Comments on: The Yankees’ 2012 bullpen has been the most consistent in years

By: Cody Eppley : The Latest Fuzz

Cody Eppley : The Latest Fuzz — Sat, 14 Jul 2012 19:38:12 +0000

[...] for finding relievers Cody Eppley and Clay Rapada. While I have no illusions that this …The Yankees' 2012 bullpen has been the most consistent in yearsYanks Go YardSinging The Songs Of The Unsung Bullpen HeroesThe Yankee AnalystsDavid Robertson: How [...]

By: thatonemlbguy

thatonemlbguy — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 16:49:43 +0000

@jkra0512_SK Maybe not Joba because we’ve seen what he can do, but when has Aardsma actually been healthy and consistently not in the minors? Plus now he’s had two Tommy John surgeries. I kinda feel bad for the guy, but if he has a messed up arm that requires two extensive surgeries, not much that we can do. However we should keep an open mind on him, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him go after next year. I’m sure he’d add some padding to the bullpen, but I’d take Joba over him in a heartbeat. Joba’s pitched not only in the majors for several years, but in New York at that.

By: jkra0512_SK

jkra0512_SK — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 14:15:12 +0000

@thatonemlbguy thatonemlbguy
No way would I cut my losses with Joba and Aardsma. First off, Aardsma is a former closer who could definitely help the back end of the bullpen. Sure he was hurt and who knows how he’ll do going forward, but I think the track record grants him an opportunity.

Meanwhile, Joba was EXCELLENT in his revised bullpen role (7th-8th inning). If this spring training taught us anything, you never have enough pitching. That’s not to say that if a team is willing to trade something of interest and they want these guys, the Yankees won’t do it. But, you can’t just give up on them just like that…in my opinion.

By: jkra0512_SK

jkra0512_SK — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 14:07:00 +0000

@arth65456
Betances is a mess and, at this point, looks like he’ll be a reliever in the future. Definitely disappointing. As for Man-Ban, he’s either pitching horribly (walk machine) or he’s pitching well and gets hurt. At this point, Banuelos has more upside than Betances and will likely make the big club by 2014, while I can see Betances as a AAAA player.

By: The Latest Fuzz : A bit of Buzz from Doc J

The Latest Fuzz : A bit of Buzz from Doc J — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 02:19:13 +0000

[...] Yanks Go Yard [...]

By: arth65456

arth65456 — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 18:15:14 +0000

I agree, but Phelps has starting potential so the Yankees want to put him down to stretch that arm. He was a guy who played the Hector Noesi from last year who can have versatile roles. Freddy isn’t doing much, but we have to give him credit for the good appearance he had against Washington. Plus, Banuelos and Betances aren’t doing great in AAA like they should and do we need another young pitcher with confused roles? If its not broke, don’t fix it.

By: thatonemlbguy

thatonemlbguy — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 16:36:11 +0000

@jkra0512_SK Err, meant to say “maybe late this year if ‘s he’s that lucky”. My bad, my mind is still waking up.

By: thatonemlbguy

thatonemlbguy — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 16:19:43 +0000

@jkra0512_SK thatonemlbguy Thanks for the feedback! Yeah, I actually have an idea for an article regarding David Phelps coming up, but other than that, our bullpen is really solid. I just really think having Freddy Garcia on the payroll is just a waste. We have a lot of talent in guys like Dellin Betances and eventually Manny Banuelos that will come up, so we need to prepare for them and dump Garcia.

As for Joba and David Aardsma, I sometimes think we’d be better off just to cut our losses with them, especially Aardsma. He was always injury prone with Seattle, and the Yankees have had their fair share of those players (i.e. Carl Pavano and now Michael Pineda) so it was just a dumb move really. As for Joba, I like him, but how well can he pitch when he comes back? He hasn’t pitched since early 2011 and won’t be back til next year, maybe late this early if he’s that early.

Thanks again for the feedback, it’s always appreciated.

By: jkra0512_SK

jkra0512_SK — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 14:58:21 +0000

thatonemlbguy
Great article, Ben. The bullpen has been outstanding despite missing The Greatest Closer Ever and Robertson for a while. What is scary to think about is that Joba Chamberlain and David Aardsma are on their way back. The good news, besides more quality bullpen arms, is that the Yankees don’t need to rush either one of them back. They can fully work out whatever they need to in extended stints in the minors. I’d even venture to ask, why not stretch Joba out again? (controversy!)

A few surprises for me are Eppley (ROOGY) and the emergence of Boone Logan as a setup man. The disagreement I have is the Yankees absolutely made the right move sending Phelps down. He hasn’t pitched all that much and he’s more valuable to the club (now and into the future) as a starter, not in relief. Garcia, while I’m not a fan, doesn’t pitch all that much nowadays. However, when he has, he has pitched well considering his role (Think: extra innings game against Nationals last week).