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Keeping up with the ex-Yanks: New addition edition

Posted by Steve S. at 8:06 am 6 Responses »
Aug 072010

A Yankee no more

With the recent passing of the July 31st trade deadline, we have a new name to add to our bi-weekly updates. Mark Melancon reported to the Astros AAA Round Rock Express, where he earned his first save on Friday. He was also interviewed by Alyson Footer and had some interesting things to say about what was going on with him this season. Apparently, the Yanks wanted him to keep the ball down, so they changed his arm slot from over the top to a more 3/4 delivery and the results weren’t pretty.

In other ex-Yankee news, Brian Bruney was placed on the DL retroactive to August 3rd by the Mets AAA Buffalo Bisons affiliate, where he was working as a starter. Xavier Nady narrowly avoided being traded to the Giants at the trade deadline. Johnny Damon, Austin Jackson and Phil Coke return to the Bronx on Tuesday. Johnny had some kind words of support for ex-teammate Alex Rodriguez after #600. He has been dropped to 6th in the lineup, in an effort to get the struggling Brennan Boesch going by replacing him as the No. 2 hitter. Ian Kennedy has been struggling of late, posting a 6.39 ERA in his past 9 starts, which has ballooned his ERA for the season to 4.40. He’s on an innings limit, so even when he’s pitching well he tends to get pulled early and the stellar AZ bullpen goes to work for him.

Year                          Age                    Tm              Lg             Lev             Aff  W L  W-L%  ERA   G GS GF CG SHO SV    IP   H  R ER HR BB IBB  SO HBP BK WP  BF  WHIP  H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB
2010                           25               2 Teams           2 Lgs             AAA          NYYHOU  7 1  .875 3.41  43  0 19  0   0  7  60.2  68 24 23  5 32   0  60   3  0  7 277 1.648 10.1  0.7  4.7  8.9  1.88
2010                           25 Scranton/Wilkes-Barre              IL             AAA             NYY  6 1  .857 3.67  40  0 17  0   0  6  56.1  63 24 23  5 31   0  58   3  0  7 258 1.669 10.1  0.8  5.0  9.3  1.87
2010                           25             RoundRock             PCL             AAA             HOU  1 0 1.000 0.00   3  0  2  0   0  1   4.1   5  0  0  0  1   0   2   0  0  0  19 1.385 10.4  0.0  2.1  4.2  2.00


Year                      Age            Tm            Lg   G   PA   AB   R   H  2B 3B HR RBI SB CS  BB  SO   BA  OBP  SLG  OPS OPS+  TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB   Pos Awards

2010                       25           ATL            NL 106  365  327  35  87  18  3  4  29  5  1  30  43 .266 .328 .376 .704   90 123   5   1  5  2   7         *789


Year                      Age            Tm            Lg    G   PA   AB   R    H  2B 3B  HR RBI SB CS  BB  SO   BA  OBP  SLG  OPS OPS+   TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB    Pos   Awards

2010                       36           LAA            AL  101  399  354  32   87  15  0  14  55  0  0  41  79 .246 .323 .407 .730   96  144   5   1  0  3   3             *D7
Year                      Age            Tm            Lg    G   PA   AB    R    H  2B 3B  HR  RBI  SB CS  BB   SO   BA  OBP  SLG  OPS OPS+   TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB    Pos   Awards
2010                       36           DET            AL   98  414  360   63   99  27  2   7   34   7  1  50   56 .275 .364 .419 .784  109  151   3   1  2  1   1            D7/8
Year                      Age            Tm            Lg W  L  W-L%  ERA  G GS GF CG SHO SV    IP   H   R  ER HR BB IBB  SO HBP BK WP  BF ERA+  WHIP  H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB Awards
2010                       25           ARI            NL 6  9  .400 4.40 22 22  0  0   0  0 133.0 118  69  65 23 51   2 113   6  0 11 565  102 1.271  8.0  1.6  3.5  7.6         2.22
4 Seasons           4 Seasons     4 Seasons     4 Seasons 7 13  .350 4.90 36 34  1  0   0  0 192.2 181 112 105 29 88   2 156   8  0 14 842   92 1.396  8.5  1.4  4.1  7.3         1.77
Year                      Age            Tm            Lg   G  PA  AB   R   H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB  SO   BA  OBP  SLG  OPS OPS+  TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB Pos Awards
2010                       23           DET            AL  99 438 406  63 124 26  7  1  24 16  4 28 113 .305 .355 .411 .766  105 167   5   3  1  0   0         *8
1 Season             1 Season      1 Season      1 Season  99 438 406  63 124 26  7  1  24 16  4 28 113 .305 .355 .411 .766  105 167   5   3  1  0              0
Year              Age           Tm        Lg       Lev       Aff  W L W-L%  ERA  G GS GF CG SHO SV    IP   H  R ER HR BB IBB  SO HBP BK WP  BF  WHIP  H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB
2010               19      2 Teams     2 Lgs      A-A+       ATL  9 3 .750 2.71 15 15  0  0   0  0  83.0  76 33 25  2 12   0  77   4  3  7 344 1.060  8.2  0.2  1.3  8.3  6.42
2010               19         Rome      SALL         A       ATL  9 3 .750 2.34 12 12  0  0   0  0  69.1  60 24 18  1  9   0  66   3  2  6 283 0.995  7.8  0.1  1.2  8.6  7.33
2010               19  MyrtleBeach      CARL        A+       ATL  0      0 4.61  3  3  0  0   0  0  13.2  16  9  7  1  3   0  11   1  1  1  61 1.390 10.5  0.7  2.0  7.2  3.67
Year                      Age            Tm            Lg   G   PA   AB   R   H  2B 3B HR RBI SB CS  BB  SO    BA   OBP   SLG   OPS OPS+   TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB     Pos Awards
2010                       31           CHC            NL  71  168  149  12  33   5  0  4  19  0  0  10  40  .221  .292  .336  .627   63   50   8   6  0  3   0          9/37D
Year                      Age            Tm            Lg  W  L  W-L%  ERA   G GS GF CG SHO SV    IP   H   R  ER HR  BB IBB  SO HBP BK WP   BF ERA+  WHIP  H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB Awards
2010                       28           WSN            NL  1  2  .333 7.64  19  0  6  0   0  0  17.2  21  18  15  1  20   1  16   0  0  1   93   55 2.321 10.7  0.5 10.2  8.2         0.80
Year                      Age            Tm            Lg  W L  W-L%  ERA   G GS GF CG SHO SV    IP  H  R ER HR BB IBB  SO HBP BK WP  BF ERA+  WHIP H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB Awards
2010                       27           DET            AL  6 2  .750 2.60  52  0 10  0   0  1  45.0 42 15 13  1 17   3  38   2  0  1 188  167 1.311 8.4  0.2  3.4  7.6         2.24

Year                      Age            Tm            Lg W L  W-L%  ERA  G GS GF CG SHO SV   IP  H  R ER HR BB IBB SO HBP BK WP  BF ERA+  WHIP H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB Awards
2010                       25           ATL            NL 1 0 1.000 0.00  8  0  2  0   0  0  6.0  3  0  0  0  9   0  5   0  0  0       29 2.000 4.5  0.0 13.5  7.5         0.56
Year                      Age            Tm            Lg   G  PA  AB  R   H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO   BA  OBP  SLG  OPS OPS+  TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB Pos Awards
2010                       21           PIT            NL  49 217 199 30  60 12  0  2  16 11  5 16 26 .302 .353 .392 .745  103  78   4   0  2  0   0         78
Year                      Age            Tm            Lg  W  L W-L%  ERA   G GS GF CG SHO SV    IP   H  R ER HR BB IBB  SO HBP BK WP  BF ERA+  WHIP  H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB Awards
2010                       25           WSN            NL  8  6 .571 3.38  54  0 12  0   0  1  64.0  49 26 24  5 31   4  73   2  0  1 267  122 1.250  6.9  0.7  4.4 10.3         2.35

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Keeping up with the ex Yanks-July 17th edition

Posted by Steve S. at 6:00 am No Responses »
Jul 182010

Time to dust this baby off after a few weeks and a long All Star break. In recent news, Mike Dunn was called up by the Braves. The 25 year old has been dominating for their AAA Gwinnett farm team. But of course, if you’re a regular TYU reader then you knew that already. Since our last report the Mets signed Brian Bruney to a minor league deal. In other news, Mike Scioscia expects the slumping Hideki Matsui to hit better in the 2nd half, Johnny Damon reflected on the passing of George Steinbrenner. Austin Jackson still leads all of Baseball with his .417 BABIP, has the 17th highest K%, is in the bottom fifth with his walk rate and is hitting for no power (.107 ISOP). He’s just having one of those years.

Here’s the full recap:

Melky Cabrera-

Year                      Age            Tm            Lg   G   PA   AB   R   H  2B 3B HR RBI SB CS  BB  SO   BA  OBP  SLG  OPS OPS+  TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB   Pos Awards
2010                       25           ATL            NL  87  304  274  29  72  13  1  3  24  4  1  23  37 .263 .321 .350 .671   82  96   5   1  5  1   3         *789

Hideki Matsui-

Year                      Age            Tm            Lg    G   PA   AB   R    H  2B 3B  HR RBI SB CS  BB  SO   BA  OBP  SLG  OPS OPS+   TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB    Pos   Awards
2010                       36           LAA            AL   87  343  302  24   76  14  0  10  47  0  0  37  69 .252 .332 .397 .730   96  120   4   1  0  3   3             *D7

Johnny Damon-

Year                      Age            Tm            Lg    G   PA   AB    R    H  2B 3B  HR  RBI  SB CS  BB   SO   BA  OBP  SLG  OPS OPS+   TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB    Pos   Awards
2010                       36           DET            AL   79  340  296   54   81  21  2   6   28   7  1  40   47 .274 .361 .419 .780  108  124   3   1  2  1   1            D7/8

Ian Kennedy-

Year                      Age            Tm            Lg W  L  W-L%  ERA  G GS GF CG SHO SV    IP   H   R  ER HR BB IBB  SO HBP BK WP  BF ERA+  WHIP  H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB Awards
2010                       25           ARI            NL 4  7  .364 4.12 18 18  0  0   0  0 111.1  97  55  51 19 42   2 100   6  0  7 470  109 1.249  7.8  1.5  3.4  8.1         2.38

Austin Jackson-

Year                      Age            Tm            Lg   G  PA  AB   R   H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB  SO   BA  OBP  SLG  OPS OPS+  TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB Pos Awards
2010                       23           DET            AL  79 344 317  53  96 21  5  1  20 15  3 23  88 .303 .356 .410 .766  104 130   4   3  1  0   0         *8

Arodys Vizcaino (High-A)-

Year              Age           Tm        Lg       Lev       Aff  W L W-L%  ERA  G GS GF CG SHO SV    IP   H  R ER HR BB IBB  SO HBP BK WP  BF  WHIP  H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB
2010               19      2 Teams     2 Lgs      A-A+       ATL  9 3 .750 2.71 15 15  0  0   0  0  83.0  76 33 25  2 12   0  77   4  3  7 344 1.060  8.2  0.2  1.3  8.3  6.42
2010               19         Rome      SALL         A       ATL  9 3 .750 2.34 12 12  0  0   0  0  69.1  60 24 18  1  9   0  66   3  2  6 283 0.995  7.8  0.1  1.2  8.6  7.33
2010               19  MyrtleBeach      CARL        A+       ATL  0      0 4.61  3  3  0  0   0  0  13.2  16  9  7  1  3   0  11   1  1  1  61 1.390 10.5  0.7  2.0  7.2  3.67

Xavier Nady-

Year                      Age            Tm            Lg   G   PA   AB   R   H  2B 3B HR RBI SB CS  BB  SO    BA   OBP   SLG   OPS OPS+   TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB     Pos Awards
2010                       31           CHC            NL  62  156  138  12  31   5  0  4  19  0  0   9  37  .225  .295  .348  .643   67   48   6   6  0  3   0          9/37D

Brian Bruney-

Year                      Age            Tm            Lg  W  L  W-L%  ERA   G GS GF CG SHO SV    IP   H   R  ER HR  BB IBB  SO HBP BK WP   BF ERA+  WHIP  H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB Awards
2010                       28           WSN            NL  1  2  .333 7.64  19  0  6  0   0  0  17.2  21  18  15  1  20   1  16   0  0  1   93   55 2.321 10.7  0.5 10.2  8.2         0.80

Phil Coke-

Year                      Age            Tm            Lg  W L  W-L%  ERA   G GS GF CG SHO SV    IP  H  R ER HR BB IBB SO HBP BK WP  BF ERA+  WHIP H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB Awards
2010                       27           DET            AL  5 0 1.000 2.48  42  0  8  0   0  1  36.1 34 12 10  1 14   1 30   2  0  1 154  177 1.321 8.4  0.2  3.5  7.4         2.14

Mike Dunn (MLB)-

Year                      Age            Tm            Lg W L W-L%  ERA  G GS GF CG SHO SV  IP  H  R ER HR BB IBB SO HBP BK WP  BF ERA+  WHIP H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB Awards
2010                       25           ATL            NL 0      0 0.00  1  0  0  0   0  0 1.0  1  0  0  0  1   0  2   0  0  0        5 2.000 9.0  0.0  9.0 18.0         2.00

Jose Tabata-

Year                      Age            Tm            Lg   G  PA  AB  R   H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO   BA  OBP  SLG  OPS OPS+  TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB Pos Awards
2010                       21           PIT            NL  30 134 120 12  30  7  0  1   6  8  4 14 18 .250 .328 .333 .662   81  40   1   0  0  0   0        7/8

Tyler Clippard-

Year                      Age            Tm            Lg  W  L W-L%  ERA  G GS GF CG SHO SV    IP   H  R ER HR BB IBB  SO HBP BK WP  BF ERA+  WHIP  H/9 HR/9 BB/9 SO/9 SO/BB Awards
2010                       25           WSN            NL  8  6 .571 3.31 44  0 10  0   0  1  51.2  43 21 19  4 24   4  58   2  0  1 218  125 1.297  7.5  0.7  4.2 10.1         2.42

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Keeping up with the ex-Yanks June 27th edition

Posted by Steve S. at 9:40 pm 12 Responses »
Jun 262010

It’s been 2 weeks since my last update, so it’s time to take this baby out for another spin. At this point of the year (mid-season) most of the numbers are a big enough sample that we should have a good idea of where these guys are and what they’ll produce. Arodys Vizcaino has earned himself a promotion to the Braves High-A affiliate, but has been getting knocked around in his first 3 appearances. While the Diamondbacks are looking at a fire sale, don’t expect Ian Kennedy to go anywhere. He and Justin Upton are the only two players on the team who are considered “untouchable” by GM Josh Byrnes. Looking up and down the list, there’s very little to complain about, especially with the free agents who left the team in Damon and Matsui. The only guy who the Yanks really miss right now is Mike Dunn, as they find themselves looking for a 2nd Lefty out of the bullpen.

Here’s the full recap:

Melky Cabrera-

G-71 PA-245 H-59 BB-19 HR-1 SO-29 BA-.267 OBP-.325 SLG-.339 OPS-.664

Hideki Matsui-

G-71 PA-282 H-65 BB-28 HR-9 SO-59 BA-.259 OBP-.333 SLG-.418 OPS-.752

Johnny Damon-

G-67 PA-288 H-67 BB-37 HR-3 SO-39 BA-.270 OBP-.366 SLG-.395 OPS-.761

Ian Kennedy-

W-L 3-5 G-13 ERA-3.60 IP-95.0 H-81 ER-38 BB-31 SO-82 WHIP-1.179

Austin Jackson-

G-58 PA-262 H-75 BB-16 HR-1 SO-67 BA-.306 OBP-.351 SLG-.412 OPS-.763

Arodys Vizcaino (High-A)-

W-L 9-3 G-15 ERA-2.71 IP-83.0 H-76 ER-25 BB-12 SO-77 WHIP-1.060

Xavier Nady-

G-44 PA-102 H-22 BB-8 HR-4 SO-20 BA-.250 OBP-.333 SLG-.432 OPS-.765

Brian Bruney-

W-L 1-2 G-19 ERA-7.64 IP-17.2 H-21 ER-15 BB-20 SO-16 WHIP-2.321

Phil Coke-

W-L 5-0 G-34 ERA-3.00 IP-30.0 H-28 ER-10 BB-11 SO-23 WHIP-1.300

Mike Dunn (AAA)-

W-L 2-0 G-25 ERA-0.79 IP-34.1 H-24 ER-3 BB-14 SO-46 WHIP-1.114

Jose Tabata-

(AAA) G-53 PA-224 H-69 BB-23 HR-3 SO-35 BA-.308 OBP-.373 SLG-.424 OPS-.797

(MLB) G-15 PA-67 H-15 BB-5 HR-1 SO-10 BA-.242 OBP-.299 SLG-.339 OPS-.637

Tyler Clippard-

W-L 8-4 G-38 ERA-2.11 IP-47.0 H-32 ER-11 BB-20 SO-53 WHIP-1.106

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Keeping up with the ex-Yanks May 27th edition

Posted by Steve S. at 7:14 am No Responses »
May 272010

It’s been 2 weeks since my last update, so it’s time for another edition. In recent news, Brian Bruney has been released by the Nats. Mike Scioscia has dropped Hideki Matsui from the clean up spot and is considering platooning the Japanese slugger, who’s done little after his hot start. Austin Jackson and Tyler Clippard are coming back down to Earth after their extremely hot starts. Ian Kennedy has continued to pitch well for Arizona and Mike Dunn is earning himself an MLB call up from the Braves.

Here’s the full list:

Melky Cabrera-

G-43 PA-142 H-27 BB-15 HR-1 SO-17 BA-.220  OBP-.304 SLG-.276 OPS-.581

Hideki Matsui-

G-45 PA-176 H-36 BB-17 HR-5 SO-34 BA-.231  OBP-.307 SLG-.372 OPS-.679

Johnny Damon-

G-44 PA-187 H-45 BB-26 HR-3 SO-27 BA-.283  OBP-.385 SLG-.428 OPS-.813

Ian Kennedy-

W-L 3-3 G-10 ERA-3.41 IP-63.1 H-53 ER-24 BB-20 SO-51 WHIP-1.153

Austin Jackson-

G-43 PA-196 H-60 BB-15 HR-1 SO-52 BA-.333  OBP-.388 SLG-.450 OPS-.838

Arodys Vizcaino (A)-

W-L 6-3 G-9 ERA-3.16 IP-51.1 H-50 ER-18 BB-9 SO-49 WHIP-1.154

Xavier Nady-

G-33 PA-76 H-15 BB-5 HR-1 SO-14 BA-.227  OBP-.316 SLG-.318 OPS-.634

Brian Bruney-

W-L 1-2 G-19 ERA-7.64 IP-17.2 H-21 ER-15 BB-20 SO-16 WHIP-2.321

Phil Coke-

W-L 3-3 G-15 ERA-1.80 IP-15.0 H-15 ER-3 BB-8 SO-412 WHIP-1.533

Mike Dunn (AAA)-

W-L 1-0 G-15 ERA-0.83 IP-21.2 H-15 ER-2 BB-9 SO-27 WHIP-1.132

Jose Tabata (AAA)-

G-42 PA-178 H-58 BB-16 HR-2 SO-27 BA-.326  OBP-.382 SLG-.433 OPS-.814

Tyler Clippard

W-L 7-3 G-23 ERA-2.12 IP-29.2 H-18 ER-7 BB-16 SO-33 WHIP-1.146

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Keeping up with the ex-Yanks: May 10th edition

Posted by Steve S. at 6:05 am 1 Response »
May 102010

It’s been 2 weeks since my last update, so it’s time for another edition. Ian Kennedy has been a pleasant surprise for the Arizona Diamondbacks, and his full season numbers are starting to catch up with his recent performances. As Stephen R. detailed yesterday, Matsui has been slumping and Johnny Damon has been rolling. Here’s the full list:

Melky Cabrera-

G-28 PA-110 H-18 BB-12 HR-0 SO-13 BA-.189  OBP-.280 SLG-.221 OPS-.501

Hideki Matsui-

G-32 PA-132 H-28 BB-13 HR-4 SO-25 BA-.237  OBP-.311 SLG-.390 OPS-.700

Johnny Damon-

G-308 PA-127 H-32 BB-19 HR-1 SO-19 BA-.302  OBP-.409 SLG-.443 OPS-.853

Ian Kennedy-

G-6 ERA-3.65 IP-37.0 H-32 ER-15 BB-10 SO-30 WHIP-1.135

Austin Jackson-

G-29 PA-138 H-47 BB-11 HR-1 SO-36 BA-.370  OBP-.420 SLG-.512 OPS-.932

Arodys Vizcaino (A)-

G-6 ERA-4.35 IP-31 H-32 ER-15 BB-9 SO-34 WHIP-1.322

Xavier Nady-

G-22 PA-48 H-7 BB-5 HR-1 SO-9 BA-.179  OBP-.333 SLG-.282 OPS-.615

Brian Bruney-

G-15 ERA-6.00 IP-15.0 H-17 ER-10 BB-18 SO-13 WHIP-2.333

Phil Coke-

G-15 ERA-1.80 IP-15.0 H-15 ER-3 BB-8 SO-412 WHIP-1.533

Mike Dunn (AAA)-

G-9 ERA-0.69 IP-13.0 H-10 ER-1 BB-5 SO-15 WHIP-1.15

Jose Tabata (AAA)-

G-27 PA-119 H-41 BB-12 HR-2 SO-19 BA-.345  OBP-.414 SLG-.454 OPS-.867

..and since he’s been making such a splash as the Washington National’s closer, I’m going to start tracking the progress of a player we affectionately once knew as ‘The Yankee Clippard’

Tyler Clippard

G-5 ERA-0.79 IP-22.2 H-11 ER-2 BB-11 SO-15 WHIP-0.971

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Keeping up with the ex-Yanks

Posted by Steve S. at 10:10 am 5 Responses »
Apr 252010

Photo courtesy of the Associated Press

Here’s another installment on how the former Yanks from the 2009 championship team have been faring this year. Ian Kennedy had a tremendous outing facing the tough Phillies lineup yesterday, by far his best of the year. He went 8 innings and gave up just 4 hits, 1 BB and 2 runs (both solo HRs). You may have also been able to see Melky go 1-4 yesterday and have trouble with the sun catching a fly ball if you’re in the NY or ATL area, since the Mets played the Braves yesterday.

Note-Due to popular demand, I’m adding Jose Tabata since I received so many requests to include him last time.

Melky Cabrera-

G-16 PA-65 H-8 BB-8 HR-0 BA-.143  OBP-.250 SLG-.179 OPS-.429

Hideki Matsui-

G-19 PA-79 H-22 BB-8 HR-4 BA-.310  OBP-.380 SLG-.563 OPS-.943

Johnny Damon-

G-18 PA-75 H-20 BB-13 HR-0 BA-.328  OBP-.453 SLG-.426 OPS-.880

Ian Kennedy-

G-4 ERA-4.43 IP-22.1 H-18 ER-11 BB-7 SO-21 WHIP-1.12

Austin Jackson-

G-17 PA-82 H-23 BB-7 HR-0 BA-.307  OBP-.366 SLG-.413 OPS-.779

Arodys Vizcaino (A)-

G-3 ERA-4.24 IP-17 H-19 ER-8 BB-5 SO-13 WHIP-1.41

Xavier Nady-

G-13 PA-32 H-6 BB-2 HR-1 BA-.222  OBP-.344 SLG-.333 OPS-.677

Brian Bruney-

G-9 ERA-5.40 IP-8.1 H-5 ER-5 BB-9 SO-6 WHIP-1.680

Phil Coke-

G-9 ERA-2.16 IP-8.1 H-10 ER-2 BB-6 SO-4 WHIP-1.92

Mike Dunn (AAA)-

G-5 ERA-1.29 IP-7 H-5 ER-1 BB-2 SO-9 WHIP-1.00

Jose Tabata (AAA)-

G-14 PA-67 H-20 BB-5 HR-1 BA-.323  OBP-.373 SLG-.403 OPS-.776

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The Dear Departed, Part One

Posted by Matt Imbrogno at 11:00 am 1 Response »
Mar 092010

Yesterday in the comments of Chris’s article on Brian Cashman and Kei Igawa, a discussion about whom the Yankees have traded in the past two seasons started. I’m of the opinion that with a few exceptions, the players Brian Cashman has traded have been nothing incredibly special and losing them will not hurt the team in the long term. So, let’s take a look at the last year and a half or so of Brian Cashman’s trades to see what the Yankees gave up.

Let’s start with the “deadline” deal of Ross Ohlendorf, Jose Tabata, Jeff Karstens, and Daniel McCutchen for Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte. What did the Yankees give up here? With the exception of Tabata, nothing special. Though Ohlendorf pitched well for the Pirates in 2009, he would not have played a big role for the 2009 Yankees and likely would have had just as small a role for the 2010 Yankees. Karstens did poorly in 39 games–13 starts–with the Bucs. McCutchen held his own (98 ERA+) and showed decent control (2.97 BB/9) in ’09, but like the other two pitchers in this deal, he’d have no real place on the Yankees moving forward. There are plenty of guys ahead of him.

Jose Tabata was really the only player of consequence the Yankees forfeited in this deal with the Pirates. At the time of the trade, his OPS in the Eastern League was a meager .630. He raked once joining Altoona (.964), but 2009 was less spectacular (.763 OPS between AA and AAA). In a system that’s hurting for position player prospects, losing Tabata hurt, but Jose’s production had dropped year to year and level to level with the Yankees and there were apparently character issues. Perhaps all he needed was a change of scenery. It’s worth noting that Tabata’s star has taken a bit of a hit in recent years; he was rated the 27th best prospect in baseball pre-2007, the #37 pre-2008, and the #75 pre-2009.

The next trade of any importance was the December 2008 trade fleecing of Kenny Williams in the Nick Swisher deal. Cashman traded away Jeff Marquez–who’d seemingly stalled in his development and subsequently bombed with the Sox AAA team in 2009–Wilson Betemit–who was eventually DFA’d–and Jhonny Nunez who did poorly in a 5.2 inning stint with the Sox, but performed very well in the minors. This deal was absolutely great for the Yankees. They bought low on a very good cost controlled player and payed an incredibly small price.

In February of last year, Cashman traded Chase Wright to the Brewers for Eric Fryer; Fryer was eventually included with Casey Erickson in a deal for Eric Hinske. While Hinske didn’t have a huge impact on the Yankees, he added much more than either player would have now, or in the future. It’s also worth noting that the Pirates paid for Hinske’s time with the Yankees.

In other relatively minor trades, Cashman traded Chase Weems to the Reds for Jerry Hairston, Jr., who proved useful off the bench down the stretch and in the playoffs. Again, what Hairston added last year was more than Weems would likely add in the future. Weems would have been stuck behind any number of Yankee catching prospects and it’s likely that he’d never even make the Major League team.

For literally nothing but money, Brian acquired Chad Gaudin, who could be useful as a swingman out of the bullpen in 2010.

A brief review: so far out of these trades, the only remotely useful piece given up was Jose Tabata, and he was likely still at least a year and a half away from being in the Majors at the time of his trade.

The trades of which we’re unsure are the ones made in this offseason. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t judge them now.

The first trade made in 2010 was trading Brian Bruney to the Nationals for a player to be named later, Jamie Hoffmann. It appears that the Yankees grew tired of giving the oft-injured and inconsistent Bruney second chances and tried to turn him into a useful bench piece. If Hoffmann doesn’t make the team and must be returned to the Dodgers, as he’s a Rule V pick, then this trade looks a little worse. If he does stick with the team, this trade looks about equal: marginal piece for marginal piece.

This post is running a bit long and the other, more “major” players traded early in 2010 require a separate post that I’ll put up tomorrow. That one will feature my thoughts on Phil Coke, Mike Dunn, Melky Cabrera, Arodys Vizcaino, Ian Kennedy, and Austin Jackson.

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Questions About Tabata's Age?

Posted by Moshe Mandel at 10:59 am 4 Responses »
Feb 072010


From the Pitt Trib (h/t BBTF):

His birth certificate and passport say outfielder Jose Tabata was born Aug. 12, 1988, in Anzoategui, Venezuela. Yet, during a recent radio interview, general manager Neal Huntington admitted there are “a lot of rumblings” that Tabata might actually be in his mid-20s.

In Latin America, record-keeping can be spotty, especially when it comes to youngsters with excellent baseball skills. The New York Yankees investigated Tabata’s background in 2005 and, satisfied he truly was 16, signed him as an undrafted free agent.

The Pirates are not publicly disputing Tabata’s age, and yet …

“All of the documentation he has used to obtain his visa from the U.S. government and his passport from the Venezuelan government indicates his reported age is accurate,” Huntington said in an e-mail to the Tribune-Review. “Apart from unfounded speculation, there is nothing to indicate his age any different than reported. My point is that while we have reason to doubt his reported age, it is a non-issue to us.”

The Pirates likely have no issue with this simply because there is not much they can do about it at this point. If Tabata is actually 25, he will lose an immense amount of value, going from a precocious 21 year old to a player a bit old for his level, and there is nothing the Pirates can do to forestall that. Tabata has always been about projection and potential rather than performance, such that any years added to his age will do more damage to his status as a prospect than it would to someone who has been able to perform at a high level in the minors. The constant refrain that his power will come later might lose all of its validity if he is already in his mid-20′s. Although the Yankees did not get exactly what they had hoped from that trade, it seems like the questions surrounding Tabata may have been valid all along.

Photo Credit: Mike Ashmore’s Thunder Thoughts

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Neyer On The Nady-Marte Trade

Posted by Moshe Mandel at 11:04 am 7 Responses »
Sep 072009

Tyler Kepner recently wrote a blog post on Ross Ohlendorf and the trade that sent him to the Pirates, and Rob Neyer quickly caught on and riffed off of it, focusing instead on Jose Tabata:

Granted, the equation would look quite a bit different if Marte hadn’t fallen apart the moment the Yankees got him, and if Nady hadn’t missed most of this season with a serious elbow injury.

But even if both players had done exactly what we’d expected — Marte a serviceable lefty reliever, Nady an average (at best) American League outfielder — this deal still would have been a steal for the Pirates.
Or it would probably have been a steal, anyway. That’s what happens when you trade two marginal veterans for a quartet of talented young players. Ohlendorf’s good enough to start for the Yankees, right now. Karstens may yet find himself as a reliever. McCutchen may soon be as good as Ohlendorf. And Tabata … well, he’s the real prize, isn’t he?

Between the ages of 16 and 19, Tabata was routinely the youngest player in his league, and he routinely batted .300 (while drawing plenty of walks for a teenager). Everybody said Tabata couldn’t miss. Said he was the Yankees’ best prospect. Said they wouldn’t trade him, because he was their Center Fielder of the Future.

And then he got off to a lousy start in Class AA last year. He was still just a teenager, and probably was yet again the youngest player in his league. But he got off to a lousy start, and the Yankees needed Xavier Nady. Well, they didn’t need Xavier Nady. Nobody in the history of baseball has needed a player like Xavier Nady. (Not until after the fact, anyway. If the Yankees had qualified for the playoffs last season, afterward it would have seemed like they had indeed needed him.)

So the Yankees essentially traded Jose Tabata, so recently their very best prospect, to the Pirates for Xavier Nady. Someday, historians will read that sentence and snicker.

I love Rob, but there is a whole lot of WRONG in this little blogpost. Firstly, the idea that no one ever needs Xavier Nady is a bit silly, in that Nady is not a replacement level player, just a league average player. He was better than anything the Yankees had readily available, and therefore represented an improvement for the club. For a team that was in a playoff race at the time, the marginal improvement from Justin Christian to Xavier Nady was significant, and I am not sure how Rob can represent it as being anything but a net positive. Adding a lefty reliever like Marte was similarly a drastic improvement over the options the Yankees had at that moment, although the marginal upgrade was likely less than the one gained from adding an everyday player like Nady.

Additionally, let’s not rush to anoint these “talented young players” as stars quite yet. McCutchen has made one start and profiles as, at-best, a back of the rotation guy, while Karstens is the very definition of replacement level. Ohlendorf has improved, but he still has an ERA just under 4 in the AL Central, with a FIP of 4.74, and a K/9 of 5.57. He may turn into a good pitcher, but the performances of Brad Penny and John Smoltz in the NL after being awful in the AL East suggests that the level of competition is incredibly different in the two leagues. The three pitchers are exactly the kind of assets an organization with plenty of pitching in its system should be giving up to get pieces that can help in a pennant race. The key here is Tabata, who took a step forward this year but still has yet to flash the power that would make him an elite prospect.

While the Yankees were quick to give up on Tabata, it is important to note that he had a huge attitude problem with the Yankees that many felt would torpedo his career. Furthermore, you need to give up something of value to complete most trades, and Tabata represented that value here. He had enough question marks about reaching his talent that it made for a good gamble by the Yankees. Most analysts felt that the Yankees made a good or even great deal, and cited the unknowns regarding Tabata as their primary reasons for reaching that conclusion. Just to quote one pundit at the time of the trade:

I wasn’t thrilled with the Xavier Nady deal, from the Pirates’ perspective. Jose Tabata’s star seems to have fallen (though of course he’s still young).

Who said that? Why, Rob Neyer, of course.

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Discussion: Revisiting The Tabata-Nady/Marte Trade

Posted by Moshe Mandel at 6:54 pm No Responses »
Mar 182009

A few recent events have me thinking about last year’s trade in which the Yankees sent phenom Jose Tabata along with Ross Ohlendorf, Jeff Karstens, and Dan McCutcheon to the Pirates for Xavier Nady and Damaso Marte. Firstly, Bill Madden mentioned the deal in an article on Marte and Phil Coke:

In that respect, it was somewhat surprising when Brian Cashman – who otherwise read the market on free agents this winter pretty astutely – bestowed Marte with a three-year, $12 million contract. One can only surmise the GM felt the need to partly justify last summer’s trading deadline deal in which he sacrificed three of the Yankees’ top prospects, including outfielder Jose Tabata, to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Marte and outfielder Xavier Nady, who’s a free agent after this season.

I would suggest that Cashman resigned Marte because the Yankees have not had an effective lefty reliever for the longest time, but that is not the issue here. Tabata’s subsequent appearance in a Spring Training game against the Yankees led me to begin wondering about that trade. Was it the right move?

It is important to note that at the time, the move was hailed as a steal for a Yankees club desperately trying to reach the postseason. However, various subsequent events have muddied the waters a bit. Tabata snapped out of his season long funk following the trade, while the Yankees missed out on the postseason. Nady and Marte profile as important pieces of the 2009 Yankees, but nether is indispensable and similar talents could have been found on the free agent market. One other important point to note is that the original version of the trade had Brian Cashman sending Phil Coke and George Kontos over to the Pirates, but Pittsburgh substituted McCutcheon and Karstens at the last moment.

With all of these factors in mind, I ask you to answer some difficult questions. Did you like the trade at the time? Would you have been equally fine with it had Coke and Kontos been involved? How do you feel about the deal now? Is this trade a feather in the cap of Brian Cashman, or is it ammunition for those who feel that he is a poor GM?

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