Written by Sean P | 21 April 2010

Youth might be wasted on the young, but lately it’s also wasted on the Yankees. Well that might be overdoing it slightly. It's certainly not being wasted. But the Yankees HAVE seemed hesitant to trust their young guys. Whether it’s Brett Gardner, Joba Chamberlain, Mark Melancon or Dave Robertson it seems the most heated of debates takes place over the infusion of youth.

How can they do it better? Do they need to? The Yankees have been a “veteran team” since the late 90’s and it hasn’t always been easy assimilating the new guys into real roles. Luckily, for the most part the Yankees haven’t had too. That won't always be the case though. As the core continues to age and the years pile up, these questions demand answering.

My proclivities for the young guys around here are well known (I write for a minor league blog after all). But let’s be clear- there’s not a whole lot about this current team that I would change. Frankly I love it. That doesn’t mean however that I haven’t bristled at how some of the decisions have been made of late. Here’s a a short list of the minor quibbles I have:

• Effectively platooning Brett Gardner with Marcus Thames while facing a LHP
• Joba
• The role and utility of Dave Robertson in the bullpen.
• The hesitancy to see what Mark Melancon can offer in a regular role.

Remember when we were sold on Brett Gardner getting a shot to play every day? I do. I also remember hearing that last year as well. Things have looked better of late, and Girardi played him against a lefty last night. I hope this is a long term trend. Gardner needs to have the training wheels taken off- he has almost no real platoon split to speak of and it’s easy to see how well he complements the team. He works the count, gets on base and plays great defense.

Robertson and Melancon are a little nitpicky I suppose. Many of us have clamored for Robertson’s role to be expanded but a fair counterpoint would be that he has to earn it. He’ll have to be given a shot to earn it though, something that hasn’t happened frequently. And someone just must not like Mark Melancon. He should be given a substantial opportunity to stick in the majors.

These ultimately are small matters, especially when the Yankees are winning. We’re discussing organizational philosophy here, which really is just on the periphery of things this Yankee team should be worrying about right now.

But make no mistake about it, these ARE real issues. How can a team like the Yankees, the penultimate example of a win now ideology, expect to develop and grow young talent? And how can that talent be smoothly assimilated into a finely tuned baseball machine such as the current New York Yankees? How can they develop starting pitchers while focusing on winning in the short term? How much rope will management be willing to float a young position player like Brett Gardner in order to find out what he’s capable of? It’s clear we don’t have all the answers yet.

We’ll need them soon however. Because sometime in the future, maybe 3 years from now, maybe sooner, the David Ortiz unraveling in Boston won’t look so funny. The Yankees have had an elixir to avoid age so far but that won’t last forever. What’s more, the free agent market has changed. No longer is it common to find superstars in their 20’s readily available. More and more teams that develop their own talent are finding ways to keep it for as long as they can.

The Yankees have seemed to wean themselves from their free spending ways, with a few notable exceptions and that’s definitely a good thing. The pieces and prospects they have developed have turned out nicely- others have been jettisoned for additional useful players. Teams are smarter now and the business has changed. The Yankees need to continue to change and adapt with it.

Listen, I think the Yankees are doing well. Brian Cashman has done a terrific job evolving and turning the organization into a well run juggernaut. It hasn’t always been smooth, but for the most part it’s been successful. There are difficulties however and the Yankees have run into snags. What could they have done differently to ensure Joba Chamberlain smoothly transitioned to the rotation while staying healthy? I have no idea.  At the very least though, they tried.

It’s an extremely comforting sign that the organization recognizes the importance of developing their own young pitching. There will probably be more bumps on this journey as well. Because again, we don’t have all the answers just yet, but we do know this- figuring out a way to incorporate young talent into a veteran and experienced team is of paramount importance moving forward.

Written by Sean P | 21 April 2010

Scranton lost 11-7 to the Bisons last night. The bullpen blew another game for Scranton. It may have been the worst loss of the young season.

Trenton dropped another game to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats 2-1. The Fisher Cats are in first place and have won 4 straight.  Jeremey Bleich was not sharp but somehow limited the damage. A former Thunder reliever led the Fisher Cats to victory.

Tampa beat Clearwater 3-0 yesterday behind another strong start from Adam Warren.

Charleston lost 8-6 to Hickory. Zolio Almonte had a 2 HR game but the Riverdogs came up a little short. Charleston has a tough up coming home stretch.

Here's the organizational recap from Minor League Splits.

Written by Greg Fertel | 20 April 2010

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre

• Starter Romulo Sanchez had a bit of a rough outing. He pitched six innings, gave up three runs while striking out only two and walking three. I was one of Romulo's biggest supporters after his strong second half this year, but he has not gotten off to a good start in 2010. So far, he's pitched 13 innings and walked 11. That isn't going to cut it for the big right hander.

• Jesus Montero hit his second home run of the season. He has yet to show any signs of struggling in Triple-A, and certainly didn't struggle at all in his brief AA appearance last season.

• Eduardo Nunez played shortstop and has been on fire to start the season. He went 3 for 5 today and is now hitting .371 with more walks than strikeouts. I need to see him do this for longer, but so far I'm actually impressed with what he has done for Scranton.

Trenton

• Jeremy Bleich got the start and had easily his worst start of the young season. He only gave up two runs, but walked six in 5.1 innings. He now holds a K:BB of 12:11 in 17.2 innings, something that is usually a strength for him.

• David Adams had a few off games, but got back on track tonight. He was the only Trenton player to have a multi-hit game, getting 3 hits(1 2B) in his four at-bats. Offense continues to be a real problem for Trenton, as they only put up one run today.

Tampa

• Down in Tampa, the Yankees got another awesome performance from Adam Warren. He pitched six shutout innings, struck out five, and gave up just one hit and one walk. For the season, his ERA stands at 1.06 and his velocity is near where it was last season.

• Pat Venditte came in for two innings and was his usual dominant self. He pitched two perfect innings and struck out two. He has had one rough outing so far this season, but has been dominant in his others.

• Prospect Corban Joseph played second base and went 2 for 4, raising his average to .300. Don't let the average fool you, he is not off to a very good start this season. He has struck out 15 times already and has yet to take a base on balls. For a guy who usually has good strike-zone control, this is a bit worrying.

Charleston

• Zoilo Almonte had a career day at the plate. He had only hit singles so far this season, but hit two homers in today's game. So far, Almonte has shown good plate discipline and has gotten on base at a high rate leading off for Charleston, but it's certainly nice to see him showing some power as well.

Written by Sean P | 20 April 2010

Scranton beat Buffalo 7-2 behind a good outing from Zach McAllister and the first HR of the year for Jesus Montero. McAllister has made noticeable improvements from start to start so far. Jon Van Benschoten has joined the Scranton bullpen after a week with Trenton.

New Hampshire bested Trenton 5-4 on Monday. Ryan Pope didn't pitch all that well. The Thunder come back fell a little short. Kyle Drabek labored but got his 2nd win of the year. Cory Arbiso was activated off the DL for Trenton following the Van Benschoten promotion.

Tampa split it's double header with Clearwater, winning 3-1 in the first game, loosing 5-1 in the second. Brad Lidge threw as part of his rehab in the first game against the Yankees. Hector Noesi was named the FSL pitcher of the week.

Charleston lost another heart breaker, walked off on again loosing 5-2 to Augusta. Chris Dominguez was the hero this time, a 3rd round selection in the 2009 draft for the Giants.

Here's the organizational recap from Minor League Splits.

Written by Sean P | 16 April 2010

Scranton got blown out 14-6 by the Red Barons last night. A disastrous 3rd inning and horrific outing from Romulo Sanchez ignited the fuse.

The Trenton Thunder ruined opening day for Portland by winning 4-2 in extra innings. Damon Sublett was the hero again for Trenton. Attendance is actually looking good so far in 2010.

Tampa lost 2-1 to Daytona. Adam Warren's decent start wasn't enough for Tampa. Alberto Cabrera pitched a gem for the Cubs.

The Riverdogs defeated West Virginia 6-4 thanks to a 2 run shot from Kyle Higashioka. The bullpen did it's job again. The West Virginia Power may be off to a slow start, but they're not worried. Dollar beer night at Charleston sounded enviable.

Here's the organizational recap from Minor League Splits.