-Plaxico Burress was released from prison today and is now free to begin his search for a new team, when the labor problem is resolved of course. It feels like Plax served one of the longest sentences in athletic history. There is no doubt in my mind that his sentence didn't fit the crime. Totally overblown by New York City. He made a stupid decision and he paid for it by enduring a lot of pain and will deal with it the rest of his life from the embarrassment stemming from the nightclub incident. When he owned those guns outside of New York they were all legal. He should have registered them in New York but there should be a federal mandate that allows weapons to be transferred easily from state to state. Afterall, states don't guarantee the right to own guns, the Constitution does and last I checked all the states ratified that document.
-Taking Plax's place in the prison system will be former Mets and Phillies standout, Lenny Dykstra. Dykstra has not exactly led the glamorous life since leaving baseball. He has been linked to steroid use and now faces 25 counts of grand theft auto, attempted grand theft auto, identity theft, and a few drug possession charges. Apparently, Dykstra and two other men were trying to lease high end cars using false information and then claiming these cars as a credit on a phantom business. If convicted, Dykstra can face up to 12 years in prison.
-This NFL labor crap is killing me. I love the offseason for baseball, football, hockey, and basketball. I love playing GM and deciding who should where and all that. I get excited to think what new players the Giants will bring in and who will be donning the blue uniforms next season. Now, there is none of that in the NFL. Everyday this dispute goes on without resolution is one less day for rookies and free agents to get acclimated to new teams. This could seriously hurt the product on the field next year. Fans expect to see highly touted number one draft picks take the field and show what they can do. Now, without the ability to learn the plays they might not make much of an impact at all, especially the quarterbacks. Free agents who will pull down millions might not have the time to adapt to the new systems and could look terrible through the first few weeks of a season. This whole NFL situation just sucks.
-Through 46 games this season, Yankee prospect Slade Heathcott has already surpassed last years triples, and home run totals. In 2010, Heathcott hit 2 homers and 3 triples in 76 games. This year he has 4 of each so far and is only 5 doubles shy of last season's mark of 16. Progress.
-Yankee prospect Gary Sanchez returned from extended Spring Training after having some "attitude problems." Apparently, Sanchez, 18, refused to do some things coaches asked him to do. Hopefully, he got it all out of his system and he get back on track as a top prospect.
-Speaking of Yankee farmhands, J.R. Murphy might be doing more to establish himself on next years list of top prospects than anyone else in the Yankee system right now. He is currently posting a .321/.366/.502/ line (AVG/OBP/SLG) while slugging 6 homers and 20 doubles. Last season he hit .255/.327/.376 with only 7 homers and 15 doubles. Murphy was drafted as a catcher but he has been getting playing time in the OF and at the corners this year since the Yankees have Jesus Montero, Austin Romine, and Gary Sanchez as catching prospects ahead of him. If he continues to improve like this he might be a legit candidate for third (if he can play defense there) or a corner outfield slot. He is just raking this year.
-One Yankee prospect whose star is falling is Andrew Brackman. He is clearly having issues adjusting to AAA. In 10 starts, a total of only 46.1 innings, Brackman has posted a 2-4 record with a 6.80 ERA. He has walked 36(!!!!!!!) while striking out only 37 and has surrendered 49 hits. The stuff is there but he has been waaay too wild this season. He is a big guy at 6'10" so his mechanics might be a little off. In 2009 he was terrible before finding his groove in 2010. However, time is running out on Brackman who signed a major league contract after being drafted in 2007 which means he is eligible for free agency after this season. I can't see the Yankees letting someone with his stuff just walk but he will have to take a huge pay cut to continue on as a Yankee.
-Jesus Montero only has 4 homers so far this year and 10 doubles. He is hitting .297 now, down from his lofty start. Maybe he is just bored down in Scranton? Maybe he is working on his defense? I can't imagine he has just lost his power overnight. I'm betting on him being bored down there since this is his second season at AAA. He will get called up eventually, especially if Jorge Posada keeps swinging and missing.
-Yankee farmhand and former Braves prospect Cody Johnson has 10 homers in 183 at bats. He also has 81 K's and only 10 walks! He reminds me of the character played by Joaquin Phoenix in the M. Night Shamalan movie, Signs. Seriously, 81 strikeouts?!?!? At AA?!?!?!?! Good luck dude.
-Cody Johnson seems to be indicative of the type of filler-type guys Yankee GM Brian Cashman has brought in for minor league depth. There seem to be a lot of high strikeout guys who can hit the long ball sprinkled in around the Yankee minor leagues. There is Justin Maxwell, who leads the SWB Yankees with 72 K's and is second on the team in homers with 16. Then there is Jorge Vazquez who leads SWB with 18 homers and is second on the team in K's with 68. Just for measurement, Jesus Montero is third on the team in K's with 49. Montero is also third on the team in homers, tied with, get ready for this one.....Ramiro Pena! That's right, Ramiro Pena has more home runs than Brandon Laird, who hit 25 last season at AA and AAA.
-Wanna know if Bryce Harper is the real deal? The answer is yes. He has 13 homers, 12 stolen bases, 14 doubles, 41 RBI, a .610 SLG %, a .434 OBP, and is hitting .338. He also has 32 walks and has K'd just 46 times. For an 18 year-old kid those are PHENOMENAL numbers. Good for the Nationals for not rushing this kid through the sytem, they are letting him develop, keeping his confidence up, and it will pay huge dividends in the end.
-Here are some updates on some other Yankee Prospects:
Tim Norton has 44 K's in 29 innings out of the pen in Trenton. He owns a 1.55 ERA and 0.69 WHIP.
Dellin Betances is 3-1 with a 1.99 ERA, striking out 50 in 45.1 innings. He has been a little wild, walking 22 but it hasn't hurt him yet.
Manny Banuelos is 2-0 with a 2.12 ERA in 46.2 innings. He has allowed 26 walks and 38 hits but has struck out 42. Not bad overall numbers. I still think he will be the best of the "Killer B's" but only time will tell.
-Well, that's all for now. Enjoy the MLB Draft if thats your thing. Game 3 of the Stanley Cup is also on at 8.
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