Minor League Mondays: An Assortment of Tidbits
by Lord Duggan on Jun 13, 2011 2:48 PM EDT
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Mood Music - Hallowed be thy Name by Iron Maiden
After another week of the minor league season, there are a few storylines that I'd like to draw to your attention:
Firstly, after getting off to a torrid start, New York Yankees center field prospect Slade Heathcott has cooled off considerably at the plate. Following his May 13th brawl, Heathcott has hit .222/.267/.309 with a 29.6 K%. While it's certainly a small sample size, an abrupt return to reality makes me dubious about Heathcott's .485 BABIP fueled April.
As of right now, the biggest impediment to Heathcott's game is the massive strikeout totals. A player who strikes out that much, doesn't walk, and doesn't hit for much power can only be so useful, even with the ability to slash some line drives. Thankfully, Heathcott is still in A ball and won't be called upon for several years at the very least, giving him plenty of time to work and improve in the minor leagues.
Also, second base prospect David Adams made his return to action last night, hitting two singles in his debut for High-A Tampa. Adams has long been considered one of the top hitters in the Yankees system, but has battled with injury for most of the past year. Last season, in 173 plate appearances at AA Trenton, Adams posted a .309/.393/.507 line, good enough to get any Yankee fan excited.
David Phelps is scheduled to start tonight for Scranton. I would guess that Phelps would have been skipped in this start if he had been selected to replace Bartolo Colon in the rotation, but we'll have to wait and see. With no off-days until the 23rd, it will be difficult for the Yankees to do a re-shuffling of the rotation, so I'd keep an eye on Hector Noesi. Also, it will be interesting to see if Jesus Montero can get back in the lineup.
[Update: Phelps is actually not going to make the start tonight, so he probably is about to be called up and possibly put into the rotation.]
Last start for Manny Banuelos: 5.2 IP - 2 ER - 3 H - 3 BB - 8 K
Last start for Dellin Betances: 6.0 IP - 0 ER - 3 H - 1BB - 8 K
Call up Jesus Montero.
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I was at Betances last start
And no, it is not weird. The guy throws hard, makes righ handed hitters nervous because of his size and has a pretty good slider that can produce strikeouts.
Sounds like this guy we have on the DL who was in the Pen, who was a starter that dominated the minors.
Nah
That guy has 3 pitches. Betances does not really have much of a change up.
by Iggy Poptart on Jun 13, 2011 3:22 PM EDT up reply actions
I envy the people that can go to minor league games at times.
"WHO WOULD LEAD?! THE CLOWN?!"
by I'mGivingYouARaise on Jun 13, 2011 3:10 PM EDT up reply actions
Home
I live mid way between Trenton and Reading in SE PA. Phillies games are constantly sold out and the commute to the Bronx difficult and expensive once you throw in kids.
Minor league baseball is a great value. For the cost of 4 tickets in section 121 at Yankee stadium for one game, you could get season tickets (71 games) for 3 people 9 rows behind home plate at Reading. Free parking, concessions cost half as much and they do a lot of fun stuff for the kids. Ball players walk through the grandstand tunnel to get to their dugouts, so meeting players and coaches is easy and most are happy to shake hands, pose for pictures or sign a ballm which goes over big with the kids.
by Iggy Poptart on Jun 13, 2011 3:45 PM EDT up reply actions
Man, that’s great…makes me miss my local AA baseball team (New Haven Ravens). They’ve been gone for a while, but I used to go all the time as a youngster, saw and got to meet guys like Coco Crisp, Quenton McCracken, Craig Counsell…all those guys are real weirdos and annoying to watch, but I love them because I used to watch them play weekly when I was a kid.
Supposedly Betances and Banuelos were having control issues keeping them in the minors.
8 Ks and 1 BB doesn’t look like control issues to me. Supposedly Colon’s replacement won’t be Noesi, who stays in the pen. That makes Betances look like a better bet, if they didn’t skip Phelps either.
by designatedquitter on Jun 13, 2011 3:12 PM EDT reply actions
Betances has been walking the park all season long. Cashman should be beaten if he considers bringing him up at this point.
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by Jedi Master A-Rod on Jun 13, 2011 3:18 PM EDT up reply actions
I was unaware
That walking 4 batters per 9 ip constitutes walking the park. The 10.2 K per 9 ip is not a bad number for a starting pitcher, though.
by Iggy Poptart on Jun 13, 2011 3:52 PM EDT up reply actions
Some think
that will translate to an even higher rate in the Majors due to the discipline of the hitters. Which may or may not occur.
I bet it's good to be playing again, huh?
Some also think that
Inproved quality of umpires and pitching mounds may produce the opposite effect. Still others think that 23 year old pitchers may actually improve with time and experience.
The guy will be in AAA soon. He needs a better feel for a change up. He is a better AA pitcher than Noesi was last year, and I would put him around the same level as Kyle Drabek at AA, even though they are different styles of pitchers.
by Iggy Poptart on Jun 13, 2011 5:16 PM EDT up reply actions
You know
Pitching mounds that are not used by the local high school teams several times every week, that don’t get used as camp sites on promotional weekends, that have full time groundskeepers looking out for them, that are not used by 25 people in street shoes throwing out ceremonial first pitches before each game….
And oh yes, minor league umpires are not quite as hit and miss and minor league players, but strike zone consistency is an issue.
by Iggy Poptart on Jun 13, 2011 6:07 PM EDT up reply actions
The strike zone isn't going to get bigger in the majors.
Inconsistency goes both ways with umpires. They call balls strikes and strikes balls sometimes. And Betances and Banuelos aren’t Dallas Braden; they don’t care if other people have used the mound. They’re like the honey badgers of minor league baseball.
Inconsistency goes both ways true
But some minor league umpires are more likely to have moving target strike zones.
by Iggy Poptart on Jun 13, 2011 7:49 PM EDT up reply actions
A BB/9 of 4 is walking the park. That’s a staggering lack of control.
Do you think A.J. is wild and walks a ton of people? Just curious since his career BB/9 is under 4…
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by Jedi Master A-Rod on Jun 13, 2011 4:01 PM EDT up reply actions
AJ is also 34
And has been doing that at the ML level for a decade. Betances has walked 4 per 9 in 51.1 innings at AA, so it is a dubious analogy. Take away 2 shaky starts out of 10 and it is 2.9 walks per 9.
by Iggy Poptart on Jun 13, 2011 4:14 PM EDT up reply actions
Shame you can’t pick and choose which starts factor in…
I’m not saying it’s going to be forever, but his control is a legitimate concern right now. He really needs to reign in his control before people start calling for him to be on the big club.
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by Jedi Master A-Rod on Jun 13, 2011 4:29 PM EDT up reply actions
The thing is
That it is not the end of the world if you have a 23 year old 6’8" pitcher who who occasionaly loses his release point. He walked one and plunked a guy with one out in his last start, but then he noticably slowed his pace down, became more deliberate and erased the 3 and 4 hitters on a strikeout and a pop up,
Right now, I think that he is AAA ready, but an improved change up would help. (At best, it is a “show” pitch now, just something to throw out of the strike zone 3 or 4 times a game to show a third speed) I am not concerned teriibly with the walks at the moment due to the smal sample size
by Iggy Poptart on Jun 13, 2011 5:03 PM EDT up reply actions
How about he throws a full season, gets his BB rate down and actually earns a promotion before the Yankees push him. There’s no reason for him to be jumped to AAA right now.
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by Jedi Master A-Rod on Jun 13, 2011 5:14 PM EDT up reply actions
Not really a rush
He ended the season last year in Trenton. He may be called on for another 75 -80 ip this season. There is a benefit to sending him to AAA for the last 40 of those innings. If he goes there and does well, then he is the picture for the Yankees rotation next year in spring training. If he goes to AAA and is so so, then he probably starts next season at AAA and spends the season there, which is probably what happens if he is in Trenton all season. 14 statrts at Tampa last season, then promoted to AA because there was not much left to accomplish at A ball. If we see the same level of performance through 14 or 15 starts at AA, a July move to Scranton is in the cards.
He is a big bodied kid, and he is going to have moments when his mechanics are not in sync for as long as he pitches. He has to learn to deal with that, and there is only so much to be learned by staying in a league where they are hitting .178 off the guy. Plus the guy is 23, so it is not preposterous to think that he may be Major League ready as a 5th starter some time next year at the age of 24.
9 scouts at the Reading game last week (11 radar guns behind the plate, 1 for Trenton, one for the park, 9 from other teams) and they were not there to watch the home team pitcher (a minor league free agent)
by Iggy Poptart on Jun 13, 2011 5:58 PM EDT up reply actions
Oh, he’s dead serious. Dead wrong, but also serious
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by Jedi Master A-Rod on Jun 13, 2011 3:51 PM EDT up reply actions
Nah, not really sure myself. I do think Romine will be a very good catcher in the Majors. And if Montero can bring us a good number 2 type pitcher, or even a 1 with another part or two like Phelps and/or Warren and anyone not named Banuelos or Betances, I’d be tempted. I’d just hate to see the Yankees pass up on a good trade out of “but what if?” nwhen we have more talent at the C position.
I bet it's good to be playing again, huh?
Romine is not more talented than Jesus. He’s not even that much better of defensive catcher.
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by Jedi Master A-Rod on Jun 13, 2011 3:59 PM EDT up reply actions
Didn’t mean “more talent” as more “talented”. Just that we have a pair of other talented catchers in the system in Romine and Sanchez.
I bet it's good to be playing again, huh?
You’re worried about passing up a big trade because of the “what if” factor, yet are totally comfortable with keeping and pushing a guy who has shown next to nothing to suggest he’ll be anything more mediocre defensive back up.
There’s something wrong with that
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by Jedi Master A-Rod on Jun 13, 2011 4:14 PM EDT up reply actions
Any basis for that? Preferably something that doesn’t involve a sample size of 120 AB’s…
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by Jedi Master A-Rod on Jun 13, 2011 4:23 PM EDT up reply actions
x
It's like being a huge fan of winning, which we do, relentlessly.
by WhatwouldJeterdo on Jun 13, 2011 4:23 PM EDT up reply actions
Yeah, I know.
It's like being a huge fan of winning, which we do, relentlessly.
by WhatwouldJeterdo on Jun 13, 2011 4:28 PM EDT up reply actions
It's actually a good debate for the un-blind
I really am not sure. Do we pick up a great arm for an unproven talent like Montero and bring Romine into the picture or put all our marbles into Montero for the future? I’d be okay with either direction. If they’re not going to trade Montero then damnit, he should be playing NOW.
I bet it's good to be playing again, huh?
I don't think it's worth trading Montero right now.
Colon doesn’t seem like he will be out for long and he’s been great as a #2. Hughes will be coming back and hopefully his issues have been fixed. If after those guys come back they prove that they can’t hold it down, maybe then you entertain the idea of making a move, though I’d prefer that move not involve Montero. But right now, there’s no need to panic until we see what we have coming back in the next couple of weeks.
Yes, Montero should be up and playing now. Martin’s hurt and ineffective and Cervelli is King of E2. I don’t know what more they think they need to see out of those two right now.
It's like being a huge fan of winning, which we do, relentlessly.
by WhatwouldJeterdo on Jun 13, 2011 4:42 PM EDT up reply actions
Montero has proven much more than Romine, so…..yeah
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by Jedi Master A-Rod on Jun 13, 2011 4:42 PM EDT up reply actions
I dont agree with you one bit
but people are acting like Romine is a piece of shit…He was on Baseball America’s top 100 prospect list twice…
No one called him a piece of shit, but he's not enough to consider Montero an after thought by any means.
Until Montero is no longer in this organization, I think it’s very premature to call Romine the catcher of the future.
It's like being a huge fan of winning, which we do, relentlessly.
by WhatwouldJeterdo on Jun 13, 2011 6:40 PM EDT up reply actions
Yeah I totally agree with that
I dont think Romine will be the future catcher and I hope he isnt, I want Baby Jesus, but I just think some are going a little overboard and underrating Romine, with the comments that he can’t hit and is no better than a future backup.
His hitting has always been the suspect part of Romine.
If he can continue the pace he’s on right now for an entire season, some of those comments might go away, but if his numbers look like they did last year again, I think calling his hitting mediocre or maybe just above that is fair. Some team would be happy to have him despite that, I’m sure, but I don’t think it would be enough for the Yankees to disregard Montero in favor of him.
It's like being a huge fan of winning, which we do, relentlessly.
by WhatwouldJeterdo on Jun 13, 2011 6:59 PM EDT up reply actions
I'm tired of reading
bad trade proposals from Giant fans for Yankee players.
How about some bad trade proposals from Yankee fans for (non-broken) Giants players?
Don’t feel obligated to use “facts”…. in this universe, the Yankees hate Montero and Jorge Posada is a C and everyone on both sides will automatically waive their no trade clauses. Because hey, why wouldn’t they be reasonable?
May 29, 2010: Steven Revetria becomes Giants General Manager. The rest is history.
"118 elements, and still no stanfurdium"- carp, paraphrased
Bandwagons are fun- that's why people get on them in the first place.
Cervelli and Ramiro Pena for Lincecum and Cain.
Ready, set, go.
It's like being a huge fan of winning, which we do, relentlessly.
by WhatwouldJeterdo on Jun 13, 2011 4:21 PM EDT up reply actions
He asked for bad trade proposals.
I gave him one.
It's like being a huge fan of winning, which we do, relentlessly.
by WhatwouldJeterdo on Jun 13, 2011 4:48 PM EDT up reply actions
that's right up there with
Zito and [some AAA OF dude] for Montero!
It gets very tiring.
The Giants are in bad enough shape that Cervelli would actually be an upgrade.
May 29, 2010: Steven Revetria becomes Giants General Manager. The rest is history.
"118 elements, and still no stanfurdium"- carp, paraphrased
Bandwagons are fun- that's why people get on them in the first place.
by natteringnabob on Jun 13, 2011 7:31 PM EDT up reply actions
he's broken
although he’s supposedly coming back for Tues.
Mota and Affeldt are often suggested in these hypothetical deals, though!
May 29, 2010: Steven Revetria becomes Giants General Manager. The rest is history.
"118 elements, and still no stanfurdium"- carp, paraphrased
Bandwagons are fun- that's why people get on them in the first place.
by natteringnabob on Jun 13, 2011 7:32 PM EDT up reply actions
Jesus is back in the lineup for SWB tonight.
It's like being a huge fan of winning, which we do, relentlessly.
by WhatwouldJeterdo on Jun 13, 2011 4:53 PM EDT reply actions
What would you guys give up to get King Felix
I would open up to any trade not involving Betances or Banuelos. If we could get him for Montero and Noesi/Warren/Phelps maybe 2 of those and another A or AA prospect I would be fine with that. Imagine his game knowing he has offensive support.
Would offer
Montero, Banuelos, and JoeG’s Binder straight up.
by HappyLuckyGoldenDragonNumber1! on Jun 13, 2011 5:01 PM EDT up reply actions
MOAR FELIX
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by Jedi Master A-Rod on Jun 13, 2011 5:02 PM EDT up reply actions
Sigh.
It's like being a huge fan of winning, which we do, relentlessly.
by WhatwouldJeterdo on Jun 13, 2011 5:03 PM EDT up reply actions
x
Unless you're a pitcher or Gustavo Molina, kindly SWING THE BAT and ignore the Binder's bunt signal.
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