River Avenue Blues

Ramirez whiffs nine in Thunder loss

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With IF Alberto Gonzalez joining the big league team, IF Reggie Corona has been promoted from Double-A Trenton to Triple-A Scranton to fill the team’s shortstop vacancy according to Josh Norris. Meanwhile, LHP Nik Turley will get bumped up to Triple-A Scranton for tomorrow’s start and tomorrow’s start only, says Norris. RHP Brett Marshall will be with the big league team in case they need to add a pitcher between doubleheader games.

Triple-A Scranton (7-6 win over Gwinnett)

  • RF Curtis Granderson: 3-5, 1 R, 1 K — had a little more on him earlier
  • LF Zoilo Almonte: 0-4, 1 BB, 1 K
  • 3B David Adams: 1-4, 2 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K — only two more days until he’s a big leaguer
  • 1B Dan Johnson: 1-2, 1 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 3 BB — still hitting just .198/.366/.327 on the year
  • CF Melky Mesa: 1-4, 2 K
  • RHP Mark Montgomery: 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 1/2 GB/FB — 30 of 50 pitches were strikes

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Mother’s Day Open Thread

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(Kyle Rivas/Getty)
(Kyle Rivas/Getty)

Well that was a very satisfying weekend series against the Royals, don’t you think? Three games and three wins … can’t ask for much more. The Yankees have now won five straight and are guaranteed a winning record on this eight-game road trip. Things are going pretty darn well for the Bronx Bombers right now, far better than I think anyone could have reasonable imagined.

Anyway, here is your open thread for the night. The ESPN Sunday Night Game is a dud (Angels at White Sox), but at least the pitching matchup is solid (Wilson vs. Sale). There’s also some NHL and NBA playoff action on various channels. Talk about any of those games and more right here. Enjoy.

Oh, and Happy Mother’s Day to all of you moms out there. None of us would be where we are without you.

Vidal Nuno will start Game Two of Monday’s doubleheader

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Left-hander Vidal Nuno will start the second game of Monday’s doubleheader against the Indians, Joe Girardi confirmed. David Phelps starts the first game. Brett Marshall will apparently be on standby in case an extra long man needs to be added between games.

Nuno, 25, will be making his first career big league start. He last pitched 13 days ago, throwing 38 pitches in long relief. That is his only big league appearance to date. Nune hasn’t started a game in three weeks, but I’m sure they’ll be able to squeeze 80 or so pitches out of him anyway. If they get five innings, they’ll probably be thrilled. Adam Warren is the obvious piggyback candidate if he isn’t needed in game one.

Granderson picks up three hits, plays right in latest rehab game

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In his fourth rehab game with Triple-A Scranton, Curtis Granderson went 3-for-5 with three singles (two to left, one to right) and one strikeout. He grounded out to first in the other at-bat. Granderson played all nine innings in right field and had to make three plays — he fielded a single hit in front of him and caught two fly balls of unknown difficulty. Curtis is scheduled to stay with the team through the end of their homestand tomorrow, but the plan after that is unclear. He could be activated, he could continue rehabbing. We’ll find out eventually.

Game 36: Royal Sweep

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(Ed Zurga/Getty)
(Ed Zurga/Getty)

Even though they’ve won 21 of their last 30 games, the Yankees have yet to sweep a three-game series this year. That comes with a big asterisk though, remember they did sweep the Blue Jays in a four-game series at Yankee Stadium late last month. They’ve won the first two games of this series in Kansas City and have arguably their best pitcher on the mound going for their fifth straight win overall this afternoon. Here’s the lineup that will face right-hander Ervin Santana…

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

And on the mound is the 2005 Best Nine Award winner in Nippon Pro Baseball, right-hander Hiroki Kuroda. That award is given annually the best player at each position.

This afternoon’s game is scheduled to start at 2:10pm ET and can be seen on YES. Enjoy.

Mariano Rivera-Joba Chamberlain Spat: As you’ve probably heard, Mo and Joba had a little verbal spat in the dugout prior to yesterday’s game. Sweeny Murti says they kissed and made up afterwards. The only real mistake here was letting it happen in public. No big deal.

Real Joba News: Chamberlain (oblique) felt fine after throwing a bullpen session this morning. He’ll make a minor league rehab appearance with Triple-A Scranton on Tuesday. The team will see how he feels about that, but it’s possible he’ll be activated off the DL as soon as Thursday.

Ivan Nova Update: Nova (triceps) felt something in his side playing catch either yesterday or today, so he has been ruled out for tomorrow’s doubleheader against the Indians. Joe Girardi confirmed he would have been activated off the DL to start the second game.

Update: Marshall will be with Yankees during Monday’s doubleheader

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1:37pm: It sounds like Marshall will hang out at the team hotel in case they Yankees need to add a pitcher between doubleheader games, meaning he won’t necessarily be activated. Corban Joseph is expected to be the 26th man instead.

12:44pm: According to Ty Hensley’s mother, right-hander Brett Marshall will join the Yankees as the 26th man for tomorrow’s doubleheader. Joe Girardi confirmed David Phelps will start the first game, but CC Sabathia will not be brought back on short rest for the nightcap. Ivan Nova has also been ruled out for the start as well.

Marshall, 23, has pitched to a 4.60 ERA (4.19 FIP) in 31.1 innings for Triple-A Scranton this year. He’s had some series walk problems (6.03 BB/9 and 14.8 BB%), however. It’s unclear if he will start the second game tomorrow or simply be available out of the bullpen. I guess that depends on whether Adam Warren and/or Vidal Nuno are used today. I ranked Marshall as the 13th best prospect in the organization before the season. By rule, as the 26th man, he has to be sent back to Triple-A immediately following the doubleheader.

Yankees place Eduardo Nunez on the DL, call up Alberto Gonzalez

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The Yankees have placed Eduardo Nunez on the 15-day DL due to his left ribcage issue, the team announced. Infielder Alberto Gonzalez will be recalled from Triple-A to take his roster spot. Mark Teixeira has been transferred to the 60-day DL to clear a 40-man roster spot.

Nunez, 25, has not played since leaving last Sunday’s game with soreness. The Yankees have played without a backup infielder for six games since then, but that couldn’t go on any longer. Nunez has hit a weak .200/.290/.275 (56 wRC+) in 95 plate appearances as the starting shortstop during Derek Jeter’s absence. The 30-year-old Gonzalez was acquired from the Cubs in a minor trade a few days ago. The 33-year-old Teixeira (wrist) has just started taking full batting practice and is weeks away from a return.