Yankees option Cory Wade to Triple-A

July 2, 2012 by Mike Axisa 50 Comments

The Yankees have optioned right-hander Cory Wade to Triple-A to make room on the roster for the recently acquired Chad Qualls. Qualls will be in uniform tonight and was given the number of another noted Yankees sinker baller, #40.

Wade, 29, has been awful for about six weeks now, pitching to a 9.68 ERA (6.45 FIP) in his last 20 appearances (17.2 innings). He jumped on the bullpen grenade the other night by throwing a career-high 58 pitches in a blowout loss, though he allowed six runs in the process. I thought maybe the Yankees would send Wade to High-A Tampa to keep him away from the traveling Triple-A circus, but at least now he’ll have a chance to right the ship in games that don’t count.

Bubba

Kind of expected. I hope he can right the ship. He’s an easy guy to root for.
OMG! Bagels!

Hope Wade works it out. Still perplexed about the addition of Qualls
- http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike Axisa
  
  Well, he’s pitching better than Wade is right now. It’s in upgrade in that sense. He still stinks though.
  - Ted Nelson
    
    If average = stinks, sure.
  - BK2ATL
    
    LOL. I completely agree.
    
    Not sure why people are trying to make a case for Qualls. He hasn’t been anything to write home about in years.
    
    They scott-proctor’d Wade last Friday night. Hope he can bounce back from that abuse.
    - Robinson Tilapia
      
      I don’t think anyone’s making a case FOR him. I just think there’s too much whining AGAINST him.
- Steve (different one)
  
  After demoting Wade, Qualls is much less perplexing IMO.
- Ted Nelson
  
  I’m perplexed that this simple transaction is so confusing to so many people.
  - Robinson Tilapia
    
    Seriously.
Ted Nelson

It was a blow-out loss because of those 6 Rs…

Can we stop exaggerating about the travelling AAA team? First it was that no vets would sign MiLB deals with them, but Branyan, Cust, Ortiz, Nix, Wise, etc. all did. If the Yankees were as worried about its impact on players as you are, they would have found a home for the season.
- http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike Axisa
  
  They tried to find a home. This setup was a last resort.
  - Ted Nelson
    
    They woul have paid more for a home if they thought it was worth it
    - Ed
      
      Paying more only works if the other party is willing to help you out.
      - Ted Nelson
        
        You don’t think there’s a single stadium in the mid-Atlantic someone was willing to rent them for the right price? If you’re paying someone what they value something at, they are not helping you out. It’s a mutually beneficial transaction.
        
        And aren’t they playing like 50% of their games in one stadium anyway? The misinformation and exagerration that goes on here…
        
        Chances are that the players could rent a place where like half their games are, but are expensing hotel rooms to the org instead… And I’d do the same.
- Dick Gozinya
  
  What a dick-bag. You make the comment section brutal to follow sometimes.
  - Ted Nelson
    
    By pointing out the obvious? I was not rude to Mike at all there. I am more than willig to admit I am a dick on here quite a bit, but pointig out that the Yankees would have bid more if a AAA stadium were more important to them doesn’t strike me as dickishness at all.
  - RI$P FTW
    
    Holy over-reaction.
  - Robinson Tilapia
    
    If “being an informed commenter” actually equals “makes comment section brutal,” then he’s guilty as charged.
- The Moral Majority is Neither
  
  Look what the AAA travel did to Betances!
  - Joe
    
    Awesome! and with your comment and observation Ted Nelson is no where to be found!
roadrider

He had his 15 minutes. He was never, ever as good as his numbers and now he has simply reached his over-exposure limit.
- Will (the other one)
  
  I’ve never really understood this line of thinking – that someone can be “better” or “worse than his numbers.” If the numbers, whichever you choose, don’t tell you how good a player is, then what does? Looks? Velocity? Major league-ness of name?
  
  The man’s pitched over 170 innings over four years at the major league level. If he hadn’t gotten “over-exposed” far before now, I doubt that’s the current problem. I’m far more inclined to believe that he’s struggling with something that needs fixing than to think that he’s just a lousy pitcher that somehow was able to scrape by for this long.
- Ro
  
  I don’t know if I would go as far as “15 minutes.” Cashman made a great move picking him up last spring. Like Ayala, got some solid production for the entire season. He started out great this season and he was sharp in ST. Something just fell about about 6 weeks ago and the issue probably became more compounded as he tried harder to correct (dig himself out) of whatever he working on. It’s not unusual for a pitcher to just loose their stuff for a short period of time. It’s not like he is injured, which is good. I really think it was a combination of overthrowing and locating. Both should be pretty easy to correct in the minors. I’m going to say he’ll be back with the team end of the month, if not sooner.
- Voice of Reason
  
  Let’s get serious: his track record indicates that he wasn’t likely to sustain his April/May performance, but there’s even less chance he’s going to keep pitching like he did in June. Absolutely none, actually.
  
  Just because his most recent stretch was a bad one doesn’t mean that’s who is now and the whole rest of his career was just of smoke and mirrors and leading up to this inevitable conclusion. You’re being ridiculous.
  - Need Pitching
    
    this
http://fendersonandhampton.com Cuso

Thanks for that.

I’m not going to be able to look at the guy without thinking “Chien MingQualls”

Mink walls. Get him to the Greek.
- http://fendersonandhampton.com Cuso
  
  Did I just blow your mind? Or did I Billy Madison you?
BK2ATL

I saw this coming, with the option he had left.

Hopefully he rights the ship down there. He was very integral to our bullpen until June.
DJ4K&Monterowasdinero

“Another noted Yankee sinker baller, #40…”

Lindy McDaniel?

/kidding, I know it is that guy on the Nats
- Kosmo
  
  Actually McDaniel was a great reliever for NY and if i remember correctly he had a nasty screwball.
  - dc1874
    
    he had one of the best forkballs at the time
    - DJ4K&Monterowasdinero
      
      I knew that pitch fell off the table!
jjyank

Not surprised. Hope Wade turns it around in AAA before Qualls has to throw an inning with some leverage.
- Ted Nelson
  
  Qualls has blown up twice recently (with two crucial hits by McCutchen and Either, who aren’t exactly slouches), but otherwise been ok. And his long-run FIP and splits are ok. Given the
yooboo

It is a good move. Wade needs a break from MLB and works on some struggle for better picture in August or later. Qualls can stay as long as he can pitch.

Since Girardi uses mix and match method, Qualls throws much harder than Wade and won’t give up an easy home run.
http://fendersonandhampton.com Cuso

Although the pinstripes have a slimming effect, any number ending with “0” is a dangerous move. Ask Sid Fernandez. At least they didn’t give him “60” or “80.”
- Ralph
  
  10? 20?
  
  I totally can’t recall anyone successful wearing those numbers on the Yankees.
Jonathan

The same things happens every year. You think with CC/Pettitte/Pineda/Kuroda/Hughes/Nova/Garcia/AJ you’d wonder how we’re going to get these guys innings, especially with Betances/Banuelos and Warren/Mitchell/Phelps close to MLB. Then you think Hughes will end up in the bullpen and Joba will be back. So you’d end up with a bullpen of Mo/Robertson/Soriano/Joba/Wade/Logan/Hughes and Aardsma later along with a long man. It’s just crazy how much pitching depth you need. It’s so rare to see a year like the Rays had in 2008 where basically you have the same 5 starters the entire year. I’m glad Cash has built up the pitching depth and Hughes/Nova have become what we hoped out of them when it mattered the most. When CC/Pettitte comes back I seriously don’t have a clue who doesn’t get a playoff start if everyone pitches how they have been for the rest of the year.
- http://fendersonandhampton.com Cuso
  
  “if everyone pitches how they have been for the rest of the year.”
  
  Big if.
  - Jonathan
    
    Definitely but it’s not like Hughes/Nova/Kuroda don’t have the talent to keep doing it. Hughes was pretty good with just a fastball in 2010 and now he has 2 good curves to go with it and after Nova started using his slider last year he was incredible. And Kuroda is just flat out that good. I hope we end up with that problem. Of course after referencing 2010 we know we had 5 great starters at one point and we know how that ended.
    - http://fendersonandhampton.com Cuso
      
      Oh, I know. I basically agree. Just saying it’s a big if.
      
      I hope it come to not being an if. But…you know.
Greg

We all know we’re waiting for the “relief cavalry” – that is, Joba and Aardsma. And Wade needed to go down. But it’s hard to imagine that a guy who couldn’t cut it in the NL East is the best option we’ve got – you mean that there isn’t another reliever At Trenton or Scranton who is better than Qualls?
- bobtaco
  
  Here’s a bottle, now go try and catch some lightning…
- http://thecarsboneblog.tumblr.com Raul Ibanez AKA Tom Marvolo Riddle
  
  Let’s be real Greg the order of the bullpen right now from most to least important:
  Soriano
  Roberston
  Logan
  Epply
  Rappada
  Mitchell
  Wise
  Qualls
  
  As long as the dude doesn’t see any even mid-leverage roles the Yankees bullpen is still pretty beastly.
  - Need Pitching
    
    you forgot Swisher
    - http://thecarsboneblog.tumblr.com Raul Ibanez AKA Tom Marvolo Riddle
      
      Nick Swisha is a stahting pitcha!!!!!!!
  - Ted Nelson
    
    I think he’s distinctly better than Eppley, and fills a totally different role than Boone ad especially Rapada. Would expect to see him in medium and high leverage siuarions in the 6th, 7th, and even 8th.
- Ted Nelson
  
  Qualls had two blow ups in Philly. Otherwise he was fine.
  
  Also has huge splits, but Philly didn’t use him as a specialist all that much.
Robinson Tilapia

I hope it’s a short-lived stay and he’s right back up in the majors and effective again. Love me some Cory Wade, but he needs some fixin’ right now. Actually might like for him to get some rest as well.
matt

All good with Wade being optioned. I thought a DL stint was as likely – think the guy is, baseline, a pretty effective reliever, and I’ll hope he’ll be back.

I don’t think Qualls is utterly without value. In fact, his career – but more relevant – his 2009=2012 splits indicate he handles RHB awfully well, indeed, even this season, better than Cody Eppley. But Lord knows, LHB have absolutely destroyed him since ’09, which is the last year he demonstrated solid effectiveness against the lefties. Essentially, if used correctly, he’s another Eppley, a RHB only guy – leaving the pen with three same side specialists.

Got no tremendous issue with the move, assuming Joe G. doesn’t trot Qualls out there as a full inning guy in any kind of leveraged spot. And forget any notion of only using Logan against one lefty. With this construction, if you’re in inning 7 or earlier, really can’t just use Boone for one batter.