Yankees Triple-A Club Take Home IL Governor’s Cup

The New York Yankees Triple-A affiliate, the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Railriders, have won the International League Championship series three games to one.

With their 3-0 victory over the Gwinnett Braves Friday night, the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Railriders sealed their second International League Governor’s Cup and the opportunity to face off against either Oklahoma City or El Paso for the Triple-A National Championship Game next Tuesday. The Yankees Triple-A affiliate last took home the International League crown in 2008.

The win was especially impressive considering just how much talent Scranton Wilkes-Barre has lost in recent weeks. Aaron Judge, Ben Gamel, Gary Sanchez, Mason Williams and Rob Refsnyder all played major roles for the International League’s best offense before their promotions.

The Railriders pitching also took a serious hit with the call ups of Chad Green, Luis Cessa, Bryan Mitchell, Jonathan Holder, and others.

Still, the tremendous depth in the upper levels of the Yankees system ultimately won the day. Jake Cave was named the series MVP, hitting .348  with a homer, three RBI, and a steal.

The real star of the series was the combined efforts of the SWB pitching staff, who shut out the Braves for the last 23 innings of the series to seal the title. Lefty starter Daniel Camarena provided with the Railriders with 5.1 scoreless frames, striking out four and surrendering one free pass. Pretty impressive considering he hadn’t made a start in two weeks.

Johnny Barbato (0.2 IP, 0 ER, K), Tyler Webb (2 IP, 0 ER, 2 K), and Gio Gallegos (IP, 0 ER, 2 K) combined with Camarena for a five-hit shutout.

Railriders manager Al Pedrique tipped his cap to the entire staff following the win, telling Michael Leboff of MiLB.com:

"It was impressive how the pitching staff performed throughout the whole season. [Pitching coach] Tom Phelps did an outstanding job with them. We kept saying it’s not as much about the result, it’s just the fact that they trust him and prepare well. Those guys really pay attention to detail and they deserve all the credit in the world."

Back-to-back RBI singles in the fifth inning by outfielders Mark Payton and Clint Frazier gave the Railriders the lead and all the runs they would need. Payton would give the team another insurance run in the seventh inning with an RBI triple that knocked in Cito Culver.

Pedrique also noted how valuable this experience was for some of the Yankees young players:

"Right now, everyone’s just happy and celebrating. It was a well-deserved championship. It’s hard to explain how it feels, but it was a great year from everyone, from the staff to the players. I’m glad that we had this opportunity, especially for the young guys so they know what it feels like to play in meaningful games and win a championship."

The Railriders were the class of the minor leagues this season, winning more games than any other affiliate and really succeeding at all aspects of the game.

Next: Evaluating the Yankees 2017 Rotation Options

Next Tuesday will be a winner-takes-all contest against whoever wins the Pacific Coast League. A one game playoff always feels weird in baseball, but it should be entertaining nonetheless.