DotF: Judge homers, Refsnyder stays molten hot

June 1, 2014 by Mike Axisa 50 Comments

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The video above is C Gary Sanchez‘s two-run homer from last night’s game. I enjoy that he has a Marcus Thamesian bat flip (0:50 mark). It’s no coincidence that Thames is Double-A Trenton’s hitting coach, right? I like to think not.

Triple-A Scranton (9-7 loss to Indianapolis)

2B-LF Jose Pirela: 5-6, 2 R, 2 2B, 1 3B, 3 RBI, 1 K — 12-for-32 (.375) in his last six games
LF Ramon Flores: 1-1 — beat out an infield single in the first inning and was immediately lifted for a pinch-runner, his agent says he suffered an ankle injury and will miss about a month … ouch
3B Scott Sizemore: 1-5, 1 RBI, 1 K
RF Adonis Garcia: 2-5, 1 R, 1 2B, RBI, 1 K
SS Zelous Wheeler: 0-4, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 E (fielding) — the error led to three runs in the eighth
C Austin Romine: 0-3, 1 R, 2 BB, 1 K
RHP Bruce Billings: 3 IP, 8 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 1/3 GB/FB — 39 of 62 pitches were strikes (63%) … picked a runner off second
RHP Jose Ramirez: 3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K, 3/0 GB/FB — 27 of 44 pitches were strikes (61%) … 13/6 K/BB in 10.2 innings
RHP Mark Montgomery: 1.1 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 1/2 GB/FB — 18 of 28 pitches were strikes (64%) … 17 walks in 24.1 innings

Double-A Trenton (6-4 win over Portland)

CF Mason Williams: 2-4, 1 R, 1 K — got picked off first
LF Ben Gamel: 1-3, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 SB, 1 E (throwing) — also threw a runner out at third
1B Tyler Austin: 0-3, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K
C Gary Sanchez: 1-3, 2 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB — 14-for-35 (.400) with three doubles and three homers in his last eight games
DH Peter O’Brien: 1-3, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K
2B Rob Refsnyder: 2-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 K, 1 CS — hitting an absurd .413/.443/.663 with a 10.3% strikeout rate in his last 24 games
LHP Matt Tracy: 6 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, 10/2 GB/FB — 65 of 105 pitches were strikes (62%)
LHP Tyler Webb: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K — nine of 14 pitches were strikes (64%)

High-A Tampa Game One (3-0 loss to Fort Myers in seven innings) makeup of yesterday’s rainout

CF Jake Cave, SS Cito Culver, 1B Greg Bird & 3B Dante Bichette Jr.: all 0-3 — all except Cave struck out twice
DH Matt Snyder: 1-3, 1 2B, 1 K — their only hit of the day
RHP Rafael DePaula: 5 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 6 K, 1 WP, 3/4 GB/FB — 57/24 K/BB in 47.1 innings

High-A Tampa Game Two (8-4 loss to Fort Myers in seven innings)

CF Jake Cave: 2-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 K
SS Cito Culver: 1-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 K
DH Greg Bird: 0-2, 1 RBI
3B Dante Bichette Jr.: 1-3, 1 R, 1 K
LHP James Pazos: 0.1 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 1/0 GB/FB
LHP Miguel Sulbaran: 3.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 1 HB, 5/2 GB/FB — not sure why he came out of he bullpen and Pazos started, that’s weird
RHP Nick Rumbelow: 1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 0/3 GB/FB

Low-A Charleston (7-5 loss to Asheville)

SS Tyler Wade: 2-5, 1 RBI
LF Michael O’Neill: 1-5, 1 K
RF Aaron Judge: 2-3, 2 R, 1 3B, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 BB — the homer went over the batter’s eye in center field
3B Miguel Andujar: 1-4, 1 R, 1 RBI
CF Dustin Fowler: 1-4, 1 R
2B Gosuke Katoh: 1-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 K, 1 E (throwing) — his last four hits have gone for extra bases (double, two triples, homer), but of course those four hits came in 33 at-bats (.121)
LHP Caleb Smith: 4.2 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 1 HB, 6/3 GB/FB — 57 of 89 pitches were strikes (64%)
RHP Jaron Long: 4.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 1 HB, 7/1 GB/FB — 46 of 64 pitches were strikes (72%) … he’s been unbelievable so far this year, what a nice little undrafted free agent pickup

Just a heads up, Short Season Staten Island opens their season on June 13th, two weeks from this past Friday. The two Rookie GCL Yanks teams start the Friday after that, June 20th.

Nick

I really want to see Refsnyder get that walk rate up, walked a lot last season more walks than K’s but this season he has 13 walks and 32 K’s.
- http://www.staggeringbeauty.com/ ALZ
  
  But at the same time he is showing way more power. already 5 hr, after having 6 last year.
  - Yanks
    
    Yeah, slugging is 100 points higher than last year and his ISO is 80 points higher. I’d be willing to bet he’d have a few more homers on his resume if he didn’t play at a power suppressing park like Trenton. He was inches away from hitting one today that turned into a double.
- Preston
  
  Can’t take pitches just to take. He’s probably seeing a much higher percentage of strikes at AA than at A ball and obviously he’s finding those pitches very hit-able. No reason not to swing at them. If he was striking out at a substantially higher rate I’d be worried but that hasn’t been the case.
- RetroRob
  
  Maybe they viewed him as being a bit passive, and the pitchers were getting ahead of him in the count, so he’s teeing off early. If so, I suspect his walk rate will start to trend back up again. Have to like what he’s doing at AA.
Paisa

Aaaaaaarrrronn Judgeeeeeeee….
- Chief Wahoo
  
  Judge’s shot was straight away center and cleared the batter’s eye. Crushed!
  - nycsportzfan
    
    Awesome! Over the 404marker in CF type blast, ey?
http://www.staggeringbeauty.com/ ALZ

Really nice to see Judge showing the power stroke now, but still very willing to take the walks.
nycsportzfan

Jose Pirela is ready for the big leagues. I hope someone gives him a chance, I really do. He did well in extremely small sample size with Scranton last yr and is hitting 316BA for them this yr. Hes got alittle pop, is extremely versatile, isn’t fast, but by no means a slug, and he had a really rock solid 2012 also.

I bet he’d be starting on at least 10clubs right now if he wasen’t with the Yanks.
- Wolfgang’s Fault
  
  He’s ready for the show!
- zs190
  
  Eh, I think he’s below average at both 2B and LF and the arm isn’t good enough to play 3B/SS/RF and probably not enough range for CF so versatile is kind of exaggerating a bit. Hitting wise he’s a decent contact hitter with some gap power but does not walk. The total package is close to a poor man’s Steve Lombardozzi, could be a bench guy for some teams in the right circumstances.
  - nycsportzfan
    
    Hes the type of player you could see being a better pro then minor league player. It happens. Hes had a respectable OBP at 354 or slightly above since 2012, so its not like hes not getting on base. I like that hes hitting both righties and lefties this yr. Hes turning into a really solid player. Trust me, you go look at whats starting or playing big roles on other teams, and tell me he woulden’t be at least a used alot role player.
    
    He might not be elite defender, but he can play many positions which always comes in handy, and he has also has some speed, albeit not elite, but i’m sure he could be used as a pinch runner in the late innings if need be and at least can keep the pitcher occupied some.
  - FIPster Doofus
    
    There’s such a thing as a poor man’s Steve Lombardozzi? Ouch.
- RetroRob
  
  If he can field I’d say bring him up now.
Yanks

Pretty sure he’s not all that good on defense, which is a big reason he’s not rated very highly even though he’s hit pretty well.
- hornblower
  
  Brian Roberts is? Ref. can really hit but his is not very good at second either. Anyone who can hit can play for the big club.
  - Yanks
    
    I tried to post that in response to the guy saying bring Pirela up but it didn’t work even when I clicked reply.
    
    Ref is rough on defense but he’s a far superior offensive player to Pirela and has better tools.
    - Nick
      
      Ref is a pretty athletic dude, he’s had a few bumps transitioning to 2B that should have been expected, but he should be perfectly fine there as he gets more comfortable. Added to that his potential bat, really good pitch recognition, and hearing his make-up is off the charts in his draft reports, its hard not to get excited about him manning 2B in the Bronx in the near future.
- pft
  
  Supposedly has trouble making DP and makes a lot of errors. No idea how his bat translates in the MLB. Bit old for his AA stats to mean much, should know more if he jumps to AAA
  - RetroRob
    
    Who Refsynder? Considering this is his first full year at AA, which is the separation point for prospects and the also-rans, he’s doing well.
    
    Haven’t heard if his defense is improving.
    
    I suspect he’ll be in AAA at some point this year.
  - Brett is Bubbas Son
    
    People forget also that he played OF in college. When he got drafted he was 3 years removed from play second and that was in High School.
    - Cool Lester Smooth
      
      Yeah, the problem is more with the transition than that he lacks the tools to play second.
nycsportzfan

There is a player who will be in the Yanks range in the 3rd rd who has the funniest name, Joey Pankake.lol Hes a college kid, and has played for some of the really good S.Carolina teams of the past few yrs. Hes described as a solid hitter, with solid pop, who can run alittle, and has a big arm. I like Pankakes, do you?
Yanks

There’s this tweet on Flores…

https://twitter.com/felixolivo12/status/473197215901839360

That would really suck if true.
Chip Rodriguez

Is it reasonable to talk of Refsnyder making the bigs next year?
- stuckey
  
  3 year college bat, 23 years old.
  
  Not crazy. If he hits in June like he did in May and he’s not kicking the ball all over the field at 2nd (he doesn’t appear to be) he could get to Scranton by the end of the year.
- Nick
  
  He’s 23 this year, will be 24 next spring training, I don’t see why not. Just hope its as a Yankee.
- nycsportzfan
  
  He could also be used as trade bait, lets not forget. With Brian Roberts being only a stop gap and Katoh struggling right now, i’d make sure to keep Refsnyder. He had the look of a special player in college as well and its seemed to carry over.
forensic

SS Zelous Wheeler: 0-4, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 K, 1 E (fielding) – the error led to three runs in the eighth

So, looks like people were right, he would fit right in with the MLB infield.
- Wolfgang’s Fault
  
  He’s not a shortstop. Probably playing him there to find out if he can fill in there if called upon. The dude wins a ballgame earlier in the week w/a grand salami, no one notices. He makes an error playing a position he rarely plays, he’s a bum. Wheeler’s in the Rodney Dangerfield zone.
  - hornblower
    
    Nice to see the minor clubs doing well. The big club besides losing is awful to watch with the exception of some young pitchers and Solarte. The best part is that they are not one player away so there will be no ugly trades.
  - nycsportzfan
    
    Agreed. Kinda messed up if you ask me. I’d consider Wheeler over Kelly Johnson at this point. Kelly isn’t adjusting to the limited role to well and Wheeler or Pirela could probably help us more overall.
    - Preston
      
      Kelly Johnson has a wRC+ of 90 at the MLB level this season (career 103). He’s doing fine. I’m not ready to replace him with a 27 year old journey man because he’s had a hot 37 games (supported by an inflated .345 BABIP). Jose Pirela is even less inspiring.
  - forensic
    
    Lol, not much for jokes?
Casa di Papi

Gsary Sanchez is looking very good this year at the plate. I keep reading that his defense has improved. Any shot at himi moving p to AAA this year and possibly a September call up?
- Preston
  
  I’d be surprised if he didn’t get a mid-season call up to AAA. He’s already on the 40 man roster, so there would be no reason not to give him the September call up, even if it’s just to catch bullpens, take BP, and hang out in the dugout.
  - RetroRob
    
    Maybe, although I’m not sure. This is his first full season at AA, and with McCann and Murphy on the MLB team, but Cervelli about to return (I think they will send Murphy down to continue to play regularly),and Romine still at AAA, I don’t see him making AAA outside a late-season call up.
    
    The burrito’s cooking, but still cold in the middle. Needs more time.
    - http://www.staggeringbeauty.com/ ALZ
      
      I agree. He has been good, but certainly isn’t tearing it up at AA. I don’t see a need to move him up this season. He isn’t forcing their hand, and they have McCann signed for the next 5 years. Just leave him in AA this year, AAA next, and let’s go from there. No need to rush him to AAA so he is ready next year, figure out Murphy/Cervelli first. IMO .258/.325/.434 does not deserve a midseason callup. There is obviously still things he should be working on.
      - Preston
        
        Right, as his batting line stands now, he wouldn’t get the call. But he had a pretty bad slump and has seemed to adjust pretty darn well (.326/.356/.605, if he continues hitting this way for the next twenty games or so he will be forcing their hand. As for Cervelli, at this point I’d keep Ryan right where he is. To me he’s a better offensive and defensive player than Cervelli, and he’s every bit as versatile in that he’s played some 3b, so he could also be the emergency infielder like Cervelli was. I’d shop Cervelli for anything useful and move on with John Ryan, regardless of what they do with Sanchez.
  - http://www.staggeringbeauty.com/ ALZ
    
    He has a .258/.325/.434 line in AA, is only 21, and they have the big league catcher signed 5 more years. I would be surprised if they move him up mid-season. He isn’t ready to move up, and there is no point forcing him to AAA sooner and then you have a logjam. They don’t need him anytime soon, so he has a chance to move along as he proves himself, and he needs to do more in AA.
Bkidd

Good chance Sanchez judge dredd and refysnder are all up next season! Yanks farm all of a sudden looks allot better. I also think Murphy is a valuable commodity and I wouldn’t trade him as thrown in or for an old fourth type starter. Next year good chance soriano, Suzuki are both gone and Beltran is a spot dh so we need to hope between Flores, heathcott, and Williams one steps up and becomes a player.
- Preston
  
  I get Sanchez and Refsnyder, but how is there a good chance Judge is in the big leagues by next season? He’ll probably get a mid season promotion to Tampa, if he hits well there, then he can start next season at AA. He would have to hit well enough there to earn a mid-season promotion to AAA. Then he would have to be so good at AAA that the team thought it was worth putting him on the 40 man roster so that he could play down the stretch. That’s a lot of ifs, and it’s less than likely. I think he’ll probably be up sometime in the middle of 2016 if all goes well.
- hornblower
  
  Does that mean we have to watch Sori, Johnson, Ichiro (5 RBI’s)and Roberts for the rest of the year? If they want us to pay attention and spend some money they need to get rid of these old guys who are all way past their expiration date. I don’t mind rebuilding. This nonsense that they can’t is talk show stuff.
  - Preston
    
    Yes a team that if the season ended today would make the post-season needs to rebuild. Rebuilding is a romanticized notion to Yankee fans because we’ve never had to do it. If blowing it up and rebuilding through the farm was easy the Pirates wouldn’t have missed the playoffs for two decades. Everybody’s quick to pile on Roberts and Johnson for only being slightly better than replacement level, but last years team would have killed to have either of these guys production in the lineup when they were running out Luis Cruz and David Adams.
- nycsportzfan
  
  I’ve said all along the Yanks Farm sytem is underrated and will be a top 10 farm system by next yr. I might be wrong on the top 10 thing, but they were in fact and kinda are underrated. What teams developing a Dellin Betances, Brett Gardner, John Ryan Murphy, David Robertson, Adam Warren,Ivan Nova, Zach McCallister, and Jose Quintana type group in a short span of time? I know i’m forgetting some. And on top of that, which I only bring up we’ve been kinda underrated lately anyways as judged by all the solid players we’ve been bringing along.
  
  Now you go to what we got on the horizon and the list is very long and intriguing. Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, Ian Clarkin, Jose Ramirez, Mark Montgomery, Rob Refsnyder, Peter O’Brien, Gregory Bird, Raph DePaula, Luis Severino, DBJ, Eric Jagielo..etc And if you add in guys like Mason Williams and Slade Heathcott who are having off yrs but have ML level talent, the list grows longer. I mean, have you guys not seen what Chase Whitley is doing?lol
  
  The Yanks farm system is producing players and its only gonna get better in my opinion with the group coming along now.
Michahiro Pinaka

We should let Wayne do a few DoTF updates.
- Preston
  
  He would skip talking about other MiLB players and just give us a step by step walk through of what Ian Clarkin did that day, complete with photos snapped from the bushes.
- CashmanNinja
  
  He would change it from DoTF to CoTF and wouldn’t update except on days that Clarkin pitched.
LW23

Mason’s had 2 years worth of down years and Slade can’t stay healthy. They still have time, but not a lot of it.