Joba Chamberlain took another step in returning to the Yankees when he pitched for the Tampa Yankees on Friday.
Chamberlain threw two innings for Class A Tampa and he was roughed up a bit. Chamberlain allowed 2 runs, 1 earned, on 2 hits in 2 innings of work. He walked 1 and struck out 1. He threw 32 pitches, in which 19 of them were for strikes.
Chamberlain will likely appear in another game next week for either Tampa or Double-A Trenton.
With the recent news about Brett Gardner undergoing surgery, their has been much speculation over whether or not Brian Cashman and the Yankees should acquire a speedy outfielder at the trade deadline. If the Yankees do indeed go shopping, they will most certainly be looking for a speedy corner outfielder who can steal bases. They defiantly won't be looking for an Andruw Jones type player who has little speed and has a lot of power.
There has been rumors that the Yankees are interested in the Phillies' outfielder, Shane Victorino. Many have been reporting that the Yankees and Phillies have discussed a deal that would bring Victorino to the Bronx, but the two sides have not reached one yet. Brian Cashman believes that the price tag on Victorino is too high and he isn't willing to give up young players just yet.
The Yankees are 22 games over as of July 20th. They have been without Brett Gardner since April, and yet they still manage to lead their division and have the best record in Baseball. Raul Ibanez and Andruw Jones have filled in nicely off of the bench. Although they don't have the speed that Brett Gardner brought to the table, they use their power to help win games. Jones and Ibanez combined have driven in 66 runs and have hit 24 home runs. DeWayne Wise also has seen some playing time in Left Field as well. Wise so far has knocked in 8 runs and has hit 3 home runs. Wise is second on the team with 7 stolen bases and has not been caught once this year.
So if the Yankees do go out and get a speedy outfielder before the deadline, then i don't think it will impact their team in a huge way. Yes, it's always nice to have a guy who is constantly a steal threat and who can score from first on a double in the gap, but i don't think that one player who can do that will change how the Yankees play the game. They lead baseball in home runs, but when the postseason comes, they can't always rely on the home run ball. They will be facing quality pitchers in every game and it will be tough to hit the same amount of home runs as they do in the regular season.
As i stated above, one player that they acquire will not change how the Yankees play the game, but it would be nice to have a player who is always a speed threat.
When the Yankees signed Raul Ibanez and Andruw Jones, they were going to be used as a designated hitter. With the loss of Brett Gardner, they had to fill that roll out in left field. I think that if the Yankees can acquire an outfielder then it will save Jones and Ibanez physically and they won't be burned out by the time the regular season ends.
In my opinion, I think that the Yankees should go out and acquire a corner outfielder. Will it make a huge impact on their team? I don't think so. Will it help them in the long run? It could. They can go back to their plan from the beginning of the season which was to use Jones and Ibanez as designated hitters and have a regular corner outfielder play everyday.
The MLB deadline is July 31st and we will have coverage of all deals that are made.
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| Freddy Garcia is removed from the game on Thursday. (Getty Images) |
The Yankees have called up right-hander David Phelps to provide long relief to their bullpen. Phelps may also come in for situational pitching, like getting out of a jam.
Since Phelps was called up, the Yankees had to option D.J. Mitchell to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
David Phelps has been impressive in the minor leagues and it was just a matter of time until the Yankees called him back up.