Sorting through the Yankees’ long list of September call-up candidates

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No Al this September. Only Ref. (Greg Fiume/Getty)
No Al this September. Only Ref. (Greg Fiume/Getty)

One week from tomorrow all 30 clubs will be able to expand their active rosters and carry up to 40 players. Most clubs carry fewer than 40 players once rosters expand, and that’s their choice. Roster size is not an unfair advantage if one team calls up ten extra players and another only calls up three. That’s long been a pet peeve of mine, calling September call-ups unfair. As long as everyone plays by the same rules, it’s fair.

Anyway, the Yankees have been one of the most aggressive teams when it comes to expanding their roster in recent Septembers. Last season they called up eight players on September 1st. Eight! I’m not sure we’ll see a first wave of call-ups that large again, but you can be sure the Yankees will add some extra arms and position players on the first day possible. They always do and there’s no reason not to. Let’s run down this year’s September call-up candidates.

The Locks

Generally speaking, the first wave of call-ups are players who have been up-and-down a bunch of times throughout the season and are still on the 40-man roster. That means Nick Goody, Richard Bleier, Chasen Shreve, and Rob Refsnyder are safe bets to come up on September 1st. Ditto Ben Gamel, though he hasn’t spent as much time on the big league roster this year as those other guys.

The Yankees are already carrying three catchers, so those five guys above may be the only players called up right away on September 1st. That would give the Yankees three extra bullpen arms — Bleier is working out of the Triple-A Scranton rotation at the moment, so he’d give the club a long man, which they lack right now — plus an extra infielder and an extra outfielder. That covers all the bases on the first day of expanded rosters.

The Maybes

By maybes, I mean players who may not be called up right away on September 1st. They’ll have to wait a few extra days or weeks for whatever reason, usually because the Yankees want them to work on things in Triple-A. This group of players includes Johnny Barbato, Ben Heller, Bryan Mitchell, Luis Severino, and Mason Williams. All five of those guys are on the 40-man roster. Here’s why they’re a maybe and not a lock for an instant September 1st call-up:

  • Barbato: Barbato started the season in the big league bullpen but has spent much of the year in Triple-A, where his control has been an issue. He was up briefly earlier this month and did not retire any of the four batters he faced. The Yankees could keep Barbato down a little longer so he can continue to working on his location.
  • Heller: Acquired in the Andrew Miller trade, Heller was actually up with the Yankees for a few days earlier this month, though he did not appear in a game. Heller has pitched well and is fairly new to Triple-A, though as a reliever, that’s not a big deal. I think the odds are better than 50/50 that he will be called up on September 1st, but it’s definitely not set in stone.
  • Mitchell: Blah. Mitchell pitched so well in Spring Training and looked poised to assume a big role in the bullpen, then he broke his toe covering first base and has missed pretty much the entire season. Mitchell is on a rehab assignment right now, and while that might be enough to get him ready for game action, the Yankees could send him to Triple-A for more consistent work rather than let him sit in the bullpen unused for long stretches of time.
  • Severino: No, I don’t think Severino is a lock for a September 1st call-up. The Yankees sent him to Triple-A with clear instructions to work on his changeup and so far he’s made one start since being sent down. He’ll make two more before September 1st. Hey, maybe that’s enough to make the team believe Severino trusts and will use his changeup, but I’m not sure I buy it. He might be down there a little while longer.
  • Williams: Williams missed most of the first half of the season following shoulder surgery, though he did return about a month ago and has been playing regularly. More time in Triple-A to make up for the lost at-bats seems like a smart move. Williams won’t get at-bats sitting on the MLB bench. Remember, the Yankees kept Slade Heathcott down much of September last year so he could play everyday following his quad injury. Doing the same with Williams makes sense.

Triple-A Scranton has the best record in all of Triple-A baseball and will clinch a postseason spot fairly soon. Likely before the end of the weekend. That means extra at-bats for Williams and extra starts for Severino and Mitchell. Those playoff games are valuable. They give Severino time to work on his changeup and Williams and Mitchell a chance to play following their injuries. Those guys don’t figure to play much in the big leagues if they get called up on September 1st. Keeping them down is an opportunity to continue their development.

The Rule 5 Draft Guys

Mateo. (Presswire)
Mateo. (Presswire)

The Yankees have already gotten a head start on their Rule 5 Draft protection work by calling up Heller, Tyler Austin, and Aaron Judge. They still have many other players who need to be protected, but remember, those decisions don’t have to be finalized until late-November. Calling a player up in September isn’t necessary to avoid the Rule 5 Draft. Teams will sometimes call players up in September if they’re planning to add them to the 40-man after the season, just get their feet wet in the show.

We can drop the Rule 5 Draft eligible players into three buckets: definitely going to be protected, possibly going to be protected, and not going to be protected. Usually only the “definitely going to be protected” guys get the early September call-up, and even then it’s not a given. Space on the 40-man roster can get tight. Let’s go ahead and drop the Rule 5 eligible players into those three buckets:

* Higashioka and Culver are not only Rule 5 Draft eligible, they’ll become minor league free agents after the season if they aren’t added to the 40-man roster.

My hunch is the Yankees will protect Higashioka, Enns, and Webb in addition to Andujar and Mateo after the season. That means Cave, Gallegos, Lail, and everyone else will be left exposed. Cave was a Rule 5 Draft pick last year, and if he gets popped again, he’ll be able to elect free agency rather than come back to the Yankees if he doesn’t stick. I don’t think that’s reason enough to keep him. Not with Gamel and Williams already on the 40-man.

Okay, so with that in mind, the question now becomes: why should these players be called up in September? Mateo’s speed could allow him to be the pinch-runner specialist. Then again, he was suspended for violating team rules not that long ago, and would the Yankees really reward him with a September call-up after that? Eh. I see no reason whatsoever to call up Andujar or Higashioka. Fourth string catchers and third basemen are not necessary. Those guys can wait until the offseason to be added to the 40-man roster.

That leaves Enns and Webb, two lefty pitchers. There’s always room for more pitching in September, so call-ups are possible, and in fact I think they’ll happen. Maybe not until after the Triple-A postseason, but eventually. Webb’s a pure reliever who could audition for a 2017 bullpen spot a la Phil Coke in September 2008. Enns has starter stuff and it I’m interested to see whether the Yankees give him a start in September. (Probably not.) I’m sure they’re looking forward to using a sixth starter on occasion next month, though Severino may be next on the depth chart.

Webb. (Presswire)
Webb. (Presswire)

The Others

Who are the others? The non-40-man veterans in Triple-A. Chris Parmelee, for example. He was up earlier this season before getting hurt, and in fact he had a two-homer game with the Yankees. That was neat. Do the Yankees really need another first baseman with Austin, Refsnyder, and Mark Teixeira on the September roster? Not really. But maybe they’ll throw Parmelee a bone.

Other others include Donovan Solano, a utility infielder having a real nice season in Triple-A, and Cesar Puello, a former top Mets prospect who is having a productive season with the RailRiders after dealing with a back injury last year. Coke was up earlier this season and is still in Triple-A. Actual prospects like Clint Frazier, Jordan Montgomery, and Jonathan Holder are in Triple-A but are not yet Rule 5 Draft eligible, so don’t expect them to get called up in September. It’s one thing to call someone up a month before they need to be protected from the Rule 5 Draft. It another to do it a year early.

My guess is none of these others get called up September. The Yankees have more appealing options at their positions and there’s just not enough 40-man roster space to go around. Those guys will play in the Triple-A postseason and either go home once the playoffs are over, or head to Tampa to stay sharp in case there’s an injury and they’re needed at the MLB level. That’s pretty standard for these types of players in September.

The 40-Man Roster Situation

Alright, so after all of that, my sure to be wrong prediction is the Yankees will call up 12 extra players in September. The 12:

  • Up on September 1st (5): Bleier, Gamel, Goody, Refsnyder, Shreve.
  • Up later in September (7): Barbato, Enns, Heller, Mitchell, Severino, Williams, Webb.

All but Enns, Mitchell, and Webb are on the 40-man roster, so the Yankees will have to clear three spots. They can slide Nathan Eovaldi to the 60-day DL to clear one 40-man spot. That’s easy. Righty J.R. Graham, who has amazingly managed to remain on the 40-man roster since coming over in a minor trade with the Twins in mid-May, is an obvious candidate to be designated for assignment. That’s the second 40-man spot.

The Yankees can go a few different ways for that final 40-man spot. They could designate someone else for assignment, maybe Anthony Swarzak or James Pazos. I don’t think that’ll happen though. In fact, Pazos is probably going to be called up in September, so it’s really 13 call-ups, not 12. I suppose someone like Bleier or Blake Parker could be cut loose next month, or even Tommy Layne. There is some dead weight here.

Swarzak. (Elsa/Getty)
Swarzak. (Elsa/Getty)

The other option is to call up Jacob Lindgren or Nick Rumbelow and place them on the 60-day DL. Both are currently rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. It sounds easy enough, though there are some complications with this. Both Lindgren and Rumbelow got hurt while in the minors, and calling them up to place them on the 60-day DL means they can not be optioned down again next year. They’d accrue service time on MLB DL instead.

Maybe that’s not such a big deal, especially in Rumbelow’s case. He had his surgery in April and may only spend only a month or two on the DL next year. Lindgren just had his surgery and would spent the entire 2017 season on the DL. Calling them up and placing him on the 60-day DL to clear up a 40-man roster spot is doable, but it throws a wrench into next year’s plans. Me? I’d just cut ties with Swarzak. I do wonder if the Yankees would drop Pazos from the 40-man roster given his control and injury issues this year though.

* * *

The Yankees are committed to their “play the kids” plan right now, so much so that Alex Rodriguez has been released and others like Teixeira and Brian McCann have had their playing time reduced. There’s no reason to think that won’t continue in September, and if anything, more kids may get chances next month. Expanded rosters will give the team extra arms and whatnot, and it’s an opportunity to give these youngsters even more of a chance to show whether they belong in the team’s long-term plans.

(Update: Heller was called up yesterday. Adjust accordingly.)

Yankees top Mariners 5-1 thanks to Sabathia’s great start, Ellsbury’s homer

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Source: FanGraphs

Tuesday night’s 5-1 win over the Mariners was one of the Yankees’ best all-around games in quite a while. Just a real solid, crisp win. Good pitching, good hitting, the works. I want to see more games like this the last five and a half weeks of the season. West Coast night games get bullet point recaps, so let’s get to it:

  • Si Si: Man, what a job by CC Sabathia. The big lefty held the Mariners to one Aaron Judge aided run — Judge took a circuitous route in right field on Leonys Martin’s fly ball, leading to a triple — in seven otherwise stress-free innings. He struck out seven and allowed only three hits and one walk. That was Sabathia’s best start since mid-June and one of his best of the season overall.
  • Ellsburied: The Yankees scored their first run when Ronald Torreyes continued his hot hitting with a double to left. Kyle Seager committed an error earlier in the inning that opened the door for New York. The big blow of the night was Jacoby Ellsbury‘s two-run home run in the fifth inning, which turned a 1-1 tie into a 3-1 Yankees lead. Ellsbury is up to six homers on the season.
  • The Late Innings: Judge atoned for his bad read in right with a sixth inning sac fly to stretch the lead to 4-1. An error and a Didi Gregorius double created another insurance run in the ninth inning to make it 5-1. Nice little night for the bats. They had nine hits overall, drew three walks, and went 4-for-12 (.333) with runners in scoring position.
  • Leftovers: Tommy Layne and Dellin Betances tossed scoreless eighth and ninth innings, respectively … Ben Heller warmed up in the ninth in case the Yankees blew it open. He still hasn’t made his MLB debut … Torreyes went 3-for-4 with two doubles. He’s 8-for-12 with four doubles and a homer on the road triple … Gary Sanchez had just one, hit a single. Bust!

Here are the box score, video highlights, and updated standings. Check out our Bullpen Workload and Announcer Standings pages too. The Yankees wrap up their West Coast trip with the series finale against the Mariners on Wednesday afternoon. That’s a 3:35pm ET start. Former Rakuten Golden Eagles teammates Masahiro Tanaka and CC Sabathia will be on the mound.

Minor League Update: I have neither the time nor the energy for a full DotF tonight. Here are the box scores and here’s the short version: Rob Refsnyder and Ben Gamel had singles, Bryan Mitchell allowed one run in four innings in his latest rehab game, Thairo Estrada whacked a homer, Justus Sheffield allowed four runs (three earned) in 3.2 innings, and Freicer Perez threw six one-hit innings.

Tuesday Night Open Thread

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Tonight the Yankees will play their final West Coast night game of the season. Hooray for that. The Yankees have three more 8pm ET starts remaining (in Kansas City next week), then it’s nothing but day games and 7pm ET starts the rest of the way. That’s music to my ears. This team isn’t worth staying up late for, to be honest.

Anyway, here is tonight’s open thread. MLB Network is showing a regional game, and aside from that, you’re on your own for entertainment. Have at it.

Yankees can still add depth for the stretch run with small waiver trades

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(Brian Blanco/Getty)
(Brian Blanco/Getty)

Despite trading away valuable veterans at the deadline, the Yankees remain in the wildcard race and have a chance to at least make these last few weeks interesting. Are they the front-runners for the second wildcard spot? No. But they’re within striking distance, and as long as they’re close, they should continue to push for a postseason spot. If you’re not going to do that, what’s the point?

The Yankees are an obviously flawed team that is now at least fun to watch. They were pretty boring for most of the season. All of the recent call-ups have made things way more interesting, and I’m pretty sure they’ve made the Yankees an overall better team too. There are still ways to get better, and the Yankees can still make upgrades through waivers trades in the coming weeks.

A really quick crash course on trade waivers: every player on the 40-man roster has to go through trade waivers to be traded after the deadline. If the player goes unclaimed, he can be traded anywhere. If he is claimed, he can only be traded to the claiming team. Trade waivers are completely revocable, so if a player is claimed, he can be pulled back. Pretty much every player is placed on trade waivers this month. By putting everyone on waivers, teams mask the guys they actually want to trade.

Players must be in the organization by 11:59pm ET on August 31st to be eligible for the postseason roster and that’s a hard deadline. There are no loopholes around that one. Obviously if you make a waiver trade, you want to be able to take that player into October. But the Yankees aren’t in position to think that far ahead yet. They have to get to the postseason first, and if that means making a trade after August 31st, so be it.

The Yankees are committed to this transition and playing the kids, as they should be. There are still ways to upgrade the roster around them and improve the team’s chances of contention, and the Yankees should look to do that in the coming weeks. Here are the obvious spots Brian Cashman & Co. could look to upgrade for the stretch drive, plus some potential targets on teams out of the race.

The Sixth Starter

The last turn through the rotation has gone well thanks to Chad Green and Luis Cessa, who are replacing the injured Nathan Eovaldi and the ineffective Luis Severino. Severino is the sixth starter by default right now, which isn’t great because he has some things to work on in Triple-A. There’s always room for more pitching, though right now, the pickin’s are slim. Unless you want to pay big for someone like Jeremy Hellickson, that is. One veteran candidate stands out as a possible trade target.

De La Rosa. (Dustin Bradford/Getty)
De La Rosa. (Dustin Bradford/Getty)

Jorge De La Rosa, Rockies: The Rockies were three games back of a wildcard spot as recent as August 4th, though they’ve struggled of late and have slipped to seven games back. De La Rosa, an impending free agent, has a 5.07 ERA (5.19 FIP) in 110 total innings this season, though that doesn’t tell the whole story. He started the year in the rotation, pitched terribly, got demoted to the bullpen, then eventually rejoined the rotation.

De La Rosa made his first start back in the rotation against the Yankees and held them scoreless over five innings, as you may remember. Since rejoining the rotation the 35-year-old southpaw has a 3.56 ERA (5.00 FIP) in 78.1 total innings. The Yankees have been connected to De La Rosa before, both as a free agent and in trades, so there may be lingering interest. You could do a lot worse than a guy with a history of missing bats, getting grounders, and experience pitching in a harsh home ballpark for your sixth starter.

The Extra Reliever

No, they’re not Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman, but Adam Warren and Tyler Clippard have done a fine job in the seventh and eighth inning since the trade deadline. The middle relief is still a bit sketchy — Tommy Layne and Blake Parker haven’t done much to solve things — and besides, there’s always room for another quality reliever. Reliever prices have been pretty high, though there’s a chance they may come down as rebuilding teams look to unload impending free agents rather than lose them for nothing after the season. Here are some potential bullpen targets.

Jim Johnson, Braves: The Braves have been signing and flipping scrap heap arms for prospects all year. They did it with Bud Norris, Jhoulys Chacin, Jason Grilli, and Lucas Harrell. Johnson has a 3.50 ERA (3.32 FIP) in 46.1 innings thanks to an improved strikeout rate (24.2%) and his typically excellent ground ball rate (56.6%). He’s been closing the last few weeks, ever since Arodys Vizcaino landed on the DL with an oblique problem. Johnson’s on a cheap one-year contract.

(Christian Petersen/Getty)
Logan. (Christian Petersen/Getty)

Boone Logan, Rockies: The Yankees went from having two of the three best lefty relievers in baseball to no reliable southpaws at the trade deadline. Miller and Chapman are gone, leaving guys like Layne, Chasen Shreve, and Richard Bleier to pick up the slack. It hasn’t gone too well. Logan is having a phenomenal contract year, pitching to a 2.65 ERA (2.42 FIP) in 37.1 innings. More importantly, he’s held left-handed batters to a .148/.213/.253 batting line with a 32.6% strikeout rate and a 62.5% ground ball rate. He’s been a shutout left-on-left matchup guy.

Carlos Torres, Brewers: Don’t ask me why, but I’ve been an irrational Carlos Torres fan for a few years now. He’s have a strong season in Milwaukee (2.86 ERA and 3.78 FIP) and he’s a rubber-armed swingman, someone who can throw two or three innings at a time and pitch back-to-back-to-back days with no problem. As an added bonus, Torres would remain under team control as an arbitration-eligible player through 2018. The Yankees don’t have a long man at the moment and Torres would fill that void well.

The Big Bench Bat

Pitching is pitching and teams always need it. These next two positions are September specialties. Only once rosters expand does it make sense to dedicate a spot to an extra lefty bench bat, something the Yankees lack right now. (Their current bench is Mark Teixeira, Aaron Hicks, Ronald Torreyes, and Austin Romine.) Expanded rosters give teams the flexibility to carry a dedicated pinch-hitting specialist, which can come in handy. Here are two candidates.

Ryan Howard, Phillies: Go ahead and laugh. After all, Howard is hitting .198/.252/.445 (78 wRC+) on the season and he’s been a punchline for three or four years now. He hasn’t even hit righties this year (.206/.268/.472). So why target him? Because Howard is a short porch friendly left-handed hitter who can still hit a baseball to the moon …

… and he’s hitting .378/.425/.838 (228 wRC+) this month. The Phillies have been trying to give Howard away for close to two years now. Picking him up for cash considerations, say the pro-rated portion of the league minimum, to pinch-hit 12-15 times in September as literally the 40th man on the 40-man roster is a super-low-risk move. One well-timed dinger in those 12-15 September at-bats would make it all worth it.

Justin Morneau, White Sox: The Howard logic applies to Morneau, though Morneau is at least hitting a respectable .275/.312/.480 (108 wRC+) in limited time with the White Sox this year. They signed him at midseason following offseason elbow surgery and the club has since fallen out of the race, so there’s not much point in keeping him. As with Howard, Morneau could be a strategic September pinch-hitter as long as he comes super cheap.

The Pinch-Runner Specialist

Designated pinch-runners have become a September staple. The Yankees don’t have a true burner in Triple-A, and in fact their best pinch-runner option may be Jorge Mateo, who will have to be added to the 40-man roster for Rule 5 Draft protection after the season anyway. Is it worth calling him and starting his service time clock for that? Maybe. There are other candidates around the league though.

Emilio Bonifacio, Braves: Bonifacio never has been able to carve out as a role as a super utility guy, but he can still run, and he currently leads the Triple-A International league with 37 steals (in 42 attempts). He’s always been a bit reckless on the bases, which isn’t necessarily a good thing, but at least he won’t hesitate to run. Bonifacio is mighty aggressive.

Michael Bourn, Diamondbacks: Bourn’s days as an elite base-stealer are over because he’s old by speed guy standards (33), but he can still run a little and is 12-for-17 in steal attempts this year. I also think there’s something to be said for his base-stealing experience and knowing pitchers (and their moves) around the league.

Mastroianni. (Ronald Martinez/Getty)
Mastroianni. (Ronald Martinez/Getty)

Darin Mastroianni, Twins: A sexy name? Nope. But neither was Rico Noel last year, and Rico did the job well. Mastroianni has been up-and-down and hurt this year, so he hasn’t played much and only has ten steals (in 13 attempts). This is a guy who went 56-for-67 (84%) in steal attempts from 2013-15 though. Remember, the September pinch-runner only has to run. He doesn’t have to hit or even field. Just run. Mastroianni can run.

* * *

The important thing here is expanding rosters. There’s no sense in acquiring someone like Howard or Mastroianni right now. They’re guys you acquire on August 31st and activate on September 1st, once rosters expand so you don’t have to cut someone loose. The Yankees can still commit to playing the kids while upgrading the margins of their roster, either with some extra arms or bench players. And as long as they’re in the postseason race, even minor league upgrades are moves worth making.

Yankees waste two-homer games by Sanchez and Castro, fall 7-5 to Mariners

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Source: FanGraphs

For the second time in his young MLB career, Gary Sanchez had a two-home run game Monday night. The Yankees have lost both of those games. Anthony Swarzak played a large role in both losses. The worst. Monday’s final score was 7-5 Mariners. Pretty brutal loss, you guys. West Coast night games get bullet point recaps, so let’s get to it:

  • Two Homers, Two Times: Sanchez is everything I hoped Jesus Montero would be. He opened the scoring with a first inning solo home run, then gave the Yankees a 4-3 lead with a two-run home run in the sixth. Sanchez is up to eight homers in 15 games since being called up. Starlin Castro hit a pair of solo homers as well, so, for the first time since 2012, the Yankees had two players hit multiple homers in a game. Robinson Cano and Curtis Granderson did it to the Red Sox in 2012.
  • Pineda’s Bad Pitch: Before the game Joe Girardi said Michael Pineda has pitched well of late, but when he makes a mistake, it gets hit a mile. Sure enough, Pineda threw a 3-0 cookie to Kyle Seager with two men on base in the fourth inning, and Seager hit it out of the park. The Mariners are one of the most aggressive 3-0 hitting teams in baseball, yet he laid it right in there. Predictable dinger is predictable. The homer gave Seattle a 3-2 lead, though Sanchez and Castro gave the Yankees a 5-3 lead in the top of the sixth. That didn’t last.
  • Inexplicable: It is completely indefensible that Anthony Swarzak continues to pitch in high-leverage situations. The Yankees were up 5-3 in the sixth, but the Mariners had two men on base, and sure enough Swarzak served up a three-run home run in Mike Zunino. He’s now allowed ten homers in 28.1 innings. Girardi’s been doing this for weeks now, using Swarzak in big spots, and he keeps getting burned. This is inexcusable. It really is. The front office has to get Swarzak off the roster because it’s obvious Girardi’s not going to stop using him in close games. He seems oblivious to his awfulness.
  • The Teases: Kirby Yates allowed a broken bat solo home run to Nelson Cruz in the eighth inning to give the Mariners an insurance run. All told, Pineda was charged with five runs in 5.1 innings and both Swarzak and Yates were charged with one run each. The Yankees, meanwhile, managed to get the tying run into scoring position with one out in the ninth, but pinch-hitter Mark Teixeira popped up and Gardner grounded out. Womp womp.
  • Leftovers: Sanchez (three) and Castro (two) had multiple hits. Gardner (single, walk) was the only other player in the lineup to reach base twice … Sanchez threw out yet another runner. There have been only two successful steals against him in seven attempts. Dellin Betances was on the mound for both, and he can’t control the running game at all. Sanchez’s arm is the truth … the Yankees lost a game despite hitting four homers for the first time since last June. They hadn’t done it since 2012 prior to that.

Here are the box score, video highlights, and updated standings. Don’t miss our Bullpen Workload and Announcer Standings pages. The Yankees and Mariners will play game two of this three-game series Tuesday night. CC Sabathia and TBA will be on the mound. I hope TBA will be Anthony Swarzak, but alas, it is expected to be Taijuan Walker.

DotF: Gamel and Fowler have big games in wins

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The day’s notes:

  • Both C Gary Sanchez and OF Leonardo Molina made MLB.com’s Prospect Team of the Week. “(Molina) hasn’t had much statistical success, in part because he has been so young, but that hasn’t stopped evaluators from raving about his tools and upside,” said the write-up.
  • Molina was also named the rookie Appalachian League Offensive Player of the Week, so that’s cool. LHP Nestor Cortes was named the High-A Florida State Pitcher of the Week. He took a perfect game into the seventh inning last time out.
  • The Yankees have released RHP Willie Gabay, reports Matt Eddy. They picked him up as a minor league free agent prior to last season. Gabay had a 5.37 ERA in 66.2 innings at the lower levels as an organizational arm.

Triple-A Scranton (5-3 win over Lehigh Valley) they now have a five-game lead over Lehigh Valley in the division with 14 games remaining

  • LF Ben Gamel: 2-5, 1 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 2 K — 20-for-50 (.400) with four doubles and a homer during his 12-game hitting streak
  • RF Clint Frazier: 0-4, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K
  • 2B Rob Refsnyder: 2-5, 2 K
  • C Kyle Higashioka: 0-3, 1 R, 1 RBI, 2 BB
  • CF Mason Williams: 2-3, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K — 11-for-29 (.379) during his eight-game hitting streak
  • LHP Richard Bleier: 3 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 4/2 GB/FB — 34 of 59 pitches were strikes (58%)
  • LHP Dietrich Enns: 3 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 3 K, 4/0 GB/FB — 39 of 67 pitches were strikes (58%) … they had him piggyback with Bleier because off-days and rainouts threw a wrench into the schedule, and he would have gone more than a week between starts had they remained on rotation
  • RHP Johnny Barbato: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 1/1 GB/FB — 12 of 21 pitches were strikes (57%)
  • LHP Chasen Shreve: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, 0/2 GB/FB — ten of 17 pitches were strikes (59%)
  • RHP Jonathan Holder: 1 IP, zeroes, 2 K, 1/0 GB/FB — ten of 15 pitches were strikes

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