Winning with Broken Bombers? - A Yankees Dynasty

[LondonYankee]

March 30th 2017

So Spring Training is done and we're only a few days away from the serious stuff. We've had a decent camp, coming away with a 13-9 record:



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As always, I can find little to fault with our offense. This spring, Jason Castro, Matt Snyder, Brandon Belt and Robinson Cano have all been in good form:



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From the pitching staff, Brett Anderson looks worth every cent of his $100m+ contract, Chris Sale was also dominant. Josh Johnson, not so much. Of the relievers, Johnathan Broxton showed why he's worth $10m per year. I was also very impressed with two other young guns, new acquisitions, Kurt 'Missing' MacNamara and Sean Burnett.



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The media have come out with their annual predictions and they believe we'll lead the AL East with a 95-67 record. They also predict that Mason Williams and Brandon Belt will be among the top 10 batters in the AL, while Chris Sale and Brett Anderson are supposed to be among the top pitchers.

Hank Steinbrenner has passed his judgment also. And I can only think he's mellowing in his old age, he's only asking for .500 ball this year. Can't help but think that we should easily surpass his expectations!

The annual top prospects list has also been announced. We have two names on the top 100 list, both batters.
At #45 is C Luis Torrens. Signed out of Venezuela at 16 by our International scouting team in 2014. Torrens is a very strong catcher with great batting potential. He get's K'd too often - as seen when he joined us for Spring Training - but has time to learn. Has a whole lot of pop.

At #53 is SS/2B Rob Williams who we got in a trade from the Mets this winter. Williams was drafted 19th overall in the 2015 draft by the Mets. Williams has a good arm and all round good fielding skills. He's not lightning fast but is no slouch either. With the bat he will frustrate pitchers as he won't striker out for fun. He has a decent amount of power and could be a 20 home run hitter one day. I believe he should be rated even higher than Torrens.

Next job is to put the line-ups together. Joe and I will get that done the next day or so.

[LondonYankee]

April 1st 2017

So we're hosting Toronto in the seasons first series in a couple of days and it's time for Joe and I to finalise the line-ups.

First the batting line-up:

Lead off: CF Mason Williams will lead off again. I can't help but like his skill set, power, speed and good fielding skills. Mason needs to put injury worries behind him to finally break into the top tier of MLB players.
2nd: RF Thomas Pham. Thomas came over from Philly last season and took time to settle in, I'm expecting him to be more productive this year.
3rd: 1B Brandon Belt. Brandon suffered a little dip last year, by his standards anyway. If he can rediscover his MVP form we're all set for a big year.
4th: DH Matt Snyder. He wants a big contract offer, for someone who only ever hits I think he's going to have to readjust his sights. Anyway, he's a great power hitter and will look to repeat as the home run champion this year.
5th: 2B Robinson Cano. Robi can still do it, he just needs to do so on a regular basis again, consistency has deserted him.
6th: C Jason Castro. I'm toying with putting Jason in the 2-hole, his OBP is excellent. If Pham can't deliver there, Jason's the obvious choice.
7th: LF Brent Keys. He hit .269 last year for the Marlins, I think he can better that and show he has more pop than the 13 jacks he had would suggest.
8th: 3B Anthony Rendon. Anthony is in the side primarily for his fielding skills. That said he's replacing Kendrys Morales so any offense he brings will be appreciated.
9th: SS Asdrubal Cabrera. A player I really like, he slumped with the bat last year but if he can bring his 2015 form back it'll go along way to ensuring we compete.

Other options:
C Luis Torrens - the prospect will get chances this year as back up to Castro.
1B/2B - Levi Hyams. A great fielder who provides solid depth and options on the infield.
3B/SS - Anthony Velazquez. He's young and like Hyams has good fielding skills. Any time he spends with the big club will only help him develop, he's too good for AAA.
OF - Jackie Bradley Jr. Jackie's chance for redemption is this season. If he can stay fit and contribute then all those who've written his career off will eat their words.


Pitching

Starters

Brett Anderson - our new acquisition will lead the way this year. He's 67-37 over the last 4 years in Oakland with an ERA below 3.50. His addition to our club is massive.

Chris Sale - would be #1 in pretty much any other rotation. He'll be itching to improve on the 5-7 record he had for us since joining in July 2016.

Josh Johnson - last chance saloon for Josh. 10-11 with a 4.80 ERA last year just isn't good enough.

Max Scherzer - His ERA's been getting higher year on year, I need him to snap out of that. I really like the heat he brings but he needs to find his old control.

Trevor Cahill -went 5-4 once he joined us but at an ERA over 6! Eek! He's better than that and he and I both know it. Time to prove it.

Bullpen

Closer - Mark Montgomery. Packs serious heat and absolutely hates giving up hits, let alone runs. A fastball that few can live with.

Set up - Johnathan Broxton and Brandon Kintzler give us two experienced guys to shut down the late innings. I have a huge amount of faith in both these guys.

Sean Burnett had a good spring and should offer solid middle relief as well as being a lefty specialist.
Cody Eppley gets another chance in middle relief. If nothing else, he's cheap. And he stays healthy, can pitch for long stretches as a reliever.
Noel Arguelles. This Cuban lefty had control issues last year. He also has his heart set on being a starter. Without fixing the control that'll never happen. At least not here. Damon and Joe still rate him really highly.
Kurt MacNamara. Had a great spring and shows plenty to have us believe he could be an elite relief pitcher. Soon.

There's not much else to report on from the farm on the pitching front. Only SP Jeff Thomson and CL Patrick Fields show any chance of making it in the big leagues and I doubt either are ready this year.

So thats how we start out. LETS PLAY BALL!!

[LondonYankee]

May 1st 2017

We've got off to a strong start this year. With a 16-10 record through April we're 2.5 games ahead of Toronto in the AL East.



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Much of our success has come, as usual, from a strong offense. Robinson Cano hit .366 on the month, he only had 1 jack but had 20 RBI's. Matt Snyder and Asdrubal Cabrera also hit over .300, while Brandon Belt is just below that number. Mason Williams has had a good habit of hitting lead off homers this month, with 8 overall.
Brett Anderson has started the season in exactly the style I'd hoped. He's got a 4-1 record and ERA just over 3. Chris Sale meanwhile continues to struggle with an ERA at nearly 8. The bullpen has been strong and have pulled us out of more than one hole this season so far.



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[LondonYankee]

June 1st 2017

Another really strong month, going 18-10 for May. Tampa Bay are also charging however and are only 1.5 games back.



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Tampa Bay may be on a roll but they did experience the wrath of a motivated offense in the middle of the month. They came to Yankees Stadium and lost 14-4, two performances standing out. Matt Snyder hit 3 homers and Jason Castro went 5 for 5 on the day.
We're currently experiencing a few injuries, luckily none long term but we've had to bring a couple of players up from AAA to fill gaps. Thomas Pham and Jackie Bradley Jr are both on the DL so young OF Paul Bailey is up from Scranton. Jason Castro has also been hurt so Luis Torrens is getting starts at catcher, luckily the prospect has performed very well so far.
Chris Sale has improved dramatically and Max Scherzer is challenging Brett Anderson as the standout pitcher.



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[Painmantle]

I hate the Yankees But I'll follow anyway! good stuff. May I make a recommendation?

I suggest you crop your images to show only the info you're trying to present. For example, the last Pic you posted of Pitching Stats, I can't see that info at all, not even with my glasses and it's blurry if I zoom my browser to 150% , which is where I have to have it to get the numbers big enough to actually see. If it were cropped to only include the Box the stats are in it would be a lot easier on the eyes.

Thanks
And keep'em coming!

[LondonYankee]

Originally Posted by Painmantle

I hate the Yankees But I'll follow anyway! good stuff. May I make a recommendation?

I suggest you crop your images to show only the info you're trying to present. For example, the last Pic you posted of Pitching Stats, I can't see that info at all, not even with my glasses and it's blurry if I zoom my browser to 150% , which is where I have to have it to get the numbers big enough to actually see. If it were cropped to only include the Box the stats are in it would be a lot easier on the eyes.

Thanks
And keep'em coming!

Thanks for following. And thanks for the tip. I shall do that in the future.

[LondonYankee]

July 1st 2017

June was poor, 12-15 on the month, allowing the Rays to take a half game lead on us.



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We weren't helped by injuries to Robinson Cano and Brandon Belt. Luckily Matt Snyder has continued his imperious form and leads the league in RBI's. Cabrera is also batting very well, as is Mason Williams. Bronx native Velazquez has taken over 2B while Cano is out and has gone on a 16 game hitting streak to start his major league career in style. Levi Hyams meanwhile has taken over at 1B and has not performed well.
Brett Anderson continues to be an absolute stud on the pitching staff while the rest of the rotation are totally inconsistent, apart from Trevor Cahill, who just loses.



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[LondonYankee]

August 1st 2017

All-Star month and we went 14-12. The Rays played under .500 ball meaning we've leapfrogged them to the top of the division by 1 game.



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I made two trades this month, one before the All-Star break. I sent 1B/2B Levi Hyams to Pittsburgh and got MR Stephen Thompson in return. We've lost Sean Burnett for the next year to injury and I didn't have anyone ready to bring up from the farm system so Thompson goes straight into the bullpen. Hyams has been well below expectations so far, so I don't see him as too much of a loss.
Hyams did however provide depth to the infield so my second trade of the month, just before deadline day rectified that. We got IF Nick Delmonico from Baltimore, sending 3 minor leaguers the other way; 1B Joe Dudek, SP Jeff Thompson and 1B Shane Brown. I don't figure any of those guys to amount to much so see no real loss. Delmonico meanwhile has hit .270 this season with an OBP of .350.

Matt Snyder continues to be the star of the show this year, having a career year. He's being well supported by Mason Williams and Asdrubal Cabrera while Cano and Belt struggle with injuries.
On the pitching staff, Josh Johnson has stepped it up and is providing strong support for Brett Anderson. Is it a coincidence that Josh wants a new contract?



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Yankee All-Stars this year: Brett Anderson, Matt Snyder, Asdrubal Cabrera, Mason Williams and Thomas Pham.

[LondonYankee]

September 1st 2017

Another month and another change at the top of the the AL East. We went 11-14 and Tampa have taken a 3.5 game lead at the top. We're the same number of games out of a wild card spot too. I need the team to get it together for the run in.



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Brandon Belt missed most of the month, but it's hard to pin our woes on that, the offense is still pretty much the best in the league. Matt Snyder is a dominant hitter and Mason Williams continues to add power to his game.
Our starting rotation are disappointing to say the least; Sale, Cahill and Scherzer all have ERA's north of 5.00. The bullpen fares no better with only Noel Arguelles having an ERA under 4.00!



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[LondonYankee]

October 3rd 2017

We just weren't good enough over the last 30 games of the season. We went 16-14 meaning we ended up 4 games back from Tampa at the top of the AL East. We fell short of the Wild Card spot by 3 games. Ouch. Another season without any meaningful ball in October. The World Series win in 2015 bought me some leeway with Hank Steinbrenner, not sure how two years out of the postseason will go down.
In my defence, if you can call it that, injuries played a big part this year, our whole outfield were on the DL for some or all of September pretty much, but even so we could and should have been better when we had our first choice players out there.

One of the only highlights over this run was Robinson Cano hitting his 300th career home run. That said he only hit 7 all year! A serious drop in power from Robi.



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Matt Snyder was the standout player on the offensive side. As you can see below, he featured in the top 5 of a number of MLB hitting stats.



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Brett Anderson was undoubtedly our ace pitcher, well worth the big splash on his salary. Chris Sale was underwhelming, he gets a lot of K's but just seemed to lack control this year.

Final MLB Pitching stats:



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This team overview graphic shows exactly what the issues are, great offensive stats, poor pitching. Again.



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Mason Williams is a player we need to keep healthy. His power numbers have really ramped up, although it has come at the cost of his speed and basestealing threat. That's not so much of an issue when he's rounding the bases after a lead-off homer though!


Here are our team batting stats for the year. Keep an eye out for SS/3B Octavio Martinez (near the bottom) in the future. He's only 19 and we signed him out of the Dominican 2 years ago. Damon rates him as a true phenom, fielding abilities are off the scale as his base stealing potential. Has very little pop in his bat but that may come with time and if not he's got enough weapons in his arsenal already. His nickname may give you a clue as to how highly he's rated, they call him 'Honus'. High praise indeed.



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The pitching staff never seem to offer me any such hope. Brett Anderson led the way, although it would be harsh of me not to mention Josh Johnson having his best season yet in a Yankees uniform. The bullpen were very disappointing and I need to make changes in there even more than the rotation I think. Anyway, these are their stats:



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Over the coming weeks and months there will be some interesting decisions to be made. Manager Joe Girardi and Scout Damon Oppenheimer both come to the end of their contracts at the end of this month, I need to decide whether or not to extend them or take us in a different direction.

Other contract issues also need to be resolved sooner than later, Josh Johnson, Trevor Cahill, Sean Burnett and Max Scherzer are all out of contract the end of the month. How many of these generally underperforming pitchers do I extend? Do I let them walk? Do I extend with a view to trading? Decisions, decisions. Well thats what Hank pays me for. Hopefully after I've met with him in a few days, he'll still be paying me!

[LondonYankee]

November 1st 2017

As the postseason got underway I was to meet with Hank Steinbrenner to discuss our second consecutive season that ultimately fell short.

Hank cut to the chase and made it clear that 2018 really was my last chance, reminding me that my contract was up at the end of the year. Failure to appear in the postseason again would mean that he wouldn't even consider extending my stay in New York.

With that mandate in mind, I decided that I wouldn't rest, even to watch the postseason action. It was time to deal with some contract issues.

First up, the pitching staff, it's clear that run prevention has been our major issue, but upon further stat analysis it also became clear that the pitchers couldn't be held entirely responsible. For the last two years our defensive efficiency has ranked 14th in the AL. That's just not good enough and with that support, or lack of, it's no wonder that even quality pitchers like Brett Anderson and Chris Sale have struggled.

With that in mind, I decided that my free agency and trading policy would be about improving our defence, even if that means sacrificing a few home runs (hopefully I can get defensive studs that can hit for the best of both worlds!).

I also decided that my pitchers decided another chance and set about extending Josh Johnson, Max Scherzer and Trevor Cahill.

First to sign was Johnson, he'll get $52m over the next 4 years. Next up Trevor Cahill who'll collect $9m per for the next two years. Scherzer proved the cheapest of the 3 at $14.1m over 3 years.

Also getting in on the extension action was reliever Sean Burnett who got $2.3m over 2 years.

There were also a couple of offensive players I needed to discuss terms with. C Jason Castro wanted $15m per for 4 years, after some back and forth he settled for $30m over 3.

Matt Snyder was a player I didn't have to speak to yet but he was headed for arbitration with a big estimate I wasn't happy with. The impact of his bat has been immense but at the end of the day he is just DH'ing, he has fielded about 15 innings over the last two years and thats 15 too many for his skill level. He asked for $100m over 7 years and it took a lot of bargaining to get him to agree to $60m over 6. The key is the first two years are at $6m and $7m before steep step ups in year 3 on. This keeps his salary well below his arbitration estimate the next two years and will give me an opportunity to deal him if I don't think he's gonna earn the salary he'll be on 3/4 years from now.

Despite me working away, the postseason was going ahead and here are the results:

Wild Cards

AL: Oakland beats Seattle
NL: Arizona beats Atlanta

Divisional Series

AL: Houston beats Oakland 3-2; Detroit beats Tampa 3-1
NL: Arizona sweeps LA 3-0; Cincinnati sweeps Miami 3-0

League Championship Series

AL: Houston beats Detroit 4-3
NL: Arizona beats Cincinnati 4-2

World Series

Arizona beats Houston 4-1 to take the second championship in franchise history.


The final action of this month saw me execute the team option on Chris Sale's contract at $13m for the next season.

Also the brain trust at Cooperstown decided there was only one worthy candidate for HoF induction this year, Vladimir Guerrero takes his place with the great and good of the game.

Coming up next month, arbitration and a couple of big personnel decisions.

[LondonYankee]

December 1st 2017

Time for change in the Bronx. After years of dedicated service Skipper Joe Girardi and Scouting Director Damian Oppenheimer have both left the Yankee's when their contracts were not renewed.

I moved quickly to replace both. First up a new manager; Ex Cleveland Skipper Jim Tracy was the right man for me, he has an excellent reputation of getting the best out of his personnel, young and old and that is just what we need. Jim signs on for 3 years.

Gabriel Ochoa comes highly recommended as a Scouting Director who favours tools and excels in amateur and Minor league scouting whilst still being extremely good at an International and Majors level. He's offered, and accepts, a four year deal.

Another big name goes, though not many were sure he was even still around, Alex Rodriguez retired. He goes out with a career slash line of .297/.383/.553 and 670 homers with just over 3000 hits in 10177 AB's. His last MLB appearance was in 2014 and he's spent the last 3 years at Scranton in AAA, never hitting over .234.

As we awaited the outcome of the arbitration hearings the MLB awards were being dished out. The only Yankee honoured was Nick Delmonico with a 1B Gold Glove, although to be fair he spent most of the season with Baltimore so it doesn't really count as a Yankee award.

The Arbitration results:

MR Stephen Thompson gets $735,000, team win.
3B Anthony Rendon gets $2,200,000, team win.
IF Nick Delmonico gets $1,750,000, team win.
OF Thomas Pham gets $6m, player win.
MR Brandon Kintzler gets $1.3m, team win.
MR Cody Eppley gets $850,000, team win.

Got to be happy with getting 5 out of 6 decisions.

The Jackie Bradley Jr experiment didn't pan out, his injury record being the main cause, he gets no extension and takes free agency for the second year running.

We took a look at the free agent class and there are definitely a couple players we're interested in but we're going to play a patient game.

We have however made a trade. MR Nick Wasson was San Diego's #1 pick (21 overall) in the 2014 draft (having been drafted by Boston in 2013 in the 2nd round, only to fail to come to come to terms) out of Delaware. He's a serious K-man, and Gabriel is seriously high on his potential. We get him for only minor league C Peter O'Brien, who's looking like a career AAA player. Bargain. Wasson is raw, but pitched 77 innings in the bigs last year at a WHIP of only 1.04. He has a good chance of being in our bullpen next April.

December is shaping up to be a big month for this franchise, I have my eye on a couple big deals and there are GM's who have an eye for some of our talent.

[LondonYankee]

January 1st 2018

So with my aim being to improve our defense and trying not to lose much offense I have a couple of targets I really want to push for.

Texas 2B/3B/SS Jurickson Profar tops that list and we've had tentative talks with Texas about a trade. Thing is he won't come cheap. He's 25 years old, hitting .285 on his career and his defensive efficiency is over 1.050 at all 3 positions he plays. Texas want Brandon Belt, Matt Snyder AND a couple prospects. That just ain't gonna happen.

However as December progressed a deal did come about that might make the Profar deal fly.

Mets 1B Ike Davis is a free agent and despite an injury hit 2017 his power hitting is attracting a lot of attention, Texas is one of those teams that would love to add him to their roster.

I make a move for Davis and get him to agree to a 6 year deal at $100m over that period. I immediately go back to Texas and offer them a straight swap, Ike for Profar. Though that still won't do it for them, they now no longer insist on Snyder or Belt being tagged on to the deal. It's going to come down to which prospects I can get them to agree on.

We eventually agree to sending them Davis along with RF Kris Bryant, CF Paul Bailey and SP Caleb Smith. Bryant and Bailey are both 2013 1st round picks we acquired the last couple of years, I don't see them ever being good enough for more than a cup of coffee on a Championship challenging team and are therefore expendable. Smith we picked in the 9th round (268th overall) of the 2013 draft and at a stretch I can see him making #5 on someones rotation in a couple years, his main advantage being he's a lefty who can get close to 100mph.

My next target is Orioles 3B/SS Manny Machado but it's clear they have no interest in trading with us at this point in time. With that in mind I switch my attention to my #2 target, Boston's 2B/SS Xander Boegarts. Xander has hit .265 over the last 3.5 years and averages 28 homers over a 162 game stretch, along with being a solid fielder. He's just signed a one year deal with the Red Sox at $4.8m though he's still arbitration eligible for two more years.

So, what will it take to get it done? RF Alexander Palma, signed in 2013 out of Venezuela and with mid level major league potential. LF Taylor Dugas who made 4 September appearances for us last year but would have had to improve significantly to stay on my radar. Finally we add SP Jordan Cote and the deals done. Cote may or may not amount to something, he's had a 4.20 ERA at AA and AAA the last two years and thats not cutting it for me.

I really like both additions we've made and I've not finished yet. I don't get anything else finalized in December but I have some ongoing discussions with free agents I think I can tie up soon.

[LondonYankee]

March 1st 2018

The last couple months have gone by and everyone's been in pre-season training the last few weeks gearing up for Spring Training.

There were two rule changes announced early January. First the DFA period has been increased to 11 days. Secondly and a big win for the players, their arbitration eligibility service time is reduced to 2 years.

I spent a while trying to get a deal done to get Bryce Harper to New York. Unsurprisingly Washington wanted the moon on a stick to move him and so I've had to adjust my sights somewhat.

Free agent OF Josh Reddick had an injury hit 2017 and has not attracted much interest since declaring. I think if healthy he could be a good addition and certainly upgrade our outfield defensively, while still being an effective bat. I talk him into a 3 year deal at $3m per ( he was asking $6m) with a 4th year as a vesting option (based on PA) for the same amount.

As we approach Spring Training my biggest concern is Robinson Cano. His productivity has taken a steep downturn the last two years, not helped by injuries. He's coming into Spring looking a shadow of his former self, he's lost power and doesn't look like he's ever played 2B, let alone done it an All-Star level for the last 12 years. We have Profar of course but I was hoping that Robi would be able to contribute too. He of course has time to prove me wrong but I'm doubtful.

Meanwhile I continue to hound Baltimore in an attempt to get Manny Machado in a New York uniform. I sense a subtle shift in their willingness to deal. Let's see.

[LondonYankee]

April 1st 2018

Spring Training is done with and it wasn't the most inspiring month. An 11-12 record, although I try not to read too much into that.



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The one thing I have taken from it is that Cano has confirmed my thinking that he's really struggling, I'm not even sure he'll make the 25 at this point.



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On the pitching front, Sale, Anderson and Scherzer looked good while Johnson and Cahill struggled. For the relievers Nick Wasson impressed me.



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Hank Steinbrenner has confirmed what I knew already, he expects us to win it all this year.

The media expect good things from us too, BNN predict we'll finish top of the AL East by 3 games from Boston. Only Seattle are expected to be better than us in the AL (by two games).
Surprisingly BNN are not predicting too much from our players though, Thomas Pham is predicted to be the 10th best batter, with Chris Sale expected to take the same position among pitchers.

Tomorrow Jim Tracy and I will sort out the lineups for the season openers hosting the Twins. The big decision will be on whether we keep Cano in the 25.

[LondonYankee]

April 2nd 2018

So the 25 man roster is sorted and the big news is that Robinson Cano isn't part of it. He's currently on waivers and once he's cleared (I can't see anyone wanting him at $22m) he'll go down to AAA Scranton. Hank Steinbrenner hates it when 'superstars' end up playing AAA but he hates it even more when we don't win the Series. Cano in his current shape is not going to help this team win.

So onto our line-up:

Lead off: CF Mason Williams continues as our leadoff hitter. His game has changed over the last couple years and he offers more power and less speed than before. I argued for moving him to the 2 or 3 hole but speaking to the player himself he said he preferred lead off and Jim Tracy is happy with that.
2: RF Thomas Pham. Thomas is predicted to have a big year this year, I believe he's ready to break out too.
3: 1B Brandon Belt had an injury hit 2017. If he stays healthy there's no reason he can't return to the 2015 form that saw him take the MVP while we won the Series.
4: DH Matt Snyder. A ferocious hitter who can blow games open with one swipe.
5: 2B Jurickson Profar. The switch hitting new boy has a lot of expectations to deal with. Replacing Robinson Cano is not easy and it's clear Profar is a different player to Robi but no reason he can't be equally productive.
6: SS Xander Boegarts has kept Asdrubal Cabrera out the starting line up but will need to deliver to stay here.
7: C Jason Castro. Jason has moved up and down the order the last couple years, I'm still not sure he shouldn't be higher up but I'm happy to go with Jim on this.
8: 3B Anthony Rendon. Underperformed with the bat last year but is an excellent defender. I'd like to see him add more offense.
9: LF Brent Keys. I hope he can add more consistency to the glimpses of power hitting he showed last year.

Bench/AAA:

C Luis Torrens has beaten fellow youngster Luis Alcaraz to the back up role, Alcaraz goes to Scranton.
IF Nick Delmonico offers flexible cover. SS/3B Asdrubal Cabrera would start for around 99% of teams, at least I have the option of bringing him in. OF Josh Reddick had a good Spring and will provide good cover.
2B Ryne Birk had a big Spring but is probably in need of more time at AAA. SS Octavio Martinez and Andrew Velazquez are both trying to push for time in the big leagues. Their time will come and both can play 1B/3B too but for now Scranton is their home. 3B Zach Green is another who could make it to the majors this year. LF Tucker Neuhaus completes a set of young guns who are hungry for playing time.

[LondonYankee]

April 2nd 2018

Starting Rotation

Brett Anderson will open the season for us again this year. Finished last year 18-8 but with a 4.06 ERA. The ERA wasn't much helped by our defense but his WHIP of 1.37 is higher than I'd like too.

Chris Sale, hasn't really come alive yet in his year and a half with us. I know there's more to come but he really needs to show it. Was 10-10 last year with an ERA over 5. WHIP better than Andersons at 1.21 and he's a K-master with 224 in 193 innings.

Josh Johnson had the best ERA of our starters last year at 3.82 while going 14-8. Needs to get to at least that standard this year.

Max Scherzer had the worst ERA of our starters last year at 5.65 with a 14-12 record. Has just edged this 4th spot on the rotation.

Trevor Cahill is definitely on his last chance with us, 11-11 with a 5.52 ERA last year. Not had a good Spring, he's testing my patience.

At AAA: Not a lot is the answer, Johnathan Sandfort is the only one who could make it to the bigs, but not this year. The top 5 need to stay healthy.

Bullpen:

Closer: Mark Montgomery gets the nod again after 39 saves last year with 9 blown opportunities. I think he's got it all and with better defensive support can really help us shut teams down. 103 K's in 56 innings last year with only 30 walks.

Set up: Nick Wasson comes off a good Spring and along with veteran Johnathan Broxton will look to ensure Montgomery comes into good situations.

Middle relievers: Brandon Kintzler, Cody Eppley, Noel Arguelles and Kurt MacNamara will be the men we're counting on here.

At AAA: Patrick Fields has great potential as a closer. Stephen Thompson has been converted from a starter while in AAA, lets see how he does from the pen at Scranton. Eric Dorsch came up for Spring Training but is clearly a year or so away from competing for a spot in the 'pen, has good potential though.

[LondonYankee]

May 1st 2018

A good start to the year, 18-8 in the first month putting us 4 games ahead of the Rays.



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The whole offense is ticking over nicely with Matt Snyder and Xander Bogaerts leading the way. For once the pitching staff aren't stressing me out, only Scherzer has struggled. All have been helped by a much better defensive effort so far.



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[LondonYankee]

June 1st 2018

Another good month, 17-12 on the month and an 8.5 game lead on the Orioles.



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I was forced into signing action early in the month. After injuries to both Josh Johnson and Max Scherzer I picked up SP Anibal Sanchez from free agency. He's got a $1.5m deal for this year.

A few players in particular enjoyed May. Xander Boegarts had a 23 game hit streak; Brent Keys enjoyed a Player of the week award, mainly on the back of a walk off grand slam in the 10th inning against the Rays. Chris Sale is leading the pack right now though, he's 9-0 this year, 5-0 on the month and picked up the Pitcher of the month award. With him eligible for free agency this year he's certainly making a strong case for a new deal.



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[LondonYankee]

July 1st 2018

When a month starts with a player stealing home base in a game, it's got to be a good sign. Mason Williams is a superstar in so many regards and he's the only player I've got who would even consider this:



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We went 18-9 through June and opened up a 10.5 game lead over Baltimore.



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Chris Sale continues his great form, he's currently on a 2.19 ERA this year. Mason Williams used that steal of home to set himself up for a great month and took Player of the Month. Brandon Belt and Matt Snyder are both having great seasons, hitting .331 and .328 respectively. Boegarts form has dropped off but he still threw in a player of the week performance.



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