 3, 3 RBI, a 2-run HR.

Schmidt 2 IP, 3 R, 1 ER, 4 H, 1 W, 2 K.  2.57
Abreu 2 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 2 K.  4.50
Medina (H, 2) 1 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 2 W, 1 K.  2.25
Lane (H, 1) 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 0 K.  10.80
Gil (H, 2) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 1 K. 2.25
Vizcaino (BS, 1) 1 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 1 W, 1 K.  9.00
Rosa 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 1 K.  6.00

Recent cuts: C Kellin Deglan and Wynston Sawyer (minor league camp), P Nick Nelson (AAA) and Miguel Yajure (to AA).

 

S.T. Game 11. Tanaka, Loaisiga look good in Yanks’ 9-1 win.

The Yankees improved to 7-3-1 in Spring Training with a 9-1 win over Boston Tuesday afternoon.

The pitchers only gave up 2 hits.

D.J. LeMahieu had 2 hits and 2 RBI
Kyle Higashioka went 2 for 2.
Gio Urshela homered.
Thairo Estrada was 2 for 2 with an RBI.
Clint Frazier walked in all three of his plate appearances.

The Pitching Line:

Tanaka (W, 1-0) 3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 5 K.  0.00
Schmidt 2 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 1 W, 3 K.  1.80
Ottavino 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K.  0.00
Britton 1 iP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K  0.00
Loaisiga 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W,  4 K.  0.00

Nice outing for all. Even Schmidt, competing with Loaisiga for the #5 spot, did well.

So far, I think King and Garcia are AAA bound. Montgomery is #4 and I think Loaisiga is #5 with Schmidt heading to the minors as well.

But King, Schmidt and Garcia look like good backup insurance.

And once Paxton and German come back, all the better.

It doesn’t look like Aaron Judge or Giancarlo Stanton will be ready on Opening Day.

The OF/DH alignment could be Frazier in LF, Gardner CF and Tauchman in RF with Andujar as the DH. But Opening Day IS in Baltimore, and as bad as the Orioles are, that should be enough. Especially when you look at the rest of the lineup and Cole on the mound.

 

 

S.T. Game 6: Yanks win 7-1 and competition heats up for #5 rotation slot.

The Yanks won their third S.T. game in a row, 7-1 , to go to 3-2-1 in Spring Training.

Tyler Wade and Clint Frazier hit back to back HR in the first inning, with Wade’s being a 2-run shot.

Mike Ford had two hits, including a 2-run HR of his own.

What really looked good was the pitching, especially the guys following J.A. Happ.

Here is the pitching line:

Happ (W, 1-0) 3 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 0 W, 2 K.  1.80
King (H, 1) 2 IP, 0 R, 3 H, 0 W, 0 K.   0.00
Schmidt 2 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 0 W, 3 K.  0.00
Loaisiga 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 4 K  0.00

With Paxton, Severino and German all out to start the season (and for Severino, out the entire season), it looks like Happ moves up to the #3 slot, and the Yanks need Happ to be what he was in 2018 when the Yanks got him from Toronto (7-0, 2.69 in 11 starts; 16-7 overall Tor/NYY) and not the Happ who struggled last season.

Jordan Montgomery looks like the #4 starter, and that #5 spot is up for grabs.

Three of the guys in contention for that #5 spot in the rotation pitched today—those three guys right after Happ.

Good to see all do well and it be a tough, healthy competition where no one wins it on default but on merit.

Great job by all three today. Happ, too.

 

S.T. Game 2. Andujar HRs, but Yanks lose 9-7.

The Yanks (0-2) lost to Tampa Bay 9-7 in their S.T. game today.

Good news: Miguel Andujar homered. Jonathan Loaisiga had a 1-2-3 inning. He is competing for the #5 starter job or a spot starter/long relief position.

There weren’t too many “major leaguers” who played. It was mostly minor leaguers. The only possible MLB players were Tyler Wade, Andujar, Luke Voit, maybe Thairo Estrada or David Hale, and that’s about it.

It came out today that Voit’s injury that sabotaged the second half of 2019 for him was worse than thought. He basically ripped everything. 3 ligaments on both sides of his groin had to be repaired in the off season. In the first half of last year, he had 17 HR and 50 RBI. Do the math. 34 and 100.

He feels fine now. Good sign. Even lost a little weight to make him a little more flexible. But that injury wasn’t just a sports hernia. It explains the big drop off in the second half.

Two hits for Chris Gittens today after he homered yesterday.

Estrada with a hit and an RBI.

Two hits and 2 RBI for OF Trey Amburgey. I like this kid. Righty hitter, 25. Hit .274-22-62 for AAA SWB last year. But no room for him at MLB level right now.

Pitching line:

Loaisiga 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K   0.00  Nice
Hale 2/3 IP, 3 R, 4 H, 0 W, 1 K.  40.50   Not so hot.
Lyons 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K. Threw a WP that let a run in. 0.00
Schmidt 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 W, 0 K. 0.00  A top prospect.
Nelson 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 W, 0 K.   0.00
Yajure 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 1 K.   0.00
Vizcaino (H,1) 1 IP, 2 R, 2 H, 0 W, 1 K.  18.00
Abreu (H,1)  1 IP, 1 R, 0 H, 2 W, 1 K.  9.00
Lane (L; BS) 2/3 IP, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 H, 2 W, 0 K.  27.00
Reeves 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K, 0.00

C Wynston Sawyer, who spent last year (43 Games) with the Twins AAA team, made two errors, I didn’t see the one, but the other was quite embarrassing.

Gerrit Cole will pitch tomorrow (Monday) night.

Severino shut down with forearm soreness.

The signing of Gerrit Cole doesn’t look like icing on the cake now. Now it appears to have been a necessity.

From MLB.com:

Yankees right-hander Luis Severino is dealing with forearm soreness and has a loose body in his right pitching elbow, manager Aaron Boone told reporters Thursday.

Per Boone, Severino has felt soreness throughout the offseason — particularly when throwing his changeup — dating back to his final start against the Astros in Game 3 of last year’s American League Championship Series. The 26-year-old is likely to visit with Dr. Chris Ahmad, the Yankees’ team physician, on Friday to determine the next steps.

Boone was unable to declare whether Severino will be ready for the start of the season.

Injuries involving Severino’s rotator cuff and lat muscle sidelined him for much of the 2019 season. He returned for three starts in September before making two more starts in the postseason. Fellow Yankees starter James Paxton is already sidelined until May at the earliest after undergoing surgery to remove a cyst in his back, meaning New York may need to look to younger pitchers like Jordan Montgomery or Jonathan Loaisiga to fill in its back-of-the-rotation slots.

Boone also told reporters that slugger Aaron Judge is expected to begin his hitting program on Friday. Judge is working his way back from shoulder soreness that kept him out of the cage for the first few days of camp.

One thing that MLB.com forgot to mention is the suspension incurred by Domingo German which will keep HIM out of the rotation until early June.

All of a sudden, Mike King, Clarke Schmidt and Deivi Garcia become more important, as do Luis Cessa and also the Chad Green opener option.

Also, another report has Severino not meeting with Dr. Ahmad tomorrow, but as having been prescribed anti-inflammatories. We’ll find out more later.

My concern is that forearm soreness usually signifies another problem that leads to TJ surgery. Hopefully it isn’t that. That would cost Severino all of 2020 and half of 2021.

The Yanks need Severino as the #2 behind Cole. They need the 2017 and 2018 Severino.

Fingers crossed.

Paxton to be out until early June after spinal surgery.

Well, now we know one reason why J.A. Happ wasn’t traded.

From mlb.com:

Paxton’s season debut will be delayed after the Yankees announced on Wednesday that the left-hander underwent a microscopic lumbar discectomy with removal of a peridiscal cyst.

The surgery was performed by Dr. Andrew Dossett in Dallas, and the club said that Paxton’s approximate timeline to return to Major League action is three to four months.

Earlier today, LHP James Paxton underwent a microscopic lumbar discectomy with removal of a peridiscal cyst. The surgery was performed by Dr. Andrew Dossett in Dallas, Texas. His approximate timeline to return to Major League action is 3-4 months.

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) February 5, 2020

General manager Brian Cashman said that Paxton first reported the injury issue in September, receiving treatment after his final regular-season start on Sept. 27 against the Rangers in Arlington.

Paxton received an injection, and Cashman said the hurler’s recovery was part of the reason he was pushed back to start Game 2 of the American League Championship Series against the Astros, with the Game 1 nod going to Masahiro Tanaka.

Following the season, Cashman said multiple doctors recommended a conservative treatment program that did not require surgery. Paxton contacted the Yanks about four to six weeks ago to report a recurrence of the discomfort, at which time the conservative protocol was again recommended.

So with this, Tanaka moves to #3 (with Cole 1 and Severino 2) and Happ moves up to 4. It opens #5 up for Jordan Montgomery, or perhaps, Luis Cessa, Jonathan Loaisiga, Mike King or even maybe Clarke Schmidt or Deivi Garcia.

Not only that, it means that both Paxton and Domingo German would be scheduled to come back at about the same time.

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Meanwhile big news as Boston trades Mookie Betts and David Price to the Dodgers. The Dodgers make two moves, sending Kenta Maeda to the Twins and Joc Pederson to the Angels.

Yankees/Dodgers WS?