Official Minor League News Thread - 2007

theknicks414 · Post #581 » by **theknicks414** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 4:03 am

I hope Joba is in AAA in case Mussina fails... :pray:

Post #582 » by **nykgeneralmanager** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 4:08 am

cmaff051 wrote:Is there any room in the AAA rotation for Horne?

Doesn't seem like it, but Horne should've been in AAA even before today. I actually thought he was going to AAA when Kennedy and Joba were brought to AA, but obviously that didn't happen.

cmaff051 · Post #583 » by **cmaff051** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 4:15 am

I'll be very interested to see what happens with Ohlendorf over the next few weeks... I think he could help us in the bullpen down the stretch.

Post #584 » by **nykgeneralmanager** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 4:20 am

Nothing would shock me at this point, Cashman seems ready to do whatever it takes. But I think the team's recent play may force him not to make crazy changes.

Post #585 » by **PR07** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 5:47 am

Maybe the Yankees are trying to see how Joba reacts to a slightly higher level of competition in AAA to see if he can fill a reliever role for them in the near future?

Both Kennedy and Joba look fairly ready for AAA, but I agree, this moves does seem a bit rushed given how it looked as though we would bring these guys a long slowly.

theknicks414 · Post #586 » by **theknicks414** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 5:56 am

Whelan to Trenton. (they should send Robertson with him)

http://www.nj.com/thunder/times/index.s ... xml&coll=5

theknicks414 · Post #587 » by **theknicks414** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 6:01 am

Right now the AAA rotation looks like this:

Chamberlain
Kennedy
White/DeSalvo
Ohlendorf
Igawa(when Hughes returns)

why not bring up Horne for Igawa or make Steven White into a power righty out of the pen? you have to be expecting a trade

Post #588 » by **nykgeneralmanager** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 2:38 pm

theknicks414 wrote:Right now the AAA rotation looks like this:

Chamberlain
Kennedy
White/DeSalvo
Ohlendorf
Igawa(when Hughes returns)

why not bring up Horne for Igawa or make Steven White into a power righty out of the pen? you have to be expecting a trade

And that isn't even counting Karstens or Rasner

cmaff051 · Post #589 » by **cmaff051** » Tue Jul 24, 2007 4:08 pm

theknicks414 wrote:Right now the AAA rotation looks like this:

Chamberlain
Kennedy
White/DeSalvo
Ohlendorf
Igawa(when Hughes returns)

why not bring up Horne for Igawa or make Steven White into a power righty out of the pen? you have to be expecting a trade

I think White and Ohlendorf will be sent to the bullpen. But yes, you are right, a trade looks like a possibility.

Pharmcat · Post #590 » by **Pharmcat** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 1:32 am

what does kennedy project to be?

a #1-2 or a #3-4?

Post #591 » by **nykgeneralmanager** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 1:47 am

The Kandi Man Rocks wrote:what does kennedy project to be?

a #1-2 or a #3-4?

He doesn't project to be an ace because his stuff isn't "overpowering." However, his ceiling is a #2. He throws an array of pitches, and spots them all nearly perfectly. Because of that, he has arguably 3 plus pitches. His only question was velocity. He fell to us in the 1st round because he was only throwing 85-87 his junior year at USC. However, he is back up to the 92-93 that made him a potential top 5 pick in the draft. There have been comparisons to Moose, but even if he becomes half of Moose we will have a good #2 on our hands. And think about it, with Hughes-Chamberlain-Wang ahead of him, he would be our #4!

cmaff051 · Post #592 » by **cmaff051** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 2:08 am

He definitely doesn't have 3 plus pitches. His fastball isn't even plus and his curve isn't plus either. Only his change is.

I think if everything goes right he'll be a good #4 or #5.

Post #593 » by **nykgeneralmanager** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 3:51 am

cmaff051 wrote:He definitely doesn't have 3 plus pitches. His fastball isn't even plus and his curve isn't plus either. Only his change is.

I think if everything goes right he'll be a good #4 or #5.

When his fastball is hitting 92-93 like it has been, it can be considered a plus pitch because of his ability to command it. Same reason that Hughes' fastball is a plus pitch. It isn't because Hughes throws it 97 mph, it's because he puts it exactly where he wants to.

As you said, Kennedy's change is certainly a plus pitch, it is ridiculous. His knuckle curve is getting pretty close to being a plus pitch. It is pretty close to Moose's, he just has to work on the command of it. Also, since he and Joba have been together, Joba has been working with him to improve the slider. Right now I guess you could say he has 2 plus pitches, but the 3rd is pretty close. Not many pitchers do have 2, 3, or 4 plus pitches, not even the best of pitchers. So if Kennedy does have 2 or 3, there is no way he is a #4. At worst he can be a solid #3 option, but his ceiling is a good #2 IMO.

cmaff051 · Post #594 » by **cmaff051** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 4:16 am

Can you stop exagerrating everything? Kennedy doesn't sit 92-93, he sits 89-92. His fastball is not plus because he doesn't throw it hard enough. He commands it well, I'll give you that, but it's not a good enough pitch on its own.

I'm just curious, have you ever seen Kennedy pitch? Or are you just going by a scouting report? No way Kennedy's curveball is as good as Mussina, and it's not even close.

cmaff051 · Post #595 » by **cmaff051** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 4:21 am

I remember people telling me Clippard was going to be the next coming of Mike Mussina. This is why I do not take fanboy scouting reports seriously and I actually go out and watch the pitchers pitch. People try to exagerrate the scouting report. If somebody sits 92-93, the next day they sit 95-96 in a scouting report. If somebody has an average curveball, the next day it is a plus curve in a scouting report. If somebody has average command, the next day it is plus command in a scouting report.

Post #596 » by **nykgeneralmanager** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 5:08 am

I'm not exaggerating nor am I being a fanboy. You are a member over at pinstripe plus, they feel he has 3, and potentially 4 plus pitches. Check it out. There have been a million reports this season that Kennedy has been SITTING 92-93, which is why his K rates are back up to where they were in his early USC days.

EDIT: And don't tell me who you actually go out and see pitch. I've watched Hughes live three times (twince in Trenton and his debut in the Bronx), I've gone and seen Buchholz live when he was in Trenton. I've watched Kennedy and Chamberlain pitch online when they stream the games from time to time and would've seen them live had they stayed in Trenton longer. I too hate simply reading scouting reports and basing my opinions on them.

cmaff051 · Post #597 » by **cmaff051** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 5:17 am

nykgeneralmanager wrote:I'm not exaggerating nor am I being a fanboy. You are a member over at pinstripe plus, they feel he has 3, and potentially 4 plus pitches. Check it out. There have been a million reports this season that Kennedy has been SITTING 92-93, which is why his K rates are back up to where they were in his early USC days.

EDIT: And don't tell me who you actually go out and see pitch. I've watched Hughes live three times (twince in Trenton and his debut in the Bronx), I've gone and seen Buchholz live when he was in Trenton. I've watched Kennedy and Chamberlain pitch online when they stream the games from time to time and would've seen them live had they stayed in Trenton longer. I too hate simply reading scouting reports and basing my opinions on them.

Fair enough. Sorry for acting like an ass, you seem to have the same pet peeve I do. For the record, I do think that PP likes to exaggerate the scouting reports also.

Post #598 » by **PR07** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 5:25 am

Just because you guys have contradicting outlooks on prospects, doesn't mean one of you is right or wrong. The real outlook probably lies somewhere in between.

I enjoy hearing different perspectives on our prospects as it's always nice to hear different views. Although I've known a lot of our big name prospects and their value in the farm system, I've learned a lot about their specific attributes...strengths..weaknesses (particularly our pitchers) from reading reports from posters like NYKgeneralmanager as well as many others.

Keep up the good work to all this applies to.

Post #599 » by **nykgeneralmanager** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 5:35 am

cmaff051 wrote:-= original quote snipped =-

Fair enough. Sorry for acting like an ass, you seem to have the same pet peeve I do. For the record, I do think that PP likes to exaggerate the scouting reports also.

It's cool, you know I greatly respect your opinion when it comes to these minor leaguers, you're extremely into it and dedicated to staying on top of it. We go back and forth sometimes, but it is a lot more fun that way, we all know it. And I agree, PP hasn't seen a Yankees prospect that has no future. However, they do know more than me so I at least try to consider what they say. I read over Kennedy's scouting report just now and according to them, Kennedy has 4 plus pitches. Obviously that is false, but with his velocity being back, I think it is fair to say that he has 2 and should have a 3rd by the time he hits the bigs. Supposedly his curve has come along real well this year, and who knows what Joba has done to Kennedy's slider. Hopefully for the Yankees' sake, Kennedy is more of a #2 than a 4/5. :lol:

Post #600 » by **nykgeneralmanager** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 5:36 am

PacersRule07 wrote:Just because you guys have contradicting outlooks on prospects, doesn't mean one of you is right or wrong. The real outlook probably lies somewhere in between.

I enjoy hearing different perspectives on our prospects as it's always nice to hear different views. Although I've known a lot of our big name prospects and their value in the farm system, I've learned a lot about their specific attributes...strengths..weaknesses (particularly our pitchers) from reading reports from posters like NYKgeneralmanager as well as many others.

Keep up the good work to all this applies to.

Thanks for the kind words.

And I agree with you, we only know so much. I just find the progress of these guys to be fascinating, so I stay on top of it on a daily basis because it is something I'm so interested in and I try to pass on whatever I learn to the rest of you.