Around the Empire: Yankees news - 2/3/21

Yahoo Sports | Scott Thompson: Jon Morosi reported that the Yankees will take a low-risk flyer on relief pitcher Kyle Barraclough, as they signed him to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training. The right-hander’s last team was the San Diego Padres, in the condensed 2020 campaign, but he didn’t pitch. In 2019, he had an ugly 5.61 ERA, a 1.75 WHIP, and a 40/21 K/BB ratio over 33.2 innings between two clubs. The Bombers are hoping he can recapture his pre-2018 form – he had a couple of sub-3.00s ERA seasons in 2015 and 2016 and finished with a 3.00 mark in 2017. For his career, he has a 3.53 ERA and a 3.84 FIP in 252.1 frames.

The Athletic | Keith Law: Prospect guru Keith Law published his list of top 100 prospects for the 2021 season. Three members of the New York Yankees appear on it: pitcher Clarke Schmidt is ranked 48th; outfielder Jasson Dominguez checks in at No. 66, and Deivi Garcia, who had a (mostly) positive big-league debut in 2020, is in the 81st spot. Most outlets have Dominguez as the best prospect from the Bombers, so it was a mild surprise to see Schmidt leading the club in Law’s list. (This is a subscriber-only post, but worth your time if you are one or can get a cheap/free trial.)

New York Daily News | Kristie Ackert: Third baseman Gio Urshela spoke to reporters on Tuesday night after receiving the Thurman Munson Award and said that while he might miss the start of spring training, he should be fine by Opening Day. In December, he had surgery to remove a bone chip from his elbow in an operation that was delayed due to his bout with COVID-19. Urshela also praised the Yankees signing his old Cleveland teammate, Corey Kluber.

ESPN | Associated Press: Baseball lost a very good left-hander of the sixties, seventies, and part of the eighties; Grant Jackson passed away because of COVID-19-related complications. He was 78. Jackson won Game Seven of the 1979 World Series for the “We Are Family” Pittsburgh Pirates and pitched for the Yankees during the 1976 season. In fact, he was a crucial trade deadline addition, pitching to a 1.69 ERA and 0.92 WHIP in 58.2 innings during the stretch run and helping the Bombers win their first pennant since 1964. During 18 seasons in The Show, he had a 3.46 ERA in 1,358.2 innings.

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