Betances Joins Bullpen Shuffle

Yankees fans have heard about Dellin Betances' potential ever since the 6'8" hard throwing right-hander was selected in the 8th round of the 2006 MLB amateur draft. Unfortunately, he has struggled to meet the expectations and was recently converted from a starting pitcher to a full-time reliever. Despite pitching just twice in the pen this season, Betances has been recalled by the Yankees to join their bullpen.

The Yankees needed another reliever after Brett Marshall threw 108 pitches and Preston Claiborne pitched 2.1 innings in mopping up the mess Phil Hughes created against Seattle on Wednesday night. The Yankees were hopeful that Joba Chamberlain would be ready to come off the DL, but his oblique injury is apparently still an issue.

The decision to move Betances to the bullpen for good came after the 25-year old allowed 16 earned runs and walked 16 batters in 24 innings (six starts) at Triple-A Scranton. In his two relief appearances since then Betances has allowed one run in 4.1 innings pitched, walked just one batter and struck out four.

Despite his control issues, Betances worked his way up the minor league chain. I was at his Double-A debut for Trenton in 2010 and saw the good and the bad of his game. I recall him missing the catcher's target, his ability to blow his fastball by batters, an awkardness that led to two throwing errors on pickoff attempts, and an intimidating presence on the mound. But his ability and the sound of his pitches popping in catcher Austin Romine's glove sent an electricity through the crowd, quite a few of whom were friends and family of the Big Apple native.

Betances got a late September call up in 2011 and made a less than an impresssive debut against Tampa Bay. He allowed a pair of runs and walked four in just two-thirds of an inning. Six days later he faced the Rays again and pitched two scoreless innings with a walk and a hit allowed and struck out two.

Yankees Move A Bust

I'm no Young MC and Andrew Brackman is no Randy Johnson. Many an eyebrow was raised when the Yankees selected Brackman with their first round pick (30th overall) in the 2007 MLB amateur draft.


The team already knew that Brackman needed Tommy John surgery, but still felt that picking the former N.C. State Wolfpack basketball player was a slam dunk. Were they ever wrong. Tuesday, the Yankees declined the 2012 option on Brackman, making him a free agent. While there's always a possibility the Yankees could bring him back with a minor league deal, the soon to be 26-yr old is likely headed to a new organization.

It's well documented that it's a difficult transition to the big leagues for exceptionally tall pitchers and the 6'10" Brackman fell in that category. It took Randy Johnson years to perfect the art of pitching, but not everyone is so lucky. The Mariners had another big lefty, 6'10" Ryan Anderson, in their farm system and dubbed him "Little Unit" as an homage to Johnson. It also told just how much the M's thought about Anderson.

Anderson was rated a top 25 prospect by Baseball America for five straight years (1998-2002). He averaged better than 12 strikeouts per nine innings, but injuries and a questionable work ethic ended his baseball career after the 2005 season. He never made it to the Major Leagues.

Will Brackman have the same fate? After rehab from surgery, Brackman pitched for Charleston in 2009 and was, as expected, not very good. He showed a lot of rust and his strikeout to walk ratio was an awful 1.36. He also threw 26 wild pitches and had an ERA above 5.00.

Brackman showed promise the following year at Tampa ('A+') and Trenton ('AA'), excelling after his promotion to the Eastern League's Thunder. Between the two levels he struck out 126 in 146.2 innings and walked 39 with a 3.90 ERA.

But this past season Brackman took a step backwards at Triple-A Scranton. He had a career low in strikeouts per nine innings and set a career high in walks per nine frames, with both figures at 7.0. A 1.635 WHIP, 19 wild pitches, a 6.00 ERA, and just 13 starts in his 33 appearances all added up to his subtraction from the Yankees 40-man roster.

While he is not yet in the category of a Brien Taylor, Brackman's window of opportunity to mak e the Majors is closing fast.

Here's The Pitch

YES YES YES..no, not just the network..Yankees baseball begins today. Spring training games that is. The Yankees open a home and home series with the Philadelphia Phillies today at 1:00 ET. And YES, it will be televised on YES!

We'll get our first look at Bartolo Colon and find out if pinstripes really are slimming. David Phelps, one of the minor leaguers with a very outside shot of making the rotation will also pitch. Joba Chamberlain, David Robertson, Hector Noesi, and Eric Wordekemper will all take the hill as well.

Andrew Brackman is suffering a groin injury and has been shut down until Tuesday, putting a damper on his chances for one of the final two spots in the rotation.

Today's lineup courtesy of the Star-Ledger's Marc Carig:

Derek Jeter SS
Nick Swisher RF
Mark Teixeira 1B
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Robinson Cano 2B
Jorge Posada DH
Curtis Granderson CF
Francisco Cervelli C
Brett Gardner LF
Bartolo Colon P

A-Rod, A-Brack, A-RunOutOfNames

Alex Rodriguez is happy, his life is like a nice fresh bag of popcorn. Yeah, A-Rod even joked about the Super Bowl popcorn incident. (And I thank a handful of Twitter followers who told me the A-Rod popcorn tantrum turned out to be false.).

The Yankees 3rd baseman came to camp 10 pounds lighter for a little more flexibility and to try to improve on 2010. "All seven other guys in the lineup other than 'Swish' and Robbie (Cano) probably feel there's room for improvement. I know I have to play at an elite level for us to do well. We all have a very bad taste in our mouth after leaving Texas (defeated by the Rangers in the ALCS last year."

A-Brack is a made up name and hopefully he'll never be called that for real. But the Yankees staff has been impressed with Brackman's early work this spring. Brackman had this to say, “My first two camps, those B.P.’s would have been awful, nowhere near the plate or anything like that,” Brackman said. “I don’t know, the further away I get from surgery, the more comfortable I get on the hill.”

Joe Girardi took note as well. “He had a hard time consistently throwing strikes, where now it appears that that’s behind him,” Girardi said. “You look at what he did the second half of last year and what he’s done here in spring training – he’s throwing a lot of strikes. That’s a big part of the battle when you’re pitching.”

New pitching coach Larry Rothschild has been a positive influence on Brackman as well. “I think that’s what kind of hurt me my first year, second year, as a young guy coming up,” Brackman said before referring to the team’s new pitching coach, Larry Rothschild. “All the big guys are behind there watching you, and you want to say, ‘Oh, I can do more with this pitch, or I can make this breaking ball better.’ But, you know, Larry gave me some really good advice the other day: your stuff comes second. It’s all about repeating your mechanics. Just keep repeating, and your stuff will come. It’s been good advice so far.”

From the former files...thanks to @heelsonthefield for pointing out this article on former prospect George Kontos. I was sorry to see Kontos leave the organization via the Rule V draft. After having elbow reconstruction surgery in 2009 he was bouncing back nicely last season. I saw him pitch in one game for Trenton and his fastball looked good. Good luck to him in San Diego.

I Had A Dream

I was watching the Yankees take on the Tampa Bay Rays. First place in the AL East was on the line. The Yankees had come into the game having lost of 7 of 8 and had dropped out of 1st place the previous night when Tampa won a 1-0 thriller.

The Yankees clung to a one run lead in the 9th. Speedster Carl Crawford was on 2nd base with one out when Mariano Rivera got Matt Joyce to lift a fly near the right field foul line. Greg Golson, playing in place of the injured Nick Swisher, camped under it for what would be the second out. But wait, what was Golson doing? He's firing the ball, flat footed, to 3rd base. And Crawford is out to end the game.

And then I woke up.

No wait, I was awake the whole time. It really happened. When did Greg Golson become Dave Parker, Ellis Valentine, and Ichiro all rolled into one? Golson's laser throw to 3rd cut down Crawford with the help of a nice one hop pick up and tag by Alex Rodriguez. There was much criticism of Crawford for making the last out at 3rd, but it was Crawford running and these are the aggressive Tampa Bay Rays. It was a wild finish to a wild game.

The Yankees had staked Ivan Nova to a 6-0 lead against Matt Garza with the help of a Robinson Cano line drive 2-run home run and a long solo blast by Alex Rodriguez. But in the 5th, things fell apart for the rookie. For the second time in a matter of weeks, he was pulled from the game before getting the final out that would qualify for a win. But he had to be pulled. The Rays had cut the lead to 6-4 and lefty Dan Johnson was due up.

So Joe Girardi went to his red hot lefty specialist Boone Logan, who hadn't allowed an earned run in his last 25 appearances dating back to July 18. Boom end of streak. Pinch-hitting from the right side, Willy Aybar smacked a 3-run home run that erased the Yankees lead completely and put Tampa ahead 7-6.

The Yankees came right back though in the 6th, tying the game on a Cano RBI double. It was the 98th ribbie for Cano, establishing a new career high. Then the real craziness began. Still tied in the bottom of the 9th, Ben Zobrist hit a 2-out drive to deep center that Granderson went vertical on to make a diving, inning ending catch.

In the top of the 10th, the Yankees took the lead when Jorge Posada hit a moon shot to dead center off Dan Wheeler. The ball landed atop the restaurant well beyond the centerfield fence for an 8-7 lead.

Crawford singled off Rivera to start the 10th and Evan Longoria followed with a blast to deep center that seemed ticketed to be a walk off game winner. But the ball landed in Granderson's glove in center for a loud out. It wasn't a game changer, but was nearly an underwear changer.

As expected, you knew Crawford would attempt to steal 2nd base and he did with Joyce at-bat. Then Joyce hit his fly and Golson flashed his skills, and the Yankees were back in 1st place.

Notes

Andy Pettitte allowed two earned runs in a five inning stint in the Trenton Thunder's 3-2, extra inning win in the Eastern League championship opener against Altoona. Pettitte is now scheduled to start against the Baltimore Orioles on Sunday at Camden Yards.

Andrew Brackman picked up the win for Trenton when he threw five shutout innings in relief of the Yankees veteran.

An MRI of Nick Swisher's troublesome knee showed nothing more than inflammation and he was given a cortisone shot. He could be back in the lineup on Friday.

Brett Gardner also got a cortisone shot in his bad wrist and will be limited for the time being to pinch-running and playing defense.

Brackman roughed up in season debut

Plenty of eyes will be on the RiverDogs this season and they will mainly be looking up. That's because 2007 first round pick, 6'10" Andrew Brackman (seen here between fellow pitchers Manny Banuelos and D.J. Mitchell), will be starting the season in South Carolina.

Brackman was drafted by the Yankees despite knowing he would need Tommy John surgery. Some thing it was a mistake, but the Yankees are confident they knew exactly what they were doing.

You can bet though that Brackman would like to put his season debut last night behind him. The 6'10" right-hander allowed 5 earned runs (6 total) in 5 innings pitched in the RiverDogs 8-2 loss to the Rome Braves. Brackman gave up 5 hits, walked 3, and struck out 5. He was handed a 2-0 lead, but with his team clinging to a 2-1 margin, gave up four runs in the fourth inning.

The River Dogs played a sloppy game, committing 5 errors, including a pair by shortstop Carmen Angelini. He did try to make up for it at the plate by leading the RiverDogs with 3 hits and also drove in a run.

	April 9, 2009
	Final 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E Rome 0 0 1 4 1 0 0 0 2 8 7 0 Charleston 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 13 5 W: R. Sullivan (1-0, 3.60); L: A. Brackman (0-1, 9.00); SV: E. Spruill (1) HR: None.

The Post and Courier has more on the Charleston pitching staff that comes with high expectations this year.

RiverDogs GM Dave Echols maintains a blog on the team's official site and was excited about Thursday's opener.

Opening Day is almost here! MLB has started and our turn will be here on Thursday. Don’t miss arguably the best time of the year and don’t be late as we introduce your 2009 Charleston RiverDogs via and Opening Day Parade – with a little taste of NY in Charleston brought to you this year by Comcast.

A few familiar faces (Angelini, Almonte & Baisley), a 6’10” RHP (Brackman), a Clemson Tiger (DJ Mitchell) and an ambidextrous pitcher (Venditte) help fill out our roster. Take advantage of our first, meet the team party / practice tonight from 6pm – 8pm. A new opportunity to mingle with the players for a short period of time then watch the open practice.

Every team is different but we trust Torre will be use his past success in managing the RiverDogs to help guide this team thru the summer season. You’ll be catching his blog throughout the summer as well.

Come out and enjoy the start of a relaxing summer of RiverDogs baseball. Thursday, April 9^th we battle the Atlanta Braves affiliate from Rome, GA and begin a 140 game quest to bring a championship to Charleston.

We will introduce a few new food items (Mellow Mushroom pizza, sushi), a few new promotions but with the same Fun Is Good approach. Who knows, maybe you’ll see Bill Murray walking the concourse, get a chance to tell Mike Veeck your favorite promotion or see future New York Yankee make a great play.

Baseball is back in Charleston, come out to The Joe, relax and let us entertain you.

Dave

The Daily Yankeeland - 3/9

The Yankees are taking on the Blue Jays this afternoon. Andy Pettitte made his spring debut, facing seven hitters in 1.2 innings pitched. The Yankees lead 2-1 on Brett Gardner's third home run of the spring. Russ Adams hit a solo shot off of Dan Giese.

The Yankees made their first cuts, sending J.B. Cox, George Kontos, and Kanekoa Texeira to the minor league camp. Andrew Brackman was reassigned to Charleston.

Kids Give it Away

Yankees fall to Twins, 5-4, as Bullpen Falters

Ian Kennedy looked good, but a group of young pitchers- Eric Hacker, Andrew Brackman, George Kontos, and Wilkins De la Rosa - couldn't hold the Yankees 3-0 lead. The Twins snapped a 3-3 tie with a pair of runs in the 8th and staved off a Yankees rally in the 9th, for a 5-4 victory. It was the Yankees first loss of Spring Training.

The Yankees banged out 14 hits, but after scoring a pair of runs in the first inning, and adding another in the second on a Justin Leone home run, they didn't score another run until the 9th, and that was with the help of an error.

Hacker, who had a tremendous year split between Tampa and Trenton in '08, struggled through 2 innings, allowing the Twins first run in the fourth inning. Anthony Claggett came on to get Hacker out of further trouble and added a scoreless 5th inning as well.

But then things went south. Brackman allowed a solo home run to Jason Kubel in the sixth, to cut the lead to 3-2. The Twins then tied the game with a run on three hits in the seventh against Kontos, who struck out 2, to tie the game.

Minnesota went ahead in the eighth with a pair of runs off of De la Rosa, who allowed 2 hits and 2 walks in two-thirds of an inning. Steven Jackson came on to get the final out.

* * *

With a 2 1/2 hr ride each way, the Yankees left most of their regulars home.

Jorge Posada, who had a home run and double yesterday, added two singles in today's game.

February 27, 2009

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
NY Yankees	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1		4	14	0
Minnesota	0	0	0	1	0	1	1	2	X		5	11	2

NY Yankees	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Gardner, CF	2	1	2	0	1	0	0	.429
Jackson, A, CF	2	1	1	0	0	1	1	.500
Ransom, 2B	3	1	1	1	0	1	2	.167
Pena, 2B	2	0	1	0	0	1	0	.250
Swisher, 1B	3	0	2	0	0	0	1	.500
Miranda, 1B	2	0	1	0	0	0	2	.400
Posada, DH	3	0	2	0	0	0	2	.800
1-Rodriguez, J, PR-DH	1	0	0	0	1	0	1	.333
Nady, RF	3	0	0	1	0	0	4	.200
Linden, RF	2	0	0	0	0	1	4	.200
Cabrera, M, LF	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	.000
Russo, LF	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Berroa, SS	2	0	1	0	1	0	0	.667
Nunez, E, SS	2	0	1	0	0	0	3	.333
Leone, 3B	3	1	1	1	0	0	3	.250
Bernier, 3B	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	1.000
Cervelli, C	3	0	1	0	0	0	0	.250
Romine, C	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	.000
Totals	39	4	14	3	4	4	27
1-Ran for Posada in the 5th.
BATTING 2B: Gardner (1, Baker), Miranda (1, Delaney). HR: Leone (1, 2nd inning off Baker, 0 on, 1 out). TB: Gardner 3; Jackson, A; Ransom; Pena; Swisher 2; Miranda 2; Posada 2; Berroa; Nunez, E; Leone 4; Cervelli. RBI: Ransom (1), Nady (1), Leone (1). Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Cabrera, M; Ransom; Leone 2; Swisher; Jackson, A; Linden; Nunez, E 2. Team LOB: 12. BASERUNNING SB: Gardner 2 (2, 2nd base off Duensing/Redmond, 2nd base off Baker/Redmond). CS: Rodriguez, J (1, 2nd base by Mulvey/Ramos), Nunez, E (1, 2nd base by Julianel/Ramos). FIELDING DP: 2 (Leone-Ransom-Swisher, Pena-Berroa-Miranda).

NY Yankees	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Kennedy	2.0	1	0	0	1	3	0	0.00
Hacker (H, 1)	1.0	3	1	1	2	0	0	9.00
Claggett (H, 1)	2.0	1	0	0	0	1	0	0.00
Brackman (H, 1)	1.0	1	1	1	0	0	1	9.00
Kontos (BS, 1)	1.0	3	1	1	0	2	0	9.00
De La Rosa (L, 0-1)	0.2	2	2	2	2	1	0	27.00
Jackson, S	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.00

Minnesota	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	LOB	AVG
Gomez, CF	1	0	0	0	1	1	0	.000
Martin, CF	2	0	2	1	0	0	0	.714
Casilla, 2B	2	0	0	0	1	0	1	.250
Tolbert, 2B-RF	2	0	1	1	0	0	2	.167
Crede, DH	2	0	0	0	1	1	2	.000
a-Hughes, PH-DH	1	0	0	0	0	1	2	.333
Morneau, 1B	2	0	1	0	0	0	1	.500
1-Peterson, PR-1B	2	1	0	0	0	1	2	.250
Cuddyer, RF	2	0	1	0	0	0	0	.250
2-Winfree, PR-RF	2	0	1	0	0	0	0	.400
3-Plouffe, PR-SS	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Young, LF	2	0	2	1	0	0	0	.750
Kubel, LF	1	1	1	1	0	0	0	.333
Pridie, LF	1	0	0	0	0	1	1	.333
Redmond, C	2	0	0	0	0	1	3	.250
Ramos, C	1	1	0	0	1	0	0	.000
Harris, 3B	2	0	0	0	0	1	3	.400
Valencia, 3B	2	1	2	1	0	0	0	1.000
Punto, SS	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	.000
Macri, SS-2B	1	0	0	0	1	0	1	.000
Totals	32	5	11	5	5	7	20
a-Struck out for Crede in the 7th. 1-Ran for Morneau in the 4th. 2-Ran for Cuddyer in the 4th. 3-Ran for Winfree in the 8th.
BATTING 2B: Morneau (2, Hacker). HR: Kubel (1, 6th inning off Brackman, 0 on, 2 out). TB: Martin 2; Tolbert; Morneau 2; Cuddyer; Winfree; Young 2; Kubel 4; Valencia 2. RBI: Young (1), Kubel (1), Tolbert (1), Valencia (1), Martin (2). 2-out RBI: Kubel. Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Harris; Punto; Peterson; Tolbert 2. SF: Martin. GIDP: Crede; Casilla. Team LOB: 9. BASERUNNING SB: Young (1, 2nd base off Kennedy/Cervelli). FIELDING E: Casilla (1, throw), Valencia (1, fielding). Outfield assists: Gomez (Berroa at 2nd base).

Minnesota IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA Baker 2.0 6 3 3 0 0 1 13.50 Duensing 2.0 2 0 0 2 1 0 0.00 Mulvey 2.0 2 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 Delaney 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0.00 Julianel (W, 1-0) 1.0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0.00 Gosling (S, 1) 1.0 2 1 0 1 1 0 0.00

Hacker pitched to 3 batters in the 4th. WP: Kennedy, Mulvey. Groundouts-flyouts: Kennedy 1-2, Hacker 3-0, Claggett 2-3, Brackman 0-3, Kontos 0-1, De La Rosa 0-1, Jackson, S 0-1, Baker 3-2, Duensing 3-2, Mulvey 1-3, Delaney 0-2, Julianel 1-1, Gosling 1-1. Batters faced: Kennedy 8, Hacker 7, Claggett 6, Brackman 4, Kontos 6, De La Rosa 6, Jackson, S 1, Baker 11, Duensing 10, Mulvey 7, Delaney 4, Julianel 4, Gosling 7. Inherited runners-scored: Claggett 2-0, Jackson, S 2-0. Umpires: HP: Randy Marsh. 1B: Tim Tschida. 2B: Brian O'Nora. 3B: Marvin Hudson. Weather: 78 degrees, sunny. Wind: 12 mph, R to L. T: 3:11. Att: 7,998.

Baseball America's Top 100 in '09

The much anticipated "Top 100 baseball prospects" list has been released by Baseball America. Not surprising, Baltimore Orioles stud catcher, Matt Wieters, tops the list. He's followed by future Rays ace David Price, the Cardinals Colby Rasmus (outfield), Braves right-hander Tommy Hanson, and his teammate, outfielder Jason Heyward.

Blue Jays outfielder Travis Snider, A's left-hander Brett Anderson, Marlins outfielder Cameron Maybin, Giants lefty Madison Bumgarner, and Rangers right-hander Nefteli Perez, round out the top 10.

The Yankees are represented by outfielder Austin Jackson (36), catcher Jesus Montero (38), and pitcher Andrew Brackman (92).

Former Yankee Jose Tabata remains on the list at number 75.

Click here to see the complete list.

The Daily Yankeeland - 1/22

The oldest former Major Leaguer, Billy Werber, passed away earlier today at age 100. Werber was a member of the '27 Yankees, and in fact played bridge with Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Bill Dickey.
UPDATE 1/23 - Steve Politi of the Star Ledger fondly remembers Mr. Werber.

Friday is moving day for the Yankees. Employees of the team, players not included, will be moving from the their offices in the current/old Stadium to the new park.

ESPN.com' Keith Law released his ranking of the top 100 prospects in MLB. Orioles cathcer Matt Wieters took the top spot with Rays pitcher David Price ranked number two. Three Yankees made the list - Austin Jackson (46), Jesus Montero (83), and Andrew Brackman (95). Dellin Betances narrowly missed the top 100.

River Ave. Blues has a good profile on Betances, who along with Andres Perez, honored scout Cesar Presbott at this past weekend's New York Professional Baseball Hot Stove League Dinner.

Lanny Breuer, who represented Roger Clemens during last year's Congressional hearings, was named assistant Attorney General, for the Justice Department's Juvenile criminal division, by Barack Obama.

Jon Heyman ranked his top 15 teams that could still spend some big money in the free agent market. The Yankees are ranked 12th.

12. Yankees. Even after spending $423.5 million on Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Teixeira, they're always a threat to spend, especially if they can find a taker for Nady, or even better, Swisher (who has $21 million to go). One person said it's "less than 50-50'' that they take back Andy Pettitte. But where else is he going to go?

MLB.com's Bryan Hoch spoke with hitting coach Kevin Long about the new lineup.

New Big Unit to Debut Soon

We all heard good things about Andrew Brackman when the Yankees drafted the 6'10" pitcher with their first pick in the 2007 draft. But we quickly learned the NC State product would also need Tommy John surgery, meaning he wouldn't be contributing to the Yankees any time soon. That's all about to change.

Lisa Winston of MLB.com reports that Brackman is almost ready to make his professional debut. When pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training, Brackman should be ready to go. He was expected to pitch in the Gulf Coast League late last season, but an emergency appendectomy threw those plans out the window. He did get to throw in the Hawaiian Winter League.

Brackman went 3-4 with a 5.56 ERA, striking out 36 batters in 34 innings and limiting the league's batters to a .235 average. He went five or more innings in four of his starts, including three of the last four.

"His velocity was between 94-97 [mph], so he had no problems and he's ready to go for Major League camp," said Mark Newman, the Yankees' senior vice president of baseball operations. "His stuff is outstanding, and he's getting a feel for his delivery and throwing strikes. But first and foremost, he was healthy and, at times, dominant."

The delivery and mechanics are definitely the biggest challenge for Brackman, and not just because he has had so little mound time. For a pitcher of his size, there are both benefits and challenges.

"The benefits are the power and deception because the ball is released closer to the plate," Newman explained. "But the downside is you have long levers to manage, and it takes time. There aren't many of those guys in the environment to use as test cases, but most people believe that taller guys take a little longer to get their command."

That said, Newman added that Brackman has the advantage of being an exceptional athlete.

"To watch him run, he looks like he's 6-foot-2," Newman said of the young man who offsets that explosive heat with a knuckle curve and a developing changeup.

Here's hoping he can have a comparable career to the real Big Unit...with much less acrimony.

The Daily Yankeeland

According to Joe Girardi, Harlan Chamberlain's condition has improved slightly, but the hospital is still running a battery of tests. There's no timetable for Joba Chamberlain's return to the team.

Jorge Posada made 45 throws from the outfield yesterday and said he felt better. He's still not sure when he'll be back behind the plate though. Jose Molina's hamstring has improved enough to the point where he doesn't think he'll need to go on the DL.

Ian Kennedy woke up yesterday morning with just a mark from the seams of the baseball that Jason Bartlett lined off his hip area. The team kept him from running yesterday, but he'll be able to resume normal activities with no problem.

The Tommy John surgery twins are making some progress. Humberto Sanchez threw off a full mound for the first time this year, while last year's number one pick, Andrew Brackman, threw off a half mound.

The Star-Ledger's Lisa Kennelley has a piece today on the waste of money known as Carl Pavano. The angle is that while he can rehab his arm, he can't rehab his image. The best line though comes from Pavano's agent, Tom O'Connell.

"Carl's a 1-2 starter," O'Connell said. "Those guys don't grow on trees. Those guys are very rare, 200-inning guys are very rare in this game, and they're the ones that make the money. And he did it two years in a row, before he got hurt, and I'm sure he's going to do it again."

Yeah, okay.

Tonight's first pitch may take a while to get to home plate. Astronaut Dr. Garrett Reisman will be throwing out the ceremonial ball from the International Space Station.

Reisman, a lifelong Yankee fan, carried a Yankee banner, a cap autographed by George Steinbrenner and a pile of dirt from the Yankee Stadium pitcher's mound with him onboard the International Space Station on March 12.

The New Jersey native said throwing the first pitch will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

"I am really honored to have this opportunity, in such a historic season, in the House that Ruth Built," he said.

Alex Rodriguez has exemplified the Yankees problems with runners in scoring position. He's just 1-14. He's got a chance to avenge his poor weekend series in Boston, with a 2-game series against the Red Sox in front of the home crowd.

The Daily Yankeeland

According to Joe Girardi, Harlan Chamberlain's condition has improved slightly, but the hospital is still running a battery of tests. There's no timetable for Joba Chamberlain's return to the team.

Jorge Posada made 45 throws from the outfield yesterday and said he felt better. He's still not sure when he'll be back behind the plate though. Jose Molina's hamstring has improved enough to the point where he doesn't think he'll need to go on the DL.

Ian Kennedy woke up yesterday morning with just a mark from the seams of the baseball that Jason Bartlett lined off his hip area. The team kept him from running yesterday, but he'll be able to resume normal activities with no problem.

The Tommy John surgery twins are making some progress. Humberto Sanchez threw off a full mound for the first time this year, while last year's number one pick, Andrew Brackman, threw off a half mound.

The Star-Ledger's Lisa Kennelley has a piece today on the waste of money known as Carl Pavano. The angle is that while he can rehab his arm, he can't rehab his image. The best line though comes from Pavano's agent, Tom O'Connell.

"Carl's a 1-2 starter," O'Connell said. "Those guys don't grow on trees. Those guys are very rare, 200-inning guys are very rare in this game, and they're the ones that make the money. And he did it two years in a row, before he got hurt, and I'm sure he's going to do it again."

Yeah, okay.

Tonight's first pitch may take a while to get to home plate. Astronaut Dr. Garrett Reisman will be throwing out the ceremonial ball from the International Space Station.

Reisman, a lifelong Yankee fan, carried a Yankee banner, a cap autographed by George Steinbrenner and a pile of dirt from the Yankee Stadium pitcher's mound with him onboard the International Space Station on March 12.

The New Jersey native said throwing the first pitch will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

"I am really honored to have this opportunity, in such a historic season, in the House that Ruth Built," he said.

Alex Rodriguez has exemplified the Yankees problems with runners in scoring position. He's just 1-14. He's got a chance to avenge his poor weekend series in Boston, with a 2-game series against the Red Sox in front of the home crowd.