What do Jeter, Valdez and Coke have in common?
Posted by: Chad Jennings - Posted in Misc on Nov 21, 2009 
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Fair warning, there is no real news value here, just a list you might find interesting. At the end of the 2009 season, the 10 longest consecutively tenured Yankees were…
1. Mariano Rivera (non-drafted free agent, February 1990)
2. Jorge Posada (24th round, 1990)
3. Derek Jeter (first round, 1992)
4. Chien-Ming Wang (non-drafted free agent, May 2000)
5. Jose Valdez (non-drafted free agent, October 2000)
6. Robinson Cano (non-drafted free agent, January 2001)
7. Shelley Duncan (second round, 2001)
8. Melky Cabrera (non-drafted free agent, November 2001)
9. Wilkin De La Rosa (non-drafted free agent, November 2001)
10. Phil Coke (26th round, 2002)
Cabrera beat De La Rosa by two days. Had they not left the organization for a while, Andy Pettitte would have ranked second — drafted two rounds ahead of Posada — and Triple-A outfielder John Rodriguez would have ranked fourth (he was originally signed by the Yankees as a non-drafted free agent in 1997).
Now that Valdez and Duncan are gone, the next Yankees to join the Top 10 are (potentially)…
• Marcos Vechionacci (non-drafted free agent, August 2002)
• Hideki Matsui (non-drafted free agent, January 2003)
• Francisco Cervelli (non-drafted free agent, March 2003)
The Yankees would have to re-sign free agents Vechionacci and Matsui for them to move into the Top 10. Now that all 2003 draftees are free agents, the next five on the list to join the Top 10 are a group of fairly obscure minor leaguers and one not-at-all-obscure major leaguer…
• Josue Calzado (non-drafted free agent, May 2003)
• Melky Mesa (non-drafted free agent, July 2003)
• Jose Gil (non-drafted free agent, July 2003)
• Luis Nunez (non-drafted free agent, November 2003)
• Alex Rodriguez (acquired in trade, February 2004)
If the Yankees were to re-sign minor league free agents Eric Duncan (first round, 2003), Jay Stephens (sixth round, 2003) or Michael Gardner (13th round, 2003), they would also fit into this list.
Is Calzado still rehabbing from surgery?
That’s a harsh reminder of just how far removed we are from the late 90s!
Also, Mariano Rivera has been with the Yankees for all but four years of my life.
That’s weird.
I remember when Posada and Pettitte were drafted.
It’s probably me, but you guys have too many new threads during the course of the day and the flow of discussion becomes very choppy to say the least.
Perhaps combining new updates to previous threads will help especially if the new update isn’t earth-shattering news like a trade or free agent signing.
Nov. 23 (next Monday): AL MVP
Nov. 24 (next Tuesday): NL MVP
why is there such a long delay?
“why is there such a long delay?”
To keep MLB in the news during November until the December winter meetings take place with trades and free agent signings.
I think 1990 was also the Brien Taylor draft year.
The saddest thing about Taylor is that he wasn’t a bust- he was totally tearing up the minors when he got in that stupid fight. I still can’t help but feel sorry for that guy. He was on pace to be a star.
Craw, I didn’t love my original post, which is why I edited it on NYYFans………I forgot to do that here. I love Cash – and you’re right.
I assume those Matsui rumors/Damon rumors came from MLB – a lesion on his knee? LOL again, probably more hot stove hot air.
JK, but DH’s don’t need to play the field……they obviously don’t. I don’t see why we couldn’t work around it the way we did this year. The other alternative is to rotate DHs and that’s a lousy idea.
Erica, it refers to AJ’s pie routine.I was trying to convey that AJ is one of my favorite players and that I love his pie routine…..I guess I didn’t succeed, lol.
I like Johnny – no, I love him, and I love the fact that he very much wants to be back. Atrocious is too strong a word – I meant to clarify my post (since I couldn’t edit it) – but he’s just not good in LF. He’s just an adventure out there…….for whatever reason. I’m not sure how many years he has left in him.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.c.....index.html
This is awesome………
Phil
November 21st, 2009 at 8:04 pm
Is Calzado still rehabbing from surgery?
=====
I wasn’t aware of an injury, but I see he only pitched 2/3 of an inning in the Dominican SL. I seem to recall him popping up on some other roster, however.
For anyone who doesn’t know the name, Calzado was a RF with one of the best OF arms in pro ball. He feasted on fastballs, but was helpless to do anything with offspeed stuff.
I don’t know the extent of it, but they converted him and his ridiculous arm from the OF to the mound. No one talks about this kid anymore. He’s 24 years old, I believe.
Penalty shot for Max Talbot
Overthought the shot, tipped his hand
What hockey team are you talking about?
They switched Calzado to the mound and he immediately blew out his arm, I think.
Penguins.
Shame about Calzado.
oh.
Yeah, they’ve had a couple of guys like that.
I hope Urena doesn’t go the way of Calzado.
Urena is another sort of on-the-fence, feast-on-fastballs guy who can’t hit breaking pitches.
People have been drooling over his power bat and raw skills for a couple of years already.
So where and when can one pick up a copy of that Yank 2009 World Series film for which ‘high on pie’ Betsy provided the link? Looks like an offseason need-to-have.
I think that’s the DVD that’s coming out in December……I would imagine any bookstore/Best Buy would have it……
Urena got shot, then gained a bunch of weight. With him it’s been bad luck and attitude more than the curveball. DeLeon was looking like he might go that way, but he turned it around big time. Zolio Almonte was another kid who was struggling a bit with “being a pro.” This year he turned it around. It’s great when these kids, who sign when they are soooo young, find themselves. I hope Carlos Urena does before it’s too late.
Yeah, The Urena getting shot thing was weird.
DeLeon is certainly a beast. We are loaded with high-end OF types.
I saw Zolio at Staten Island. It was just one game, but he gave a good account of himself. Of course, I read about him on PSP.
Had brunch at one of Matsui’s favorite restaurants today. The staff asked our table, somewhat anxiously, if we thought Matsui would be back. Had to explain that we’re not on Brian Cashman’s speed dial. I sure hope to see Matsui-san back in pinstripes for one more year.
Victor Mata is a real tough guy but I wonder if his “tough” approach is the most effective for the youngest kids in the organization.
The only reason Zoilo Almonte was “struggling with being a pro” is because he was barely 19 in 2008 and he’s undersized at 5’10″ and 160 pounds.
bodhisattva,
Urena is done, 3 years in the DSL with his talent is a travesty. Kid has no work ethic.
Mata said Zolio wasn’t smiling enough, like that was the problem.
fyi– this just went up on ESPN
Reports: Halladay won’t sign extension
puts the Jays into a real bind. not exactly negotiating from a position of strength.
Mata is fine, most of these kids obtain money they never dreamed of and think they have already made it. I have no problem with Mata being the bad cop/task master.
Strange with Halladay…
He has a no trade, so ye will be able to control where he goes!
Why no extension?
Maybe he wants to make sure he likes his new destination first.
@ JK– i think its his way of effectively forcing a trade.
I watched Melky Mesa hit a Home Run for Charleston this past summer. Dude has some pop in his bat for a little guy.
eric,
Just read the report… so he doesn’t want to sign an extension with Tor, I thought he was saying he wouldn’t agree to an extension with another team.
I think the Jays are leaking this to calm down local fan anger that they are planning to trade him…
What do you want us to do, he doesn’t want to be here.
Mesa has the ability to be a 4.5 tool player. His biggest problem is the same as Alfonso Soriano. He wants to hit home runs. He has a wild swing and chases everything. He’s a very good 3 position outfielder. He also has very good speed. Not just very good speed, but, a smart base runner. If the convince him to cut back the swing, he could hit in the .280s with 20-25 homers and 20-25 steals on a regular basis.
http://www.nydailynews.com/spo.....tml?page=1
Unbeknownst to me, Boras, with whom I have not exactly enjoyed a warm and fuzzy relationship through the years, threw those figures out last week, only to have Manfred, baseball’s VP of Labor Relations, fire back, saying: “He completely made those figures up,” adding that the Avenging Agent was living “in a fantasy land.” Manford also told Foxsports.com’s Ken Rosenthal that “no one club is getting $80 or $90 million in combined revenue sharing and Central Baseball funds,” even though the Florida Marlins, in fact, got $40 million from each, to top all teams with $80 million., according to my sources This prompted Boras to counter: “There is factual merit to the facts Madden reported and that is why Rob didn’t address it in August. Why did it take him three months to comment on it?”
In the meantime, Pirates President Frank Coonelly insisted that the $35 million Central Fund figure Boras is using is “inaccurate” – and to that I must confess Coonelly is right. When I first reported the $75 million booty the Pirates received, I broke it down to $35 million in central fund monies and $40 revenue sharing. In fact, it was just the opposite, but the bottom line is, it still adds up to $75 million. And here is another figure Coonelly will probably want to refute: According to my sources, the Pirates were one of the teams to make a profit this year – approximately $14 million, which is not bad for a team with 99 losses and 17 straight losing seasons. What we do know is Pirates chairman Bob Nutting is not re-investing his revenue sharing in payroll, although there are disturbing rumors in Pittsburgh that he’s using the Pirates’ money to subsidize the hemorrhaging at his Seven Springs Ski Resort in Champion, Pa. If Coonelly and Manfred continue to insist that these figures my buddy Boras and I are putting out are a bunch of hooey, all they have to do to prove us wrong is show us their ledger. It would be the first time MLB ever showed anyone its books.
here’s the thing with Mata, though. About three years ago, Urena came over and destroyed ST, just killed it. They sent him on a AAA road trip and he homered. Anyway it went to his head a bit, so instead of treating him like the elite talent that he was, Mata sent him back to the DSL, and far as we can tell at this point, it ruined him.
They did the same thing to DeLeon last year and it worked better, but you can’t use the same approach on everyone.
Leagues with salary caps = 55-60% of total revenues to salaries
MLB without salary cap = 45% of total revenues to salaries in 2009
The owners need to stop crying poor. If they agreed to a cap they would have to open their private books and pony up another 600-900M of current profits to salaries to reach 55-60% of total revenues.
Melky Mesa looked like he had it all together finally, then late in the season, he threw away all the discipline he had developed going for 30 homers.
Phil,
PLEASE!!! If that is what ruined him then good riddance, the kid clearly never had the work ethic or internal drive to grind his way to the majors.
JK,
please, don’t judge kids you’ve never met. You have no idea how things might have worked differently had he been treated differently. There was no Mutt Mantle to drive to the Dominican and give the kid a pep talk.
Phil,
You have no idea how things went down either, yet you are 100% blaming Mata. They disciplined Montero & Deleon and they both got their act together. Tabata was traded because he didn’t. Makeup is EXTREMELY important to the current baseball ops.
I’m not 100% blaming Mata. He’s the one who told the story of how they sent Urena down for ego reasons and not baseball reasons. And since then he has not been the same. That’s just the case.
Anyway, I take it you know Mickey Mantle tried to quit when he was sent down, but he had a dad who wouldn’t let him.
Urena got sent to the DR again and got shot. Neither of us know how things might have worked if they had been able to “reach” him. His talent was worth some extra effort.
I blame Urena for not taking his baseball career seriously and putting on 40-50 lbs.
he put on the weight after he got shot. Sometimes, when athletes get shutdown and can’t do anything they gain weight. I always thought it was 30 pounds, btw.
Phil,
Well, you are correct, I’m just really down on him. He will be here in 2010 (4 years in DSL would be insane), so we will see
Is this PhilinLA?
Geeeeez, where is everybody
This is PhilinLA and I think the kid should have been handled a little differently. I don’t like that Mata isn’t stats savvy and cares more about smiles than production. And I remember when he was a Yankee minor leaguer and had none of the talent of some of these kids he pushes around.
Phil,
For years people were blaming the Yankees for Eric Duncan’s failure. Sometimes it comes down to the players.
JK,
again, they rushed Eric Duncan to promote his trade value. Who knows if things would have been different had he been handled differently. I think overall, the farm is in great hands and that there is less and less to worry about with them each year. I think Mark Newman and Pat Roessler are doing a great job now, but the major re-set started in 2005. Before that, it was like a hobby for “the Tampa faction” for a few years.
I think Tabata was a case of where it was the players fault. I think Joba’s problems are between his ears. I think Angelini is the source of his own problems… there are a lot of players who don’t adjust and are stubborn.
A bunch of random thoughts:
Just saw “The Blind Side.” Great movie.
Halliday won’t sign an extension with anyone–why should he, when the Yankees will open the bank vault in 2011. He’s making $15.5 million this year.
Nuttings should sell the Pirates. What a bunch of clowns. Fan pressure will mount if they don’t come close to .500 this year.
Thankfully Pens finally squeaked out a road win. Too many injured defensemen right now.
Where does it say that Doc won’t sign an extension with a new team? It just says on ESPN that he won’t re-sign with Toronto…….and, IMO, Beeston is throwing Doc under the bus. “He’s not inclined to sign with us”? Gee, I wonder why? The man has given his all for the organization for years……..then, they put him through the trade wringer last year, with Doc not knowing whether he’s coming or going. He’s 33 years old and he wants to win……he’s hardly to be blamed here. From all accounts, Doc loves Toronto and would have, objectively speaking, preferred to win with his original team. That’s not possible anytime soon, though, so of course he’s not going to re-sign.
Phil, you have a pattern here. The white players failures are blamed on the organization, but the Dominican and other foreign players are to blame for their problems. It that the gist of it?
http://opinionator.blogs.nytim.....e-at-last/
Very interesting article on the perspective of a free-agent. Doug Glanville has written a couple of other excellent pieces for the NY Times……
GB7? I have no pattern. I’ve read all of Victor Mata’s interviews at Pinstripes Plus. With Eric Duncan (all the white players?), I’m not sure who rushed him as no one has ever said, “I decided to promote him when I did…” So I called that Tampa.
Also, the only foreign player I blamed for his own problems was Tabata who married that 40 year old nutjob and kept jumping the team. What are you reading?
Phil
November 22nd, 2009 at 12:46 am
GB7? I have no pattern. I’ve read all of Victor Mata’s interviews at Pinstripes Plus. With Eric Duncan (all the white players?), I’m not sure who rushed him as no one has ever said, “I decided to promote him when I did…” So I called that Tampa.
————————————————————
urena? Zoilo Almonte? Perhaps if you got out to see minor league games and quit believing everything you read. Pinstripes Plus isn’t much different than any others trying to make a dollar by repeating gossip. Sorry…not buying your theories or insight.
GB7,
That’s fine. But your reading comprehension could use some work. So could your manners around here. Also, though I probably don’t see as many minor league games as you do, I do have MiLBTV and Radio and listen to as many games as possible. Now Victor Mata does know more about these players than you do, so it is not “gossip” when he criticizes them for not smiling enough, or whatever. All I have done is say that perhaps he could handle some of these players differently.
Once again, Greenberet7 shooting off his mouth. On top of poorly attacking comments, Greenberet7 now accuses people of racism. Reading comprehension is the least of the problems of Greenberet7.
Chad,
I personally enjoy little tidbits like this and I especially love your coverage of the minor league system. Keep up the great work. Thumbs up!
I am an 86 year old D-bag.
I attempt to belittle and mock other posters because I feel like my life was a waste.
I was booted out of the army for my negative attitude.
I never did recover from that embarrassment.
Please accept my apologies.
People, people! Enough squabbling.
Good news, the California Golden Bears beat Stanfurd to win the Big Game tonight!
The Yankee/Oski axis remains on firm footing as Cal retains the Axe.
Thank you and goodnight.
Nick in SF…..The Cal-Berlkey Bears ( B-Ball is killing me )….I see where GB has rattled some cages…….Until the Winters Meetings get going it will get a bit fiesty here at the LoHud……
Chad,
Thanks for the info. The weirdest thing about that list though is the gap from 1992 to 2000. Not one player drafted or signed as a free agent for 7 years is still with the club?
Pat M, it was a great game. The Stanfurd fans were pretty full of themselves going in, more so up 14-0.
Then the tide turned for the good. The O line was dominant and Shane Vareen was a beast.
In the end, Stanfurd Stadium proved to be Bear Territory once again. I will be golfing on the Maryland shore on Monday and Tuesday thanks to the Cal+8 and Cal+250. Thanks, Stanfurd backers!
DeLeon is certainly a beast. We are loaded with high-end OF types
————————————————-
they have a few (DeLeon, Sosa, etc). I wouldn’t say they’re loaded tho
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/ne.....;type=lgns
Great list. I love this type of thing, you never see it anywhere.