Yankees: Two Sleepers Getting Noticed For Pitching Slots
The Yankees have two pitching sleepers in camp who are making a run for the team. Both are lefties. One is a cagey veteran looking to make a comeback, and the other is a kid looking for attention. Both are being noticed.
The Yankees starting rotation is in flux, and with the exception of Masahiro Tanaka, it will stay that way throughout the 2017 season. To even say that the pitching staff is wide open is not a stretch and the Yankees are willing to take on a chance on anyone who shows he can get major league hitters out.
The team demonstrated that when they signed Mets and Pirates castoff, Jon Niese, to a minor league contract with an invite to Spring Training. At the time, the move was viewed with skepticism and desperation on the part of the Yankees, who were hoping to catch lightning in a bottle with Niese.
Niese and Montgomery are showing signs of throwing a monkey wrench in the Yankees Plan A for their pitching staff in 2017
Niese’s record over the years is, at best, pedestrian among major league pitchers. Overall, he’s dead-even at 61-61 and best year came five years ago when he was with the Mets (13-9), who dealt him to the Pirates where his career went south.
Today, however, Niese finds himself with a very real chance to claw his way back in the only way he can. He opened up to the New York Post telling Ken Davidoff:
"“That’s what happens when you’re in my situation: You get hurt on your option year and you become a free agent, and all of a sudden, teams aren’t quite sure about you,” Niese said. “So you just have to pitch your way back. That’s what I’m looking forward to doing.”"
For many, this new demeanor of confidence and aggressiveness is a welcome change because it was always felt that Niese was a little “soft” when he was with the Mets, especially.
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Niese will never dazzle anyone when he’s on the mound. But he is showing that he can get hitters out, and after all, does anything else matter? With velocity on his fastball topping out in the 87-88 range, Niese has thrown three hitless innings over three games and allowed one run with one walk and two strikeouts.
Nothing to write home about, but it’s a start, and the Yankees have taken notice. And that’s all Niese can ask for at this juncture in his career.
Yankees Sleeper #2
The Yankees, as it turns out, have another left-handed sleeper in camp in Jordan Montgomery. who Yanks Go Yard profiled two months ago. Montgomery was characterized then saying:
"“The Yankees went big when they drafted Jordan in the 4th round (122nd overall) of the 2014 amateur draft. Built along the lines of Clayton Kershaw, Montgomery, at 6’6″ and 225, commands a hitters attention with his presence on the mound.”"
In contrast to Niese, Montgomery does dazzle on the mound as seen on Friday when he completed the final four innings of the Yankees no-hit win over the Tigers, prompting Joe Girardi to tell the New York Daily News:
"“We like him a lot. We’ve said that all along. He’s got a good breaking ball, a good changeup and throws on a downward angle, which we like. He’s different than a lot of lefties in a sense. He threw the ball very well today. We’re curious about him.”"
“We’re curious about him” suggests that the team wants to see more of him before making any decision about where he’ll be placed to start the season. But with another performance like the one he gave them Friday, Montgomery could become the pitching side of Gleyber Torres by forcing the team to make a move they don’t want to make at this time.
Nevertheless, both Niese and Montgomery are showing signs of throwing a monkey wrench in the Yankees Plan A for their pitching staff in 2017. And that can only add to the mix and mystery as to what the Yankees roster will look like when Memorial Day rolls around.