Pinstripe Alley: An SB Nation Community

Navigation: Jump to content areas:


Pro Quality. Fan Perspective.
Around SBN: Interview With UMD Athletic Director, Dr. Debbie Yow

More great SB Nation Blogs

Baseball

Football

Basketball

College

Hockey

Soccer

Combat Sports

Golf

General

SPONSORS

RotoWorld Yankees News

SB NATION NEW YORK BLOGS

New York Giants:
BigBlueView
New York Jets:
Gang Green Nation
Buffalo Bills:
Buffalo Rumblings
New York Mets:
Amazin' Avenue
New York Knicks:
Posting and Toasting
New York Rangers:

Blueshirt Banter

New York Islanders:
Lighthouse Hockey

Minor League Teams

Web Stuff


Bullpen hopefuls: Jonathan Albaladejo

New York Yankees pitcher Jonathan Albaladejo reacts as Tampa Bay Rays' B.J. Upton, left, rounds the bases after hitting a fourth inning home run during a baseball game Friday, Oct. 2, 2009 in St. Petersburg, Fla.

More photos » Chris O'Meara - AP

New York Yankees pitcher Jonathan Albaladejo reacts as Tampa Bay Rays' B.J. Upton, left, rounds the bases after hitting a fourth inning home run during a baseball game Friday, Oct. 2, 2009 in St. Petersburg, Fla.

Jonathan Albaladejo is hardly a sexy choice for the final spot in the New York Yankee bullpen. Albaladejo, though, has impressed Manager Joe Girardi and pitching coach Dave Eiland enough that he has made the team out of Spring Training in each of the past two seasons.

So, want to or not, we have to consider the sinker-balling right-hander a legitimate candidate to make the Opening Day roster again in 2010.

Albaladejo is one of those pitchers who is an innings-eater. A guy who does a decent job pitching an inning or two in the middle of a game, or just swallowing up innings in games when a team is behind. Yet, given chances by Girardi last season to move up in the bullpen pecking order, Albaladejo was never able to show that he had what it takes to consistently get key outs late in games.

He seems like a guy who is good enough to be on a big-league roster. He just isn't quite good enough to be truly important to a bullpen.

Albaladejo, 27, posted a 5.24 ERA and a 1.66 WHIP in 32 2009 appearances while shuttling between Scranton and New York. Fairly ugly numbers, and while he might be capable of somewhat better than that he is probably a guy destined to be a journeyman, shuttling from team to team for a few seasons.

As for this season, I could live with him making the team. After all, he is not completely terrible. As long as he isn't asked to get important 7th or 8th-inning outs. Whether he makes the team or not, we will probably see some of Albaladejo in New York at some point this summer.

16 comments  |  0 recs |

New York Yankee notes: How the Bombers could fall apart

Here are a few New York Yankee-related stories to entertain you while we wait impatiently for Spring Training, which is just a few days away.

  • As we know, the Yankees are one of those franchises in sports that you either love or hate. And we know Yankee-haters are just dying to see the Bronx Bombers fall flat on their collective $200 million faces after winning the World Series in 2009. The Orange County Register has a photographic, and sometimes light-hearted, look at how that could happen in 2010.
  • Bench? What bench? NoMaas is not impressed with the collection of spare parts General Manager Brian Cashman has assembled for the Yankee outfield.
  • Speaking of Cashman, he says Joe Girardi, Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter will have to wait until after the season to negotiate new contracts.
  • FanGraphs says Joba Chamberlain lost an average 2.5 miles-per-hour off his fastball in 2009, the biggest drop of any pitcher with at least 50 innings in the big leagues last season. We saw last post-season that Joba can still dial it up, but he just doesn't bring the same heat when he starts games.
  • Just like Derek Jeter used to work his way through the Maxim Hot 100 before Minka Kelly got ahold of him, Alex Rodriguez seems to be into Hollywood starlets. Seems he has moved on from Kate Hudson to Cameron Diaz.
  • River Avenue Blues tries to put together a former Yankee farmhand All-Star team.

17 comments  |  0 recs |

It's not $2 million like initially reported.

$1.1 million plus $900K (that Thames signed for) equals $2 million, the amount Cashman said he was under budget. So the roster looks to be set.

1 day ago Mo_rivera_tiny Travis G 24 comments 0 recs

Marcus Thames has signed a minor-league contract with the Yankees. Another right-handed bat to add to the outfield competition.

1 day ago Bigblueview_tiny Ed Valentine 30 comments 0 recs

I think everybody admits this is speculation, but usually rumors like this aren't completely fabricated out of thin air (see steroids).

1 day ago Tiny 3460kuri 7 comments 0 recs

The most to prove in 2010: Hitter's Edition

Robbie Cano is entering his age-27 season, the heart of his (historically speaking) prime. We've seen a Cano that makes us want to scream and another that surprises us he doesn't hit .400. Cano can be good enough to hit third for the $200 million New York Yankees but hasn't shown enough run-producing ability to warrant that. Now I know batting average w/ RISP is laden with problems (like small sample sizes and year to year vicissitudes), but Cano has never once, in his five-year career, hit better w/ RISP than without. And he's often hit significantly worse (an average of .50 worse, .306 career vs. .256 w/ RISP).

There's no way he'll be the #3 hitter with Tex in the mix now, but he could still step up and be an excellent #5 hitter. To do that, he'll have to hit better than .206 (his 2009 BA w/ RISP) and .256 (career BA w/ RISP).

Is it something psychological with him, or is it really just bad luck in RBI opportunities? His BABIP is .267 w/ RISP (vs. .346 with nobody on), so there certainly seems to be an element of luck, but my eyes tell me he presses and either gets too aggressive or too passive (the real test, line drive rate w/ RISP, does not seem to exist on the interweb). Fortunately for Robbie, he's not counted on to fill the run-producing five-hole. That will likely fall to Posada, Swisher or Granderson (at least against RHP). But if Cano is ever going to turn into the perennial All-Star we think he can be (rather than the guy who never lived up to his potential), this would be a fine year to start.

Poll
Who has the most to prove this year?

  921 votes | Results

Continue reading this post »

30 comments  |  0 recs |

Here's a time-waster quiz to tide you over until spring training



Since the Jeopardy baseball quiz was such a disappointment (Cubs, Pirates, Cubs, Pirates, the Babe), here's a Yankee- oriented quiz.   Just identify the source and/or object of the quote.  Please note:  Nothing quotable has been said recently.   Scoring  0 wrong-  pat yourself on the back.  1-3 wrong, pat someone else on the back.  More than that-  what are you doing on this site?   I'll post the answers in a few days if necessary, but it shouldn't be too hard for most of you.

Continue reading this post »

14 comments  |  1 recs

Bullpen hopefuls: Boone Logan

Boone Logan

More photos » David J. Phillip - AP

Boone Logan

As we continue to look at pitchers who are probably in competition for the final spot or two in the season-opening New York Yankees bullpen, let's turn our attention to a pitcher the Yankees acquired via trade this off-season.

That would be 25-year-old left-hander Boone Logan, who came to the Yankees as part of the Javier Vazquez deal.

Logan has a less-than-impressive resume in parts of four big-league seasons with the Chicago White Sox and Atlanta Braves. In 127.2 innings, he has surrendered 158 hits and walked 58, a career WHIP of 1.69 -- way too high to be considered a trustworthy relief pitcher.

Logan has a career ERA of 5.78. Looking further, he is a left-handed specialist type whom lefties hit .266 off throughout Logan's career. He was better against left-handed hitters in 2009, however, as they hit .231 against him.

Continue reading this post »

9 comments  |  0 recs |

More Posts from Pinstripe Alley

Explore Full Archive Next Page


User Tools

Welcome to Pinstripe Alley, an SB Nation blog about the 27-time (and reigning) World Champion New York Yankees.

Community Guidelines
Start posting about the Yankees »

Join SB Nation and dive into communities focused on all your favorite teams.

FanPosts

Community blog posts and discussion.

Recent FanPosts

Small
Yankees Trivia
Small
MLB.TV
Small
Yahoo Fantasy League
Small
SON OF TIME WASTER QUIZ
Small
Time waster quiz answers.
Funny-pictures-thats-one-big-squirrel-08b_small
Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera: The Best Yankees of All-Time?
29870_small
Fantasy league
Freddy_hangs_head_small
My 2010 Fantasy Rankings For Pitchers
Small
Here's a time-waster quiz to tide you over until spring training
39135485-59af19dbb26654095f910f34176af094_4ae8a81e-scaled_small
Yankees Predicted Stats (Brandon C. Version)

+ New FanPost All FanPosts >

CONTACT PINSTRIPE ALLEY

-- Have a comment, question, suggestion or want to advertise?
E-mail pinstripealley.staff@gmail.com

Ed Valentine, Manager -- E-mail Ed
Travis G., Manager -- E-Mail Travis
Jscape, Senior Writer -- E-Mail Jscape
Crazy Yankee Chick, Contributing Writer -- E-Mail CYC
3460Kuri, Contributing Writer -- E-Mail Kuri

Brandon, Contributing Writer -- E-mail Brandon

Follow pinstripealley on Twitter

Featured Poll

Poll
Who's to blame for Johnny Damon not being a Yankee next season?

  1731 votes | Results

FanShots

Quick hits of video, photos, quotes, chats, links and lists that you find around the web.

Recent FanShots

Joel Sherman
Nady Agrees to Deal with Cubs
Yankees have offer for Damon
                             Robinson Cano's secret identity.
                             Robinson Cano's secret identity.
                             Robinson Cano's secret identity.
                             Robinson Cano's secret identity.
2010 MLB PRESEASON mags is 3 weeks away sporting news feb 2 lindy feb 2 ...
Eric Byrnes DFA'd
The Onion: Yankees Trademark "Yankees Suck"

+ New FanShot All FanShots >


Managers

Mo_rivera_small Travis G

Bigblueview_small Ed Valentine

Senior Writer

Dsc00073_small jscape2000

Contributing Writers

Small 3460kuri

Cyc2_small CrazyYankeeChick

39135485-59af19dbb26654095f910f34176af094_4ae8a81e-scaled_small Brandon C.