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Just like always, the Yankees aren’t willing to settle for less than a championship this year. Thank god we have management that always wants to win. With the trade deadline approaching, Cashman’s crew was busy once more despite some suggestions not too long ago that it was time to call it quits for 2008. What they came up with will certainly be a nice help for this year and thankfully not too big a hit for the future.

First off I want to say that Cashman hasn’t sold out. He is still sticking by our young prospects and the fact that we still have Ian Kennedy and Phil Hughes shows that. This move does send away prospects, but without them the farm system is far from depleted. We still have good depth at their positions and it really shouldn’t be a big hit. Add that with the fact that Nady and Marte are in their prime and not on the downhill just yet, and this move makes a lot of sense for us.

The prospects we will part with are Jose Tabata, Ross Ohlendorf, Phil Coke, and George Kontos. Kontos and Coke aren’t likely to become anything special, although Tabata and Ohlendorf certainly seem to have a future. Tabata is considered one of the best athletes in the organization, but he is an outfielder, a position that we have a huge abundance at. Add that with the fact that he is struggling this year and that Nady is also an outfielder, and it doesn’t seem that bad to let him go. Nady will be a great addition to the squad, as he will certainly help the struggling lineup. He bats right-handed as well, which is a big plus since most of our bats are lefties at the moment. He will also be some good insurance should we choose to let Abreu walk next year.

Ross Ohlendorf showed some good potential this year, but the Yankees have a lot of good arms in the farm system, but most just aren’t ready yet. Marte gives us someone who can help the team right now, in a bullpen that will welcome him. With a cohort of young pitchers and the extensive resources we have, I am not too worried about our pitching situation in the future.

So, that’s basically what the trade is all about. Of course everyone won’t agree with my views, but I believe that letting go of these prospects was worth it, especially considering what we got in return and what we have left. Don’t get me wrong, I am all about keeping a strong farm system, but sometimes you just have to let some guys go if you want to win in the present (if we did a deal like IPK for Fuentes, as the Rockies are supposedly seeking, then I would be 100% against it, but looking at who we lost and who we got, it certainly isn’t bad.) Although the 2008 Yankees have received a lot of scrutiny this year with predictions that we wouldn’t make it in the ultra-competitive AL East, I think that we do still have a chance and I am glad to know that the organization feels similarly.

Update: Instead of George Kontos and Phil Coke, the Pirates will be receiving Dan McCutchen and Jeff Karstens. Apparently they had a choice of two players out of a pool of several (including Kontos and Coke) and decided to go with Karstens and McCutchen. It really isn’t that big a deal because none of them are anywhere near big prospects and chances are none of them will have a big impact in the future.

This post is part of the MLB Draft 2008 get-to-know the draftees series.

Erik Lovett, a first baseman and outfielder from Mount Olive College was selected by the New York Yankees in the 2008 MLB draft. Lovett, who will turn 23 in August is a 6’1, 220lbs. lefthander.

As a junior, Erik played in all 64 of Mount Olive’s games. He hit .371, with 28 doubles, 18 homeruns, and 77 RBI’s. His walk to strikeout ratio was 52:44. In the field Erik split time between first base and outfield. His fielding percentage for the 2008 season was .990. We see Erik best served as a first basemen. If he continues to develop, he could have a serious career in the big leagues.

In the 50th round (1502nd overall) of the 2008 MLB draft, the New York Yankees selected Nikolas Turley, a southpaw out of Harvard- Westlake High School in La Canada, California. He turns 19 years old on September 11th and is a 6’3, 210lbs lefthander.

At Harvard-Westlake, Nikolas led his squad to a 14-13 record his senior season after going 13-12 his junior year. As the last pick, it would appear Turley has a lot of work to do to improve his mound presence, but that is nothing a little collegiate baseball can’t help solve. It will be interesting to track Turley’s performances from here on out, especially as we (and scouts) track his progress on whether or not he is MLB material.

This post is part of the MLB Draft 2008 get-to-know the draftees series.

After another victory tonight, the Yankees have extended their win streak to 5 (and the home streak to 9.) With a Tampa loss, we sit only 3.5gb with a 55-45 record. Tomorrow is the last game of the series against the Twins and after that the Yanks have a day off before starting a series with Boston (who are only 2.5 games ahead of us [likely to go to three later tonight as the BoSox are winning right now] at this point for the wildcard.) The Yankees are far from out of it and if we can keep the momentum going we could see ourselves in second or maybe even first place in less than a week. So, who said that the Yankees are done for this year?

After coming away with a thrilling 13 inning win on Saturday the Yankees look to sweep the Oakland A’s on Sunday. The 1:05pm start will feature Andy Pettitte and Justin Duchscherer as the starting pitchers.

Duchscherer is 10-5 this season with a 1.82 ERA. With those numbers it is no surprise that he was a member of the 2008 All Star Game. Justin has won 7 of his 9 decisions, with his last start a 7.2 inning no-decision, in which he allowed 5 hits and 2 runs against the Anaheim Angels. The A’s lost that game 4-3. In Duchscherer’s last start against the Yankees, he went 7 strong innings and allowed just 5 hits and a run. He is 1-1 in his career against the Yankees. Newcomer Richie Sexson has the most career at bats against Duchscherer, going 4-14 with 2 doubles and a homerun. Alex Rodriguez is 4-11 career against Justin with a homerun and 5 RBIs.

For the Yanks, Andy Pettitte will look to pick up his 11th win of the season. Andy is 10-7 with a 4.03 ERA on the season. Pettitte is 9-5 in his career against the A’s including a victory against them earlier this season. Pettitte is 6-2 with 2 no decisions in his last eight starts.

Let’s finish the series with a sweet sweep!

After a big win Friday night, the Yankees will battle the A’s again on Saturday afternoon at the stadium.

For the A’s, 22 year old rookie Sean Gallagher will throw. Sean is 1-0 since coming over in the Rich Harden deal before the All Star Break. In his last start, Gallagher went 7 innings, allowing just 2 hits and 2 runs in a 9-2 win over the Angels. Gallagher, a 12th round draft pick by the Cubs in the 2004 draft is 4-4 overall, with a 4.25 era. As a Cub, Gallagher had lost his last three starts before coming over to Oakland. No current Yankee player has faced Gallagher in their career.

For the Yankees, Joba Chamberlain will be on the hill. Joba is 2-3, with a 2.62 era on the season. Chamberlain has pitched in 47 games in his career, with 2008 being his first full season in the majors.  He has made five starts at home this season, going 1-1 with a 3.41 era. His last start was on July 11th against the Blue Jays and he went 6.2 innings, allowing 7 hits, and 3 runs in a 5-0 loss. His last win was June 25th at Pittsburgh, a game in which he pitched 6.2 scoreless innings. Frank Thomas is the only current A’s player to face Chamberlain, and he is 0 for 2.

This game is scheduled to begin at 1:05pm.

Buster Olney of ESPN reports that the Yankees have agreed to a tentative deal with Richie Sexson. With the offense doing not-so-well, Cashman seems to think that Sexson may be able to help us. The Yanks are going to be paying him the minimum, so if it doesn’t work out then oh well. The main reason that he is appealing is because he bats right-handed, which can certainly be useful for the lineup. We have struggled against left-handed pitchers all year and Sexson may be able to help out that cause a bit. I know Sexson isn’t nearly what he used to be, but I think we should give him a shot (atleast until he starts to play poorly) because there is a [slight] chance that he might help out the team a bit, just look at how the Ponson signing is working out so far.

After the AL won the marathon of an All Star Game, the New York Yankees, and Oakland A’s, both coming off four days off will tango Friday night for the first of three at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees are coming off a loss to Toronto, and sitting at 50-45, 6 games back from Boston, and 5.5 from Tampa Bay, while Oakland has lost their last two, and are 51-44, and 6 games out in the AL West.

For the A’s, Joe Blanton will take the mound. After the A’s lost Rich Harden, Blanton along with Dana Eveland will have to take the responsibility of carrying the load for Oakland starters. Blanton has had some troubles this season, but looks to get off to a better second half. Joe is 5-12 on the season with a 4.96 era. In his last outing against the Yankees, he went 6.2 innings, allowing 6 hits and 4 runs- all earned in a loss. Blanton is 3-6 in his last 9 decisions. For Yankee hitters, Derek Jeter is 4-12, Alex Rodriguez 4-7, and Jorge Posada is 2-5, but no one else has had great success off Blanton. Rodriguez has 2 homeruns and 5 RBI’S, in those 4 hits.

For the Yankees, the Moose, Mike Mussina will take the mound. Mussina has been solid for another season. The 39 year old right hander is 11-6 on the season, with a 3.61 era. For his career, Mike is 17-10 against Oakland. Mussina is coming off a 6 inning no decision in a 4-2 loss to Pittsburgh last week.

Time for the Yankees to show what they are made of here in the second half. Let’s get a win!

This post is part of the MLB Draft 2008 get-to-know the draftees series.

In the 48th round of the 2008 MLB draft, the Yankees selected Rob Scahill out of Bradley University, a private school in Peoria Illinois. Rob, a 6’2, 205 pound right-hander had a nice season for the Braves in 2008. It was a great comeback after missing the 2007 season with a torn labrum. In 2008, Rob threw 83.2 innings, allowing 78 hits, striking out 79, and walking 41. Opponents hit a combined .244 against Scahill.

Scahill has a nice fastball that hits the low 90’s, and a curveball plus a changeup that he seldom uses (but does have in his arsenal.) Part of Scahill’s downfall throughout his career has been his control and his weakness of using the middle of the plate way too much. Hopefully after he has recovered completely from his injury this will be something Rob fixes. Chances are Rob will return to Bradley for his senior season, as the Yankees track his progress.

In the 46th round (with the1394th overall pick) of the draft the Yankees selected right-handed pitcher Matt Veltmann out of San Diego Community College. Veltmann, 6’5, 200 has great stuff, and only pitched one collegiate season. A 2007 graduate of Cathedral Catholic High School in San Diego, Veltmann appears to be able to throw in the lower 90’s and throws a bit from the side. His curve has great ability, and he is able to pitch a nice hard slider, along with a sweet split.

This post is part of the MLB Draft 2008 get-to-know the draftees series.

Last night’s home run derby was certainly one for the ages as it was the first and last at Yankee Stadium and Josh Hamilton continued his inspirational comeback with an amazing night. He ended up coming in second since the last round resets the home run count, but I think in the minds of most he was the true winner. Even Justin Mourneu, who officially won, admitted that Hamilton was the big show of the night.

The 27-year-old Ranger hit home run after home run in the first round, breaking Bobby Abreu’s record of 24 by 4. Not only that, but most of those blasts were far and high, going to the back of the stands on a regular basis. The crowd was going crazy and chanting “Ha-mil-ton, Ha-mil-ton, Ha-mil-ton.” The star of the night later said that the sights and sounds of the fans at Yankee Stadium chanting his name like that sent chills through his body. Who would have seen this coming just one year ago?

It was a truly spectacular event and for those who haven’t seen footage from it, you really must. It was a great derby, one that will be remembered for years and one that is certainly very fitting for the last year at Yankee.

This post is part of the MLB Draft 2008 get-to-know the draftees series.

With the 620th overall pick (20th round) of the 2008 MLB draft, the New York Yankees selected a right-handed pitcher out of Creighton University- Patrick Venditte. Patrick is an extremely unique draftee, as he is the only ambidextrous pitcher in the country. He is successful at pitching with both arms and that can certainly be a very valuable trait if he can make the bigs. The 6-1, 190lbs also bats from both sides of the plate, making him extremely desirable.

Venditte was born and raised in Omaha Nebraska, attending Omaha Central High School, and then electing to stay at home and attend Creighton University, a small Jesuit Catholic University. He was drafted in the 45th round of the 2007 draft, also by the Yankees, but elected to return to school for his senior season where he made the All-American first team going 9-3 with a 3.34 era and 7 saves. He pitched 86.1 innings, and appeared in 37 games, which led the conference and ranked second in the country. He struck out 101 batters in those 86.1 innings.

He recorded a strikeout with both his right and left arm in 17 of his 35 games this year, and 39 times in his career. Venditte was used out of the Blue Jays’ (Creighton Blue Jays, not Toronto) bullpen and pitched upwards of three innings an outing. He made his second career start against Nebraska on April 23rd.

This guy could be a very valuable asset to the Yankees bullpen in the future. He doesn’t have the most over-powering stuff, but he can throw strikes and fool hitters. How about a righty specialist and a lefty specialist, all in one? Very good decision by the Yankees to pick this guy up for a second straight year!

This post is part of the MLB Draft 2008 get-to-know the draftees series.

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