River Avenue Blues

River Ave. Blues ยป Layne Somsen

DotF: Green dominates; Scranton wins Teixeira’s second rehab game

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Got some notes to pass along:

  • The Dodgers have claimed RHP Layne Somsen off waivers from the Yankees, both teams announced. The Yankees designated Somsen for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster for Ike Davis last week. The 27-year-old threw six scoreless innings with Triple-A Scranton after being claimed off waivers from the Reds a few weeks back.
  • The Yankees have apparently signed Marshall C Aaron Bossi as an undrafted free agent, according to his Twitter feed. He was an infielder at Marshall but the tweet seems to indicate he’ll catch going forward. Bossi hit .333/.380/.484 with six homers in 55 games this spring.
  • OF Aaron Judge earned a place in Baseball America’s daily Prospect Report after hitting two home runs last night, so make sure you check that out. It’s not behind the paywall.

Triple-A Scranton (1-0 win over Toledo in seven innings)

  • CF Ben Gamel & LF Aaron Judge: both 0-4 — Gamel struck out once, Judge twice
  • DH Mark Teixeira: 1-2, 1 BB — second rehab game … he’s scheduled to play nine innings at first base tomorrow
  • C Gary Sanchez & RF Nick Swisher: 0-3 — Swisher struck out once … Sanchez is 8-for-39 (.205) since coming back from the thumb injury
  • 1B Tyler Austin: 1-3, 1 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI
  • RHP Chad Green: 7 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 9 K, 9/1 GB/FB — 62 of 94 pitches were strikes (66%) … 76/18 K/BB in 75.2 Triple-A innings … I’d like to see him get Ivan Nova’s next start, but I doubt it’ll happen
  • RHP Conor Mullee: 1 IP, zeroes, 2 K, 0/1 GB/FB — nine of 12 pitches were strikes

[Read more…]

Update: Yankees sign Ike Davis to Major League deal

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(Presswire)
(Presswire)

Monday, 8:30pm: The Yankees have announced the Davis signing, so it’s official. He will wear No. 24. Chad Green was sent to Triple-A Scranton to clear a 25-man roster spot and Layne Somsen was designated for assignment to clear a 40-man roster spot.

Sunday, 2:46pm: Jon Heyman says it’s a done deal. It’s a Major League contract and Davis will be joining the team soon. The Yankees are carrying eight relievers and three-bench players at the moment, so they figure to go back to a normal seven-man bullpen and four-man bench soon.

2:00pm: The Yankees are on the verge of signing Ike Davis, reports Mark Feinsand. Davis opted out of his minor league contract with the Rangers earlier today. New York tried to sign him over the winter, but he went to Texas instead. It’s entirely possible Davis will join the Yankees right away. This might not be a minor league deal.

Davis, 29, hit .268/.350/.437 (111 wRC+) with four homers in 39 Triple-A games this season. Last year he put up a .229/.301/.350 (83 wRC+) batting line with three homers in 74 games with the Athletics. Davis is a dead pull left-handed hitter with one of those Yankee Stadium swings. He’s hit as many as 32 homers in a season.

The Yankees have lost Mark Teixeira (knee), Greg Bird (shoulder), Dustin Ackley (shoulder), and Chris Parmelee (hamstring) to injury, so they’re down to their fifth string first baseman, converted second baseman Rob Refsnyder. They have Nick Swisher in Triple-A, but still needed more first base depth, especially since Swisher can opt-out of his deal this month.

Yankees claim Layne Somsen off waivers from the Reds

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(AP)
(AP)

The Yankees have claimed right-hander Layne Somsen off waivers from the Reds, the team announced. He’s been optioned to Triple-A Scranton. The Yankees had an open 40-man roster spot after designating Phil Coke for assignment last week, so no other moves are required.

Somsen, 26, made his MLB debut and appeared in two games with the Reds this year, allowing five runs on six hits and three walks in 2.1 innings. He struck out two. Somsen has a 2.59 ERA (3.52 FIP) with a 24.2% strikeout rate and a 10.6% walk rate in 48.2 Triple-A innings the last two years.

PitchFX says Somsen, who is from the baseball hotbed of Yankton, South Dakota, throws a cutter right around 90 mph as well as a low-80s curveball. He’s a reliever, not a starter. The Reds selected Somsen in the 22nd round of the 2013 draft and gave him a chance to help out their bullpen this month. Didn’t work out.

The Yankees have been hit hard by injuries this season, most notably losing bullpen shuttle candidates Branden Pinder (Tommy John surgery), Nick Rumbelow (Tommy John surgery), Bryan Mitchell (toe), and Jacob Lindgren (elbow) to long-term injuries. Somsen helps replace some of that depth.