River Avenue Blues

Sunday Night Open Thread

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The Yankees couldn't touch Alex Cobb. Again. (Al Messerschmidt/Getty)
The Yankees couldn’t touch Alex Cobb. Again. (Al Messerschmidt/Getty)

Three wins and three losses on a six-game trip through Baltimore and Tampa Bay isn’t terrible, but it ain’t all that great. Acceptable. Tolerable. Bare minimum, maybe. It would have been nice to finish off the sweep this afternoon especially given their recent problems at Tropicana Field, but alas. The Yankees are coming home for four games against the awful Mets, but the schedule gets a whole lot tougher after that.

Anyway, here is the open thread for the night. The ESPN Sunday Night Game is the Braves at the Mets (Teheran vs. Marcum), and you’ve also got NBA and NHL playoff action. Talk about any of that and more here. go bananas.

2013 Draft: Michael O’Neill

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The 2013 amateur draft will be held from June 6-8 this year, and between now and then I’m going to highlight some prospects individually rather than lump them together into larger posts.

Michael O’Neill | OF

Background
The nephew of Paul O’Neill, Michael has hit .329/.384/.525 with six homers and 19 steals in 40 games for Michigan this year. He hit .316/.368/.447 with eight homers and 48 steals in 94 games during his first two years on campus, and it wasn’t until he performed well in the Cape Cod League last summer that his draft stock really took off. The Yankees drafted O’Neill out of high school with their 42nd round pick in 2010.

Scouting Report
Listed at 6-foot-1 and 195 lbs., O’Neill’s game isn’t all that similar to his uncles. He has true center field skills with above-average speed and a strong throwing arm, though he has often played the corners for the Wolverines in deference to senior (and likely top 5-8 rounds pick) Ryan Biondi. O’Neill has solid power from the right side, but he doesn’t always tap into it because he struggles against breaking balls and his plate discipline needs work. During his three years in school, he’s struck out 88 times while drawing only 31 walks (21/9 K/BB in 2013). Most college hitters with legit pro potential are closer to a 1.0 K/BB. Like his uncle, O’Neill is an intense competitor and hard on himself. There are a few more videos available on YouTube.

Miscellany
Keith Law (subs. req’d) and Baseball America ranked O’Neill as the 77th and 80th best prospect in the draft class in their latest rankings, respectively. He was much more of a nepotism pick back in 2010, but O’Neill is a legitimate prospect and someone the Yankees could target with their second round selection (66th overall). There are some adjustments that will have to be offensively for him to hit at the upper levels, but he has the talent to develop into a 15/15 center fielder with above-average defense if things break right.

Game 49: For the Sweep

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(J. Meric/Getty)
(J. Meric/Getty)

The Yankees won the first two games of the series in very different ways — they blew out the Rays on Friday before Saturday’s dramatic, come-from-behind win in extra innings. They haven’t swept a three-game series at Tropicana Field since September 2005 (!), when the opposing starters were Seth McClung, Mark Hendrickson, and Doug Waechter. Times have indeed changed in Tampa. Here’s the lineup that will face right-hander Alex Cobb…

  1. CF Brett Gardner
  2. 2B Robinson Cano
  3. LF Vernon Wells
  4. DH Travis Hafner
  5. 1B Lyle Overbay
  6. 3B David Adams
  7. RF Ichiro Suzuki
  8. SS Jayson Nix
  9. C Austin Romine

And on the mound is the three-time Warren Spahn Award winner, left-hander CC Sabathia. The Warren Spahn Award is given to baseball’s top southpaw each season by the Oklahoma Sports Museum.

The weather is gorgeous in St. Petersburg, but the Yankees and Rays will be indoors in the climate-controlled Trop. The game is scheduled to start at 1:40pm ET and can be seen on YES locally and TBS nationally. Enjoy.

Injury Updates: Chris Stewart (groin) is still feeling discomfort and remain out of the lineup for the time being … Eduardo Nunez (ribcage) suffered a setback when he tried to ramp up his workouts yesterday and will be shut down for at least a few days … Andy Pettitte (trap) will throw a simulated game on Tuesday and could return to the rotation by Monday of next week … David Phelps (forearm) played catch and felt fine. He’s expected to make his next start.

King: Chamberlain hit by line drive in rehab outing

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Via George King: Joba Chamberlain was hit by a line drive during the first inning of an Extended Spring Training game yesterday. He was able to remain in the game and even threw a second inning. “It could be his last (rehab) appearance but one thing we know is that he needs a couple of days off after two innings,” said Joe Girardi.

Chamberlain, 27, has been on the DL for just about a month with a right oblique strain. The Yankees previously indicated he would throw in another official minor league rehab game with one of the full season affiliates before being activated, but it seems like they’re willing to skip that step. Both Shawn Kelley and Preston Claiborne have pitched well in Joba’s absence, so the team isn’t desperate for bullpen help right now. It appears Ivan Nova is most in danger of losing his roster spot, plus the Bombers will also have to accommodate the recently acquired David Huff in the coming days as well.

Yankees steal a win from Rays in extra innings

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Source: FanGraphs

The Yankees had no business winning this game, and that’s not the first time I’ve written that this season. Maybe it’s just confirmation bias, but this team seems to have a knack for these dramatic, late-inning, come-from-behind wins. They looked helpless for the first eight frames before rallying late and walking away with their first series win in Tropicana Field since April 2010, nine series ago. Let’s recap…

  • Shoot Dem Arrows: A first-inning Travis Hafner single produced the only run the Yankees scored against Matt Moore and various relievers until Fernando Rodney entered the game with a two-run lead in the eighth. He retired the first two men he faced before walking Lyle Overbay in a full count. After he took second on a defensive indifference balk, Brennan Boesch poked a double into the left field corner on an emergency hack, plating one run and putting the tying run in scoring position. Brett Gardner singled him in one batter later. The bases were empty with two outs and two strikes, but the Yankees turned it into a game-tying two-run rally. Incredible.
  • Numero Nuno: In his second big league start, Vidal Nuno held the high-powered Rays to two runs on five hits and one walk in six innings. He held them scoreless until the fifth, and frankly I didn’t think he should have started the seventh. Tampa seemed to have his stuff timed the third time through the order. James Loney led the inning off with a single before the bullpen coughed up two runs. Nuno wasn’t great but he was solid. Remember, we’re talking about the team’s seventh starter, maybe eighth depending on how your faith in Michael Pineda. Can’t ask for much more.
  • Death, Then Life By Bullpen: Shawn Kelley and Boone Logan each allowed a hit to the only man they faced in the seventh, contributing to two runs that gave theRays a 3-1 lead. Preston Claiborne came in to bail them out before throwing another scoreless inning, then David Robertson and Ivan Nova first scoreless innings in the ninth and tenth, respectively. Nova made a big mess, loading the bases with one out before escaping the jam with a strikeout and a ground ball. It was an ugly outing, but give him credit for the zero in the run column.
  • Loverbay: It seems like every time the Yankees have one of these big comeback wins, Overbay is in the middle of it. After drawing the two-out walk to spark the game-tying rally in the ninth, he hit the go-ahead solo homer off rapist Josh Lueke in the 11th inning. It was gone off the bat, a no-doubt blast to right. It probably would have landed in the second deck in Yankee Stadium, though I can’t be sure. Either way, it was a huge homer. Huge.
  • Leftovers: Mariano Rivera struck out two for his 18th save (in 18 chances) in the 11th and looked especially nasty. Like four swings and misses out of nine total pitches nasty … underrated moment of the game: Ichiro Suzuki’s sliding catch of Yunel Escobar’s line drive with one out in the ninth. If the ball drops in, it’s game over since there was a man on second … Robinson Cano and Vernon Wells went 0-for-8 while the rest of the lineup went 9-for-32. Any time those two want to snap out of their slumps is cool with me … Gardner had two hits and a walk and is quietly on fire of late, though he did get thrown stealing second to end the ninth. He needs to stay put so Cano can hit with a man on in a tie game.

MLB.com has the box score and video highlights, FanGraphs some other stats, and ESPN the updated standings. Both the Red Sox and Orioles won, so they remain two and four back in the loss column, respectively. The Rays fall to six back. The Yankees will try to finish off their first series sweep at Tropicana Field since April 2008* on Sunday, when CC Sabathia gets the ball against Alex Cobb.

* That sweep in April 2008 was only a two-game series. Their last sweep of a three-game series at the Trop came in September 2005 (!).

Heathcott homers in Trenton win

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Some notes…

  • SS Cito Culver was placed on the Low-A Charleston DL for an unknown reason according to Josh Norris. Not sure what’s wrong with him, hence the “unknown reason” part. IF Jose Rosario was called up from Extended Spring Training to replace him on the roster.
  • 1B Luke Murton has been activated off the Triple-A Scranton DL, the team announced. RHP Graham Stoneburner was sent down to Double-A Trenton in a corresponding move. The Triple-A squad was carrying 14 pitchers and needed some position player depth.
  • Check out this Jonathan Lehman article on some of the team’s top position player prospects, with quotes from High-A Tampa hitting coach Marcus Thames. Yes, that Marcus Thames. They Yankees hired him as a coach in January.

Triple-A Scranton (11-6 loss to Durham)

  • 2B Corban Joseph: 1-5, 1 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2 K
  • RF Thomas Neal: 2-4, 1 R, 1 K — threw a runner out at second
  • LF Zoilo Almonte: 0-2, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 1 K — man has he been slumping hard of late
  • DH Ronnie Mustelier: 3-5, 1 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI — 16 hits in his last 44 at-bats (.364)
  • CF Melky Mesa: 1-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 2 K — that’s his first walk since April 14th, and it ain’t like he’s a part-time player either
  • RHP Caleb Cotham: 3.2 IP, 5 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 4 BB, 0 K, 1 WP, 1 HB, 5/3 GB/FB, 1 E (pickoff) — 40 of 73 pitches were strikes (55%) … he’s been completely overmatched at this level
  • RHP Dellin Betances: 2.1 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, 1 WP, 1/2 GB/FB — 26 of 50 pitches were strikes

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Saturday Night Open Thread

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(Presswire)
(Presswire)

Here is your open thread for this chilly evening. Apparently some parts of the Northeast actually got snow today, but thankfully not around here. The Braves and Mets (Minor vs. Gee) are on FOX, though some of you might see Nationals-Phillies (Pettibone vs. Haren) or Cardinals-Dodgers (Gast vs. Lilly) instead. Boo blackouts. There’s also some NBA and NHL playoff action as well — click over to NBC Sports Network to catch the end of the Rangers trying to save their season against the Bruins. Talk about any of that stuff and more here. Have at it.