Yankees Drafted Ambidextrous Pitcher

The Yankees drafted a switch-pitching pitcher named Pat Venditte. Apparently they have drafted him before.

This time around he's a senior.

Check out his video, it's pretty wild.

Melky's Time Running Out?

A couple weeks ago I jumped on the wagon with those fans who were seriously questioning if Melky should stay as the Yankees starting CF.

Since then he has hit a little bit better. In his last 13 games he's hitting at .348, which has raised his average to .270 for the season. But more times than not, he looks lost at the plate.

Enter Brett Gardner. The movement in his favor was small at the beginning of the season, but has since grown with both River Ave Blues and the LoHud blog seemingly jumping on board with the idea of giving him a chance.

And why not? Even if he can't hit higher than .270, he has speed and is a smart base runner. (So, for example, you won't see him slide head first into first base) He can steal, he can cover more ground in the OF and now in AAA he's even hitting for power and getting extra bases.

So far in Scranton Brett has hit .295 with a .414 OBP (compare that to Melky's .322) . He has already stolen 25 bases, and only been caught 8 times. He has also hit 9 doubles and 7 triples on the season.

It's hard to say how long he'll be ignored. One thing working heavily against him, is that he is a left handed hitter. The Yankees are so loaded with lefties, I'm not sure they want to add another one permanently into the lineup.

It'll be interesting to see what happens, but right now the call for him to come to the big league is getting louder. Melky should be hearing footsteps.


Just for comparison purposes:

Jacoby Ellsbury 2007 in AAA-
87 games, .298 Avg, .360 OBP, .380 Slg, 14 doubles, 5 triples, 33 SB, 6CS


Brett Gardner 2008 in AAA-
61 games, .295 Avg, .414 OBP,448 SLG, 9 doubles, 7 triples, 25SB, 8CS

Farnsworth...

I hate to post a semi-negative post the day after an exciting win, but I feel I must keep pointing out just how bad Kyle Farnsworth has been lately.

In his last 11 games, he has thrown 11.1 innings, giving up up 17 hits and 4 home runs for a 6.35 ERA (!!!) and opponets are hitting .328 off of him.

And how is this for a stat?

Over the whole season, the first batter he faces in the beginning of an inning is hitting .423 off of him, with 4 HRs. They're slugging .923 off of him.

All stats aside, people are starting to just feel like he can't handle the roll. Just like last season, every time he takes the mound, all of Yankee universe collectively holds it's breath.

I don't know that Ohlendorf, Veras or Edwar are a better option, but I know that I have no real faith in Farnsworth at this point.

Swing and a...

Well, Giambi crushed a HR and gave the Yankees a great dramatic win.


Meanwhile, the Yankees drafted Garrit Cole...

Who was number #7 on Rivals top 100

It's pretty incredible that he fell to 28. Some scouts believe he has one of the most explosive fastballs of any pitchers in the draft.

They also drafted LHP Jeremy Bleich out of Stanford. He might not be somebody that the experts are excited about, but he sounds like a fairly solid LHP who could contribute in the majors soon.

He also patterns his game off of Andy Pettitte.

This was a good first day for the Yankees. I was wrong about Tanner Scheppers, who was taken in the second round with the 48th pick by the Pirates.

Update 7:46PM:
The Yankees have also taken Joseph Bittle in the second round and David Adams in the third.

Check out River Ave. for some great draft coverage.

My Guess on the Yankees First Pick...

This is an absolute guess. The chances he slides to the Yankees is real slim.

Tanner Scheppers

This page has some info on him. Throws a mid-level fastball, along with a plus-slider. His recent shoulder injury may let him slide down to 28.

Trying to figure out an MLB draft is really tough. Guys rise and fall all the time. Teams evaluate differently.

I think Tanner would be a steal if he slides.

I Don't Understand the Bullpen

Or to be more specific, I don't understand bullpen management.

I don't get how different managers get attached to certain pitchers.

Torre was attached to Proctor, and it seems Giradri is attached to Farnsworth.

I don't understand why he has so much faith in the guy. Over the last 6 games, he has a 5.68 ERA. Overall he has a 4.44 ERA and has given up 8 HRs in just 26.1 innings. That hardly screams '8th inning set up man'.

Meanwhile there are better pitchers, like Edwar and Chris Britton, just sitting there watching Farnsworth's pitches fly over the walls.

I don't think Giradri managed last nights game well at all. He needs to rethink his strategy, and quickly.

Who Won This Trade?

2008 Season:

Wilson Betemit:
14 Games
.237 AVG
.256 OBP
1 HR
3 Runs
3 RBI


Scott Proctor:
24 Games
24.1 IP
21 Hits
6 HR
15 ER
14 BB
26 K
5.55 ERA
1.44 WHIP