Minor League Recap, 5/22

Written by Greg Fertel | 22 May 2007

• Justin Pope got the start. He's a former first round pick as a starting pitcher, so he's got some stuff, but at this point you have to consider him a non-prospect. He pitched a lot of quality late innings for Trenton last year, but relies on a light fastball and a good but not great changeup. He struck out 2 and walked 1 in 5 scoreless innings.
• Chris Britton pitched 2 2/3 innings in relief, striking out three without allowing a baserunner. He's got to be better than Kyle Farnsworth, right?
• New sensation Edwar Ramirez pitched a scoreless inning for the save. He struck 2. He has struck out 6 in his 3 AAA innings so far. Ramirez pitched on the 16th in Scranton, then the  20th in Trenton, and now back in Scranton. Hopefully he settles down here and we can see if he can translate his mind blowing 39 strikeouts in 19 2/3 innings to AAA hitters. We could see Edwar in September if he keeps pitching like this.
• Bronson Sardinha was 2 for 4 with a double.
• Eric Duncan and Andy Phillips were 1 for 4
• Alberto Gonzalez was 0 for 4 and is now batting .236

• Alan Horne got the start, pitching 6 1/3 innings of one run ball. He struck 7 and walked 1. What impresses me most about Horne is his consistency. He has struck out at least 6 in every start this season. He is up to 66 strikeouts in 53 innings, leading the Eastern League by a good margin. Folks, I think that it's officially time to get excited about Alan Horne.
• Zach Kroenke was promoted to Trenton and relieved Horne in the 7th. He pitched an inning and 2/3 of scoreless work, striking out two and walking one. Ian Kennedy did not take the plane north with Kroenke, yet. The Yankees started moving players up around this time last year.
• P.J. Pilittere went 1 for 4 with a stolen base.
• Ramiro Pena went 2 for 4. Pena was aggressively promoted throughout the Yankee system, and as a result has flashed absolutely no bat. However, he makes up for it with one of the top shortstop gloves in the minors. Why do I mention him now? He's hitting .276/.380/.444 over his last ten games with just 1 strikeout. It's too early to say that he's remembering how to hit again, but he doesn't turn 22 until July. Keep your eye on Pena.

• Joba Chamberlain got the start. He was pretty good, pitching 6 innings and allowing 2 earned runs. He struck out 7 and walked 2. Chamberlain has 23 strikeouts in 20 innings since his debut three starts ago, but also has walked 7. That's not bad, but it's not good either. Chamberlain needs to cut a few points off that 3.15 BB/9. Only one of Chamberlain's 10 outs in play was in the air, and he sports a 2.17 GO/AO ratio this year.
• Reegie Corona was 2 for 3 with a walk, a HBP, and 2 stolen bases. He has 13 stolen bases this year with only one caught stealing. Base stealing is a side of Corona's game that I tend to overlook. He stole 28 while being caught 7 times in 105 games last season. This year, he has his 13 in 42 games. That's a 48 stolen base pace over 155 games.
• Jose Tabata continued his slide going 1 for 5.
•  Juan Miranda was 0 for 5.
• Francisco Cervelli was 2 for 4.  He had been in a mini-slide, going 3 for his last 17 with one walk. I guess he can't hit .360 forever.

• Mike Dunn got the start, pitching 5 innings and allowing 3 runs. He struck out 4 and walked 1. Dunn is a long way away, but the Yankees have to be liking what they are seeing. He has 50 strikeouts in 51 innings this season.
• Dave Robertson pitched 2 innings in relief, striking out 5 and walking 1. Get him to Tampa!
• Mitch Hilligoss went 2 for 5, raising his batting average to .327 and bringing his hit streak to 29 games.
• Austin Jackson was 0 for 4 with 3 strikeouts.
• Seth Fortenberry was 0 for 3 with a HBP.