The LoHud Yankees Blog

It’s a fairly small item in a weekend Post-Dispatch story,* but it seems the Cardinals are actively checking Chien-Ming Wang’s medical records.

St. Louis pitching coach Dave Duncan — Shelley’s father — has a strong history of working with sinkerballers and reclamation projects, and given Matt Holliday’s contract, it makes sense that that Cardinals would be interested in a fairly cheap, risk-reward type pitcher (the Post-Dispatch also mentions John Smoltz and Derrick Turnbow).

For Wang, the destination might make sense because the Cardinals depth chart doesn’t even list a fifth starter. Wang won’t be ready for opening day, but a door could open fairly easily for him to back into a big league rotation once he’s ready. 

* Nice job by iYankees to pick up the Post-Dispatch story. I completely missed it on Sunday.

Some other happenings on what is so far another slow day for Yankees news.

• Apparently the Tigers really are going to let Phil Coke compete for a spot in the rotation. Coke throws a changeup and worked as a starter through almost all of his minor league career, but things took off when he moved to the bullpen. Not sure why Detroit would want to mess with that, but I’m hardly an expert on Coke’s starting potential. Hope it works out for him, whatever his role.

• Take Huston Street off the 2010 winter wish list. Colorado has signed Street to a three-year deal with an option for a fourth. He would otherwise have been a free agent after this season.

• Speaking of long-term deals, Keith Law reports that the Mariners have wisely locked up Felix Hernandez on a five-year deal. Hernandez and Josh Johnson were the subject of much debate and desire earlier this winter, but it’s almost impossible for any team to trade for that sort of young, front-line starter. The Mariners are clearly trying to build a winner, and keeping Hernandez makes a lot more sense than dealing him.

• Our good friend Bryan Hoch answered some mailbag questions over at the Yankees official site. He notes that the Yankees did not watch Ben Sheets throw today and that it’s unlikely Sheets fits in their budget.

• One last item. Everyone’s favorite ex-Yankees starter Carl Pavano has signed a $7-million deal with the Twins. Pavano allowed more earned runs than any other pitcher in the American League last season.

It’s hard to argue with Mike Axisa’s conclusion in this morning’s post: In terms of high-end talent, the Yankees minor league system really is, “Montero and everyone else.”

That’s not to say there isn’t high-end talent thoughout the system, it just means that much of that talent comes with considerable risk. Some of that risk is due to injuries (Dellin Betances, Chris Garcia, Brad Suttle, Alan Horne, Andrew Brackman) and some of it is because of youth (Manny Banuelos, Jose Ramirez, Slade Heathcott, Gary Sanchez, Kelvin DeLeon). But the Yankees can afford that risk.

Austin Romine, Zach McAllister and Jeremy Bleich give the Yankees quality in the upper levels, and the lower levels are full of potential that the Yankees can afford to treat with patience. The major league roster has very few holes, and so the slow development of a young shortstop like Carmen Angelini or an injury to a young pitcher like Jairo Heredia leaves no cause for immediate panic.

Although much of the system’s raw talent is in the lower levels, the Triple-A and Double-A rosters will be stocked with potential major league role players. Mike listed three — Kevin Russo, Romulo Sanchez and Reegie Corona — who could very well play a role this season. I’ll add three more names, each of which comes with a little more risk and uncertainty.

Colin Curtis
Outfielder
Now that Austin Jackson has been traded, Curtis is easily the Yankees’ top upper-level outfield prospect. There is nothing particularly impressive about his career numbers, but he does a lot of things well, and just before the Rule 5 draft, an opposing scout told me he considered Curtis exactly the kind of player who can come up to fill a part-time role in the big leagues. Given their lack of outfield depth, the Yankees might need exactly that. If Curtis continues the adjustments he made in the Arizona Fall League — he led the league in slugging percentage — he could very easily push for a mid-season call-up.

Kevin Whelan
Relief pitcher
The last player remaining from the Gary Sheffield trade, Whelan has a big fastball and a big splitfinger, but he also has big walk totals. Late last season, though, Whelan seemed to be turning a corner. He had 13 walks in 12.2 Triple-A innings, but seven of those walks came in a bad two-game stretch. He closed the regular season with four walks and 17 strikeouts through nine innings. He was the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s closer in the playoffs. There’s a lot to like about his arm if he can add a little command.

Jorge Vazquez
First baseman
In recent years, the Yankees have done a nice job finding talent in obscure places. They pulled Edwar Ramirez out of independent ball and found Alfredo Aceves playing in Mexico. That’s the same place they found the power-hitting Vazquez. Through his final four seasons in Mexico, Vazquez never had a slugging percentage lower than .605, and he twice had a slugging percentage above .730. Last year in Double-A, he hit .329 with 13 home runs in 57 games. He hit 11 more home runs in 32 games of winter ball. Vazquez is a complete wild card in the Yankees system, but the power seems legitimate. He could be the next surprise to put himself on the radar.

Next up in the Pinch Hitters series is Mike Axisa, who took a look at the Yankees minor league system after aggressive trades cost the team’s most highly touted pitching prospect and it’s top major-league-ready position player.

Mike is the minor league guru at River Ave. Blues and was the first blogger I spoke to via email when I began covering the Yankees three years ago in Scranton. The Yankees blog community is a remarkable collection of perspectives and ideas. When I was covering the Phillies, I remember one fan site that I checked occasionally. With the Yankees, there are at least a dozen worth visiting every day. Along with Joseph Pawlikowski and Benjamin Kabak, Mike has established River Ave. Blues as one of the go-to sites for Yankees commentary and analysis.

Click the About tab on RAB’s main page, and the site offers a concise mission statement: We write about the Yankees. 

———

The Yankees have historically eschewed the farm system in favor of big leaguers capable of winning them a World Championship, but the team rededicated itself to building from within once Brian Cashman assumed full control of the baseball operations. Surprisingly, Cashman reversed course this offseason, trading several young prospects for established big leaguers, something he was hesitant to do in the past.

Arodys Vizcaino was arguably the team’s best pitching prospect, Austin Jackson was inarguably their best outfield prospect, and Mike Dunn was one of their closest relief prospects. Ian Kennedy struggled in his first 60 or so big league innings (who hasn’t?), though he was always just a phone call away if an injury arose. Phil Coke was cheap and reasonably effective, ditto Melky Cabrera.

Where do these moves leave the Yanks’ system? Surely you’ve heard of Jesus Montero, so I’m not going to waste any more of my limited words on him. Beyond Montero, the system noticeably lacks star power. Austin Romine is a solid all-around catching prospect, but he’s far from flawless. Zach McAllister hasn’t developed an out pitch and Ivan Nova doesn’t miss many bats, limiting their ceilings. Manny Banuelos has as much talent as anyone, but he’s just a teenager in A-ball.

This could all change soon, as the Yanks kept all of their draft picks and have several prospects poised to break out. 20-year-old righty Jose Ramirez ran his fastball up to 96 and held opponents to a .156 AVG last year, while switch hitter deluxe Bradley Suttle will be returning from a pair of shoulder surgeries that cost him all of 2009. The Yankees knew they’d have to be patient with Andrew Brackman when they drafted him, and he still has at least two and possibly three more option years left to figure things out in the minors. The amateur draft gets all of the attention, but the Yankees are a powerhouse in Latin America, and that market has long been the backbone of their farm system.

The recent moves have certainly thinned out the system, however it’s far from barren. Kevin Russo (.397 OBP in ’09), Romulo Sanchez (ask Chad about his fastball), and Reegie Corona (.917 OPS, 19-28 K/BB ratio in winter ball) are all guys we should see at some point in 2010. There’s plenty of useful pieces on the way, though it’s fair to describe the current situation as “Montero and everyone else.”

The Yankees have agreed to contracts with Chad Gaudin and Boone Logan, avoiding arbitration with their only remaining arbitration-eligible players.

UPDATE, 7:53 p.m.: The Yankees just sent this release.

The New York Yankees announced today they have agreed to one-year contracts with right-handed pitcher Chad Gaudin and left-handed pitcher Boone Logan, avoiding arbitration with both players.

Gaudin, 26, was acquired by the Yankees on August 6, 2009, from the San Diego Padres in exchange for cash considerations. He combined to go 6-10 with a 4.64 ERA in 31 appearances (25 starts) with both clubs in 2009. He made 11 appearances (six starts) with the Yankees, going 2-0 with a 3.43 ERA as the Yankees won each of his starts. Gaudin owns a career mark of 34-35 with a 4.50 ERA in 216 Major League appearances (75 starts) with Tampa Bay, Toronto, Oakland, Chicago-NL, San Diego and the Yankees.

Logan, 25, was acquired by the Yankees along with right-handed pitcher Javier Vazquez in exchange for outfielder Melky Cabrera, left-handed pitcher Mike Dunn and minor league right-handed pitcher Arodys Vizcaino on December 22, 2009. He owns 164 career Major League appearances with Chicago-AL and Atlanta, going 5-5 with a 5.78 ERA. He split the 2009 season between Triple-A Gwinnett and the Braves, posting a 1-1 record with a 5.19 ERA at the Major League level where he held left-handed batters to a .231 batting average (9-for-39) with no home runs.

UPDATE, 8:09 p.m.: The Associated Press reports that Gaudin got “about $2.9 million” and Logan got “about $600,000.”

UPDATE, 8:33 p.m.: Make that $2.95 million for Gaudin, $590,000 for Logan.

It’s mid-January. The World Series ended a little more than 10 weeks ago. Pitchers and catcher report to spring training in a month.

“It’s time to start throwing,” Dave Robertson said.

Over the weekend, Brett Gardner explained a bit about his offseason schedule, saying he’s started getting into the batting cage on a regular basis. The same is basically true for pitchers.

“(Spring training) is a little later than last year, so I wait a little bit longer before I start throwing,” Robertson said. “… January would be my guess (for when most pitchers begin throwing). Some of them probably throw before then. It all depends on how your body feels.”

Just like Gardner, Robertson said he started lifting in mid-December. He took a few weeks off, then went to work keeping himself in shape. “Make sure you don’t get lazy,” he said. Now is the time to start throwing, but not off a mound just yet.

“I just toss, just loosen it up,” Robertson said. “After a week, loosen it up and stretch back a little farther.”

By the time he gets to spring training, Robertson expects to have thrown off a mound a few times. He’ll be ready to throw a full bullpen by the time camp opens in February. A lot of his early sessions will primarily focus on fastballs, but Robertson said he’ll begin mixing in curveballs pretty quickly.

“I’ll probably spin few,” he said. “Get the feeling back. Nothing like throwing them full speed or anything. Same with changeups. Just work to get the feel back.”

It seems likely he will arive in spring training as a heavy favorite for the big league bullpen – he opened last season in Triple-A before spending most of the year in New York — but Robertson is a bit like Gardner in that he’s not taking that big league spot for granted.

“I hope so, you never know though,” Robertson said. “We’ll see what happens in spring training. That’s about all I can do.”

Now that Jerry Hairston Jr. has officially signed with the Padres, the free agent utility market looks pretty thin for the Yankees. It was never especially deep to begin with, but without Hairston — who was, in my opinion, the most logical fit – there’s no longer a standout candidate.

Hairston can play the outfield, but it doesn’t seem the Yankees ever saw him as the sort of right-handed outfielder they’re looking for. “I see him as a utility player who can play the outfield,” Brian Cashman said this weekend.

Now that Hairston has signed with San Diego and Khalil Green has signed with Texas, the other utility types still on the market either don’t have much experience at shortstop (Adam Kennedy), have the potential to be fairly expensive (Felipe Lopez) or have begun showing signs of aging (Mark Loretta). Any of those three might be able to help the Yankees, or it might be time to fully concede the utility job to one of the younger players already on the roster.

Among Ramiro Pena, Kevin Russo, Eduardo Nunez and Reegie Corona, the Yankees should be able to find someone to fill that role. There could eventually be a non-roster invitation for a veteran infielder to also compete for the job.

In his morning post, pinch hitter Ed listed three common elements of the past 11 Yankees teams to have advanced to the World Series. No. 1 on the list: “You need really good starting pitching to win it all.”

With that in mind, I wonder if the overlooked fact of this offseason is that the Yankees’ rotation is much deeper than it was three months ago.

Aside from re-signing Andy Pettitte, trading for Curtis Granderson and signing Nick Johnson, the Yankees made a move to bring Javier Vazquez back to the Bronx. They aren’t asking him to be an ace, or even a No. 2. Vazquez seems to line up as the Yankees No. 4 starter, and I find it difficult to name a better No. 4 in all of baseball. He’s thrown at least 200 innings each of the past five years, he’s finished with double-digit wins each of the past 10 years and he’s coming off a career year in Atlanta.

Adding Vazquez is a pretty significant upgrade for a Yankees team that got through the 2009 playoffs with only three starting pitchers. The schedule isn’t always going to allow for a three-man postseason rotation, and although it makes sense to hope for either Phil Hughes or Joba Chamberlain to become an indispensable part of the rotation, it also makes sense to upgrade with a reliable and durable starter like Vazquez.

Through all of the debate about left field and the questions about Hideki Matsui’s departure, the rotation upgrade seems to have gone almost unnoticed, but it might be as significant as anything the Yankees have done this winter.

Next up in the Pinch Hitters series is Ed Conde, who looked back at the Yankees teams that played in the World Series since 1976 and found they had a few things in common.

Ed is the head of the federal government’s Alcohol Countermeasures Laboratory in Cambridge, MA. He was born in the Bronx and grew up in New York.

“It is hard living among the enemy,” he wrote. “But it is much better since the World Series ended.”

———

There have been 11 Yankee teams that have reached the World Series since the original Stadium was renovated for the 1976 season. Three teams reached the Series during the successful 1976-1981 era. Eight more reached the Series during the 1996 to 2009 “Core Four” era.

The late 70’s teams featured a young up-the-middle core of Munson (29), Dent (25), Randolph (22), and Rivers (27). The rotation featured top arms near their prime years – Guidry (26), Figueroa (28), Hunter (30), and Gullett (26). The star pitcher was a left hander (Guidry) who was able to negate the opponent’s lefty sluggers. The bullpen had great closers (Lyle and Gossage) and a good lefty for the late innings (Lyle). The power hitters were mostly left handed or were switch hitters in order to take advantage of the short porch in right (Jackson, Nettles, Chambliss) and the right-handed hitters were high average, line drive types (Piniella, Munson, Randolph).

These teams won it all in 1977 and 1978 and reached the Series in 1976 and 1981. Unfortunately Thurman Munson died in a tragic plane crash in 1979, Gullett and Hunter succumbed to injuries, and the Yankees were unable to replace them. As a result, the Yankees missed the playoffs for 13 straight seasons.

By the 1996 season the Yankees finally got back to the formula that was so successful in the late 70’s. They put together a talented core of young up-the-middle players: Posada (24), Duncan/Knoblauch (29), Jeter (22), and Bernie Williams (27). The rotation featured top arms near or a little past their prime years – Pettitte (24), Cone (33), Wells (34), Clemens (36), Hernandez (32). The star pitcher was a left hander (Pettitte). The bullpen had a great closer (Rivera) and good left handers (Stanton, Lloyd.) The power hitters were mostly left handed or switch hitters (Bernie, O’Neill, Tino, Posada) and the right handed hitters were mostly high average line drive types (Jeter, Knoblauch). These teams won it all in 1996, 1998, 1999, and 2000 and reached the Series in 2001 and 2003.

Bernie, Knoblauch, and Tino lost effectiveness, O’Neill retired, and Pettitte, Clemens, and Wells all left for other teams. The winning formula was shattered. Gone was half of the up-the-middle core and 3/5 of the rotation. Without Pettitte and Wells there were no effective lefties in the rotation. The Yankees tried patching the rotation with righties Vazquez, Brown, Weaver, Pavano, Wright, Mussina, and Contreras with mixed results. An aging Randy Johnson was brought in to get an effective left hander into the rotation. The Yankees tried to make up for a lack of pitching with a formidable lineup, but much of the power was right handed (Sheffield, A-Rod). It didn’t work. The Yankees did not reach the Series for five straight years.

Finally, by 2009 the Yankees had a chance to re-create the winning formula. A resurgent Cano and an effective Cabrera joined Jeter and Posada to re-establish dominance up the middle. A young stud left hander was brought in to lead the rotation (Sabathia). Pettitte returned to the team and gave the Yankees two lefties to shut down the opponent’s left-handed hitters. Burnett was signed, giving the Yankees their first dominant rotation since Clemens, Pettitte, and Wells left after 2003. The star pitcher was a left hander (Sabathia). The bullpen had a great closer (Rivera) and some good lefties (Marte and Coke). The power hitters were again mostly left-handed or switch hitters (Teixeira, Matsui, Swisher, Cano, Damon). The remake worked and the Yankees won it all.

Looking at the numbers from the great baseballreference.com, what can we learn?

1) The 11 World Series teams averaged third in the AL in ERA. All but one finished in the top 5. — You need really good starting pitching to win it all.

2) All 11 World Series teams had a starter who finished in the top 10 in AL ERA. Most of the teams that did not reach the Series did not have a top 10 pitcher. – You need an Ace.

3) The Yankees led the AL in runs in 1998, 2002, 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009. Of those years, the only times that they reached the Series was in 1998 and 2009 when they also had great pitching. – You can’t bash your way to a Championship.

The best Yankee teams have:

• Been strong up the middle
• Have taken advantage of their ballpark with strong lefty pitching and lefty power hitting
• Have had a strong rotation
• Had an Ace – preferably left handed
• Had a good bullpen with one or two lefties.
• Had a great closer

The 2010 team seems to have all the pieces in place. Brian Cashman has brought in Granderson to shore up the middle and provide left-handed power. Cano is a rising star, Jeter defies age, and Posada remains effective. The up-the-middle positions look like they will remain strong. The rotation should remain strong with an Ace in Sabathia. Rivera keeps rolling with Joba perhaps waiting in the wings. Cliff Lee and Joe Mauer are pending free agents who fit the Yankee profile. It is a great time to be a Yankee Fan!

Thirty days until pitchers and catchers.

On this otherwise uneventful Sunday — in terms of baseball — Ken Rosenthal reports that Jerry Hairston Jr. is “closing in” on a deal with the San Diego Padres.

In a follow-up tweet, Rosenthal says the deal will be worth more than $2 million.

As well as Hairston’s versatility fits with the Yankees, he’s certainly not a “must have” on a team that has so many young, cheap utility infield options.

Greetings from Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, where I’ll be writing on the Jets-Chargers game this afternoon. This is my first trip to San Diego – the Yankees never played them here when I was on the beat – and I can see why people who live here wouldn’t want to travel much. Nothing wrong with perfect weather all the time.

Nice as this city is, however, Qualcomm has a little bit of an old (and dingy) feel to it, which reminded me to post this update on the de-construction of the old Yankee Stadium. Click through the photo gallery, too, for more. Sad to see the old place down to the dirt.

In more uplifting news, great job by Jesse to get the pinch-hitter series started this morning; reading the guest posts (and the responses that Chad and I are going to do) should help get us through this final month before baseball returns. I know it feels like time is dragging.

For now, we’ve got some football. Enjoy the game this afternoon and feel free to check in with your thoughts in the comments here. Should be a good one.