September 9th, 2024: Gil, Schmidt, Cortes, Weaver, Judge, Arizona Fall League

It’s time for the annual post: Saturday afternoon the Yankees won their 82nd game and clinched their 32nd consecutive winning season. They haven’t had a losing season since going 76-86 in 1992. This is the second longest streak of winning seasons not just in baseball history, but in the history of the four major North American pro sports leagues. Here’s the list:

1. 1926-64 Yankees: 39 seasons
2. 1993-2024 Yankees: 32 seasons and counting
3. 1952-83 Montreal Canadiens: 32 seasons
4. 1968-96 Boston Bruins: 29 seasons
5. 1992-2016 Detroit Red Wings: 24 seasons

The 1968-85 Orioles have the third longest streak in baseball history with 18 straight winning seasons. The Dodgers clinched their 14th straight winning season last week. That’s the second longest active streak. Even when the Yankees play below expectations, they’re never actually bad, and I appreciate that. Life’s too short to watch bad baseball. Here now is Tuesday’s post on Monday. I’m getting this off my plate because I’m gonna be busy today, plus the Yankees are conveniently between series.

1. Weekend thoughts. The Yankees did something this past weekend they hadn’t done in almost exactly 10 years: They played a three-game series with zero home runs. Not one hit, not one given up. It’s the first time the Yankees played a homerless series of at least three games since Sept 5-7, 2014, against the Royals at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees lost the first game 1-0, won the second game 6-2, then lost the third game 2-0. That about sums up to the 2014 Yankees. Here now are a few thoughts on the Cubs series as Michael Kay and John Flaherty have a little spat in the booth.

Gil and Schmidt return

Luis Gil’s and Clarke Schmidt’s first starts off the injured list could not have gone any better. Both pitched very well – Gil went 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 7 K (video) on Friday and Schmidt went 4.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K (video) while on a pitch limit Saturday – and they did it against a Cubs offense that had scored 114 runs in its previous 13 games (8.80 per game) entering the series. 

“He was excellent,” Aaron Boone told Bryan Hoch about Gil. “I even thought that last inning might have been his best, just as far as real easy, not having to reach for it. It seemed real sharp to me at the finish, which was encouraging too. Six shutout to get the series going. You couldn’t have drawn it up better.”

As good as Gil was Friday, his velocity was down, and not by a little bit either. He threw his four slowest (and six of his 13 slowest) fastballs of the season against the Cubs, though he did reach back for 98.7 mph at one point. It was a chilly and windy afternoon. Hopefully that’s all this was, because every pitcher is a different animal at 97-98 mph than they are at 94-95 mph.

“The more innings that I pitched, I was feeling more comfortable and loose on the mound,” Gil told Hoch. “The arm was feeling good and in a good rhythm. I definitely felt that towards the end. I had more velo and was feeling stronger.”

The Yankees have had bullpen issues all season and I totally understand the temptation to put Gil in the bullpen and let him air it out in 1-2 inning bursts, but this guy has been the Yankees’ best starter all season, and Friday was a reminder how impactful he can be as a starter. Even without his best velocity, Gil shut down a red-hot offense. He looked every bit like a Game 2 starter in October.

As for Schmidt, he was all over the place in the first inning. He then settled in and would have completed five innings had Juan Soto not shied away from the side wall with two outs in the fifth (video). Everything checked out with Schmidt. Velocity, movement, etc. Everything was right where it needs to be. He looked like the guy we saw in April and May, albeit not fully stretched out.

“I think he’s only going to get better and sharper,” Austin Wells told Hoch about Schmidt. “It looked the same (as before his injury), if not better. Really, it comes down to execution and locations, and I think that’s going to tighten up as we get further along into the end of this month.”

Schmidt was so good earlier this year – 2.52 ERA (3.54 FIP) with 27.1 K% before the injury – and there was nothing to be discouraged about Saturday. Lat strains can be season killers and he missed an awful lot of time. There was no rust though (no excessive rust, anyway), no hiccups during his rehab, nothing. Knock on wood, Schmidt came out of his injury a-okay. Saturday was a welcome sight.

Gil, meanwhile, is way over his previous career high in innings. The quick return and Friday’s strong start suggest his back issue really was minor, so yeah, it does seem like the 15 days on the injured list were a good thing overall. Gil got a breather late in the season. A healthy Schmidt and Gil with a second wind changes the outlook so much. Those two can be difference-makers at their best. Their first starts off the injury list went as well as anyone could have hoped.

“We feel like we’re moving the needle to be a little bit better as a complete staff,” Boone told Hoch. “Even though we’re towards the end, we’ve got a long way to go. We’ve got to continue to show up and make sure we’re executing every day. When we do that, we’re able to have games like this.”

Nestor is nasty in relief

To accommodate Gil and Schmidt rejoining the rotation, the Yankees bumped Nestor Cortes to the bullpen this past weekend, though he will make a start during the upcoming Red Sox series. The plan is to use a six-man rotation this time through, then figure things out after that. Nestor was not happy about being moved to the bullpen and was refreshingly candid about it. From Bryan Hoch:

“Obviously, I was upset. I feel like amongst all the starters, I’ve been the workhorse here,” Cortes said. “Once [Gerrit] Cole went down, they picked me to be the Opening Day starter; not necessarily the No. 1, but the Opening Day starter. I had to switch my routine there, and now they do this. 

“I’m never going to back down from a challenge, I’m never going to leave my teammates out to dry. You’re always going to get my best effort, no matter if I’m happy or not. That’s what I did today. I just came out there and proved that I can be put in any situation, and from here on out, if that’s what’s my role, then I’ll accept it.”

I appreciate the honesty. A little attitude is okay. The Yankees media train their players to the nth degree and we get boring, watered down answers more often than not. Nestor wasn’t happy about going to the bullpen and made it known, but added he’s ready for the challenge and will be there for his teammates, and then he backed it up on the field. He was terrific behind Schmidt on Saturday: 4.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K (video).

“I’m sure he wasn’t thrilled about it this turn around, but you’ve still got a job to do,” Boone told Hoch. “He went out and excelled at it.”

Because Schmidt did not complete five innings, Cortes was given the win Saturday, not a save. He’s the first Yankee to come out of the bullpen, throw four innings, get the win, and finish the game since Nate Eovaldi on July 10th, 2016 (Eovaldi had been demoted to the bullpen a week earlier). The last Yankee to do it with the score separated by no more than two runs was Greg Cadaret on Aug. 20th, 1990. That was a 10-inning game and Cadaret threw 7.2 scoreless innings in relief of Dave LaPoint.

(The last Yankee with a four-inning save was David Hale in a blowout win over the hard-tanking Orioles on May 21st, 2019. The last to do it with the score separated by no more than three runs was Cadaret on Aug. 24th, 1991. The Yankees scored three runs in the top of the sixth to take a 6-5 lead over the Blue Jays, then Cadaret came in and finished the game.)

I was (and still am) intrigued by the idea of Cortes as a reliever because he shuts down lefties (.205/.252/.288) and I figured he would pick up some velocity like most pitchers do when they shift to the bullpen. That didn’t happen Saturday though. Nestor’s velocity was right where it always is:

Nestor marching out of the bullpen and throwing 94-96 mph would have been rad. His four-seamer is an induced vertical break monster – second highest (19.5 inches) behind Tyler Anderson (19.9 inches) among guys who’ve thrown 1,000 fastballs – which is why you see Cortes throw 92 mph by hitters in the zone. There’s a lot of life on the pitch. Add a little more velocity in relief and sheesh, that would be something.

Cortes is right, he has been the staff workhorse. Excluding Saturday’s relief appearance, he’s thrown seven more innings than Carlos Rodón in the same number of starts, and 16 more innings than Marcus Stroman in one more start. That said, it’s hard to see Nestor in the postseason rotation unless someone gets hurt. Cole and Rodón will be in the postseason rotation no questions asked. At this point, it has to be Gil and Schmidt for the last two spots. What that means for Stroman, I don’t know.

The postseason is still a few weeks away though. We can worry about the postseason pitching staff later. For now, Cortes aced his first bullpen test Saturday, even if his velocity didn’t jump the way I hoped. Maybe he’ll add a few ticks once he really settles into a relief role and postseason adrenaline kicks in. That would be great. I know he’s not happy about being in the bullpen even temporarily, but Nestor was awesome Saturday.

“I have no idea (how things will play out),” Nestor told Greg Joyce. “This one caught me by surprise, so we’ll see. I know they told me that I’m starting against Boston. But after that, with a six-man rotation and off-days in between, guys are going to get extra days and I don’t think that’s necessarily the right move, so we’ll see.”

The new closer (probably)

The first save opportunity of the “creative” era went to Luke Weaver on Friday. He walked a batter and needed 25 pitches to get three outs with a three-run lead, and he also got some help from home plate ump Jordan Baker’s generous strike zone, but a save is a save and a win is a win. Weaver threw his three of his five fastest pitches of the season Friday. He was amped up. He admitted as much.

"Well, I could give you the correct answer – professional answer – or I could give you the actual answer: I couldn't see straight,” Weaver told Joyce about being brought into a save opportunity. “I was blacked out for the most part. I was on pure adrenaline. But it was a great time."

Boone would not commit to Weaver as the new closer – “We’ll just piece it together best we can,” he told Hoch – but when a guy nails down one save, he typically gets a chance to do it again, and Weaver was warming up in the bullpen behind Cortes in the ninth inning Saturday. We’ll see where things go. My guess is Weaver is the guy until he blows a save, which is hopefully not until sometime in 2025.

Wells shows off his arm

Austin Wells took a pitch to the hand last Monday in Texas, then sat out Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s games, and Thursday was an off-day. I thought he might sit Friday too as the proverbial “one extra day” since the Cubs were starting lefty Jordan Wicks, but nope. Wells was in Friday’s lineup and he stroked a left-on-left single against Wicks to score two insurance runs (video).

Wells was in the lineup again Saturday (and Sunday) and he threw out two would-be base stealers, including the crazy fast Pete Crow-Armstrong. Crow-Armstrong and his 99th percentile sprint speed was 26-for-27 stealing bases in the big leagues this year entering Saturday’s game, and the one time he’d been thrown out was at third base. Wells is the first to throw him out stealing second. 

“It’s a little easier to run now (with the new rules), especially for the guys that can really do it,” Boone said after Saturday’s game (video). “I feel like (Wells has) made real big improvements on his throwing over the offseason. He's carried that into this year as well. And those were both really good throws.”

Wells is 17-for-69 (25%) throwing out runners this year, better than the 22% league average. The numbers on his arm are about as close to average as it gets …

• Throw velocity: 78.3 mph (MLB average: 79.4 mph)

• Exchange time: 0.65 seconds (MLB average: 0.66 seconds)

• Pop time: 1.97 seconds (MLB average: 1.97 second)

… and for Wells, that represents nice improvement. A year ago he was 15-for-116 (13%) throwing out runners in the minors. Wells has had a weak arm since a high school elbow injury and the Yankees worked with him to improve his transfer to get the ball out quicker to compensate. As modest a thrower as he is, Wells has made really nice strides with his arm over the years.

I know a catcher with a league average arm isn’t sexy, but you can live with it, especially since throwing is the worst part of Wells’ game. He’s an above-average hitter, he rates as an excellent framer, and he rates well as a blocker too. He’s been a workhorse as well. He’s started day games after night games, caught five straight days, etc. Thankfully the HBP injury was nothing serious. Losing this guy for anything more than a few days would've been devastating.

Miscellany

The wind was blowing in Friday and Saturday and Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, and Giancarlo Stanton each might – might – have lost a home run to the wind (videos). I can’t say that for certain, but all three were in good exit velocity and launch angle ranges, then the ball just died. So it goes … Judge’s home run drought is up to 12 games, tied for the sixth longest of his career and his longest since a 14-gamer spanning the end of 2020 and the start of 2021. He is 8-for-43 (.186) with 17 strikeouts since the start of the Nationals series, which is when the homer drought began. Look at the pitch locations of his foul balls during the road trip:

That’s a man whose timing is off. When he’s right, Judge hits this pitch to Neptune. The Yankees have 19 games remaining. That’s 19 games for Judge to figure it out before the postseason, and I hope it doesn’t take nearly that long. This slump has dragged Judge’s batting line down to .321/.455/.695 (214 wRC+). Maybe we’re all complaining about Jasson Domínguez coming up to replace the wrong outfielder? … Anthony Rizzo is 5-for-23 (.217) with two doubles and an awful lot of weak contact since coming off the injured list. Only five of his 19 balls in play cleared the 95 mph threshold for being considered a hard-hit ball, or 26%. The league average is 39%. It’s nice to have an actual first baseman playing first base, though the Yankees continue to get very little offense from a position with a very high offensive bar. I hope Rizzo picks it up once he gets more at-bats under his belt, but I dunno … Clay Holmes’ first appearance since the blown save in Texas came against the top of the Cubs’ order in the eighth inning with a one-run deficit. He had a 1-2-3 inning, though Boone didn’t exactly find Holmes a soft landing spot in a low leverage situation. Whatever man … And finally, could you imagine if the Yankees signed Cody Bellinger instead of trading for Soto?I know a few folks were in favor of that. Bellinger is a good player, for sure, but he’s hitting .263/.324/.420 (106 wRC+) this year and rates as average defensively. That is textbook meh. Mike King has been awesome, but even then Bellinger + King = +5.3 WAR. Soto alone is at +7.4 WAR. The lesson here is, when you’re the Yankees, get superstars. Don’t get cute and try to create them in the aggregate.

Injury updates and roster moves

Gil, Schmidt, and Ian Hamilton all returned this past weekend (Hamilton was activated Saturday but hasn’t pitched yet). To clear the necessary roster space, the Yankees sent Scott Effross and Ron Marinaccio down, and DFAed Nick Burdi and Phil Bickford. I’m a bit surprised they DFAed Burdi over, say, Anthony Misiewicz, but it’s not a big deal. Burdi pitched well enough with Triple-A Scranton (13.1 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 7 BB, 19 K), though I guess he was pretty far  down the depth chart. Remember how good he looked in Spring Training? Feels like a lifetime ago now. The Yankees got 9.2 big league innings out of him. I bet Burdi gets claimed … Duke Ellis was sent down after Sunday's game, so Jon Berti will be back Monday. The Yankees still need to open a 40-man roster spot for Berti (and also Cody Poteet, whenever he returns). I figured the Yankees would DFA Ellis to clear both 26-man and 40-man spots for Berti, but I guess not. Someone else is getting DFAed … And finally, Josh Maciejewski cleared waivers and stayed with the Yankees as a non-40-man roster player. He was DFAed last week to clear a 40-man spot when Rizzo came off the 60-day injured list. Maciejewski has a 6.25 ERA in the minors and a 2.57 ERA in the majors this year. Go figure.

Up next

The second-to-last homestand of the regular season. Three games against a Royals desperately trying to lock down a Wild Card spot (if not catch the Guardians), and four games against a Red Sox team clinging to their last shred of hope in the Wild Card race. No easy games this time of year though. Here’s what’s coming up between now and Friday’s post:

• Monday vs. Royals: LHP Carlos Rodón vs. RHP Brady Singer (7pm ET on YES)

• Tuesday vs. Royals: RHP Marcus Stroman vs. RHP Seth Lugo (7pm ET on YES)

• Wednesday vs. Royals: RHP Luis Gil vs. LHP Cole Ragans (7pm ET on Amazon, MLBN)

• Thursday vs. Red Sox: TBA vs. TBA (7pm ET on FOX)

A midweek FOX game? Sigh. Thursday’s TBAs are very much TBA. We don’t know when the Yankees will reinsert Cortes into the rotation, and the Red Sox called up former Yankees prospect Richard Fitts (part of the Alex Verdugo trade) to make a spot start/his MLB debut Sunday (he did fine). Thursday lines up to be Schmidt vs. Nick Pivetta, but we’ll see. Both rotations are a bit up in the air. 

The Rays did the Yankees a solid and took two of three from the Orioles over the weekend, so the Yankees are a game up in the loss column with 19 to play (the Orioles have 18 games left). Feels like it’s going to come down to that three-game series with the O’s at Yankee Stadium from Sept. 24-26, doesn’t it? Everything else until then is just noise. These two teams have been playing "who wants it less?" for three months now.

(The magic number to clinch a postseason berth is down to 10. It could happen as soon as this coming weekend, though it probably won't even if the Yankees win their games. The Mariners, Red Sox, and Tigers are all bunched together with 71 losses, so the Yankees need all three of them to lose to lower the magic number, not just one. Realistically, figure they'll clinch a postseason berth sometime late next week or next weekend.)

2. Arizona Fall League candidates. The 2024 Arizona Fall League rosters will be revealed in two weeks or so. Yankees prospects will play for the Salt River Rafters this year and Salt River Fields is the only AzFL park with full Statcast, so that’s neat. Grapefruit League teams rotate AzFL affiliations each year and we get the Statcast park this season. Yankees prospects will be teammates with Diamondbacks, Nationals, Rockies, and Twins prospects. Here are the important AzFL dates:

• Monday, Oct. 7th: Opening Day

• Saturday, Oct. 19th: Tripleheader day at Goodyear Ballpark

• Friday, Nov. 8th: Home Run Derby

• Saturday, Nov. 9th: Fall Stars Game

• Thursday, Nov. 14th: Final day of the regular season

• Friday, Nov. 15th: Play-in game

• Saturday, Nov. 16th: Championship Game

(Tripleheader day is pretty cool. All six teams play in the same ballpark and one ticket gets you into all three games. You get to see the entire league in one day.)

MLB opened up AzFL eligibility a few years ago. Previously the AzFL was limited to Double-A and Triple-A players, with one Single-A player per MLB parent club. There were also limits on service time and international players eligible to play winter ball. Now pretty much anyone can go. The Yankees could technically send Juan Soto to the AzFL, not that they would. ("Sorry Juan, we don't need you in the postseason. You're going to the Arizona Fall League.")

The AzFL is a developmental league and roster spots are finite. Each MLB team can send a maximum of nine players: Four pitchers (one starter and three relievers), three full-time position players (exact positions are negotiated among the clubs), and two taxi squad position players (eligible to play twice a week). Everyone who goes to the AzFL goes for a reason.

Because so many young pitchers are up against their workload limit by the end of the regular season, the AzFL is a very hitter friendly league. The pitching is mostly second and third (and below) tier prospects, or rehabbers coming off an injury. Last year the AzFL average was a .253/.354/.413 batting line and a 5.14 ERA. I’d say that qualifies as hitter friendly.

One thing I’ve learned over the years is predicting AzFL rosters is basically impossible, and it’s only gotten more difficult since the roster eligibility rules were loosened. Teams send some of the most random minor leaguers to the desert. Despite that, I'm going to take a stab at naming players the Yankees could send to the AzFL. This is a list of candidates, not a prediction. Let’s dive in.

RHP Cole Ayers

2024 stats: 3.43 ERA (3.68 FIP), 29.5 K%, 9.8 BB%, 0.86 HR/9 in 63 IP (A+, AA)

The AzFL is loaded with fringe prospect relievers and Ayers fits the profile, so consider this my attempt at identifying the “huh, who’s that?” reliever the Yankees send to Arizona. Ayers, 25, was a 16th rounder in 2021. He finally got to Double-A this year and has some interesting pitch data as a six-pitch reliever (low-90s four-seamer, sinker, cutter, slider, curveball, changeup). One thing working against him is his workload. Ayers has already thrown close to a full season as a reliever. Then again, what’s the harm in another 10 or so innings in the AzFL?

RHP Clayton Beeter

2024 stats: 2.45 ERA (3.08 FIP), 33.3 K%, 15.2 BB%, 0.27 HR/9 in 33 IP (AA, AAA)

Beeter is back! He was activated this past weekend and struck out two in a scoreless inning of relief for Double-A Somerset on Saturday (video). He threw 12 pitches and presumably the Yankees won't bother stretching him out this late in the season. Beeter had been sidelined since May 15th with a shoulder issue the Yankees thought might be season-ending, but obviously was not. I’m going to repeat myself a bunch in this post: Beeter missed a lot of time with his injury and the AzFL is a chance to get back some of that playing time. That describes like 75% of the pitchers in Arizona. They’re there after spending a bunch of time on the injured list.

OF Jasson Domínguez

2024 stats: .314/.376/.504 (137 wRC+), 11 HR, 20.0 K%, 8.8 BB% in 250 PA (A+, AA, AAA)

Whatever the reason, the Yankees are sticking with Alex Verdugo, and if that continues, then they might as well send El Marciano to the AzFL. He missed so much time with his Tommy John surgery rehab and then the oblique injury. The kid needs to play. If it’s not in the Bronx and in the postseason, then send him to the desert. One possible hangup here is the Yankees might prefer to keep Domínguez in Tampa as part of the group that works out and stays ready in case they’re needed as injury replacements in the postseason. (That's where Ron Marinaccio, Carlos Narváez, Oswald Peraza, Cody Poteet, Ben Rice, guys like that are heading once the Triple-A season ends.)

IF Caleb Durbin

2024 stats: .286/.404/.463 (133 wRC+), 8 HR, 9.9 K%, 13.9 BB% in 345 PA (A+, AA, AAA)

The Yankees sent Durbin to the AzFL last year and he stole 21 bases, second most in league history. There’s no reason he can’t return to the AzFL again this year, and considering Durbin missed two months with a broken hand, it’s a chance to make up for the at-bats he missed. Durbin returned from whatever his recent minor injury was Saturday (missed only seven days), so he’s healthy now and ready to go. I have a hunch Durbin is going on the 40-man roster for Rule 5 Draft purposes this offseason and the Yankees are going to talk him up as a second base option going into 2025.

C Antonio Gomez

2024 stats: .241/.329/.419 (109 wRC+), 5 HR, 25.7 K%, 10.8 BB% in 222 PA (Rk, A-, A+)

Gomez, my No. 30 prospect, missed the first two months of the season with an injury, so he’s someone who could use AzFL at-bats to make up for lost time. He’s showing signs of life with the bat too, really for the first time in his career. Gomez is a good defender and a great, great thrower. All he needs to do is be a below average hitter to have a shot at a big league career as a defensively minded backup. 

OF Anthony Hall

2024 stats: .222/.320/.316 (80 wRC+), 2 HR, 32.6 K%, 12.7 BB% in 181 PA (Rk, A-, A+)

It has been a very bumpy road for the 2022 fourth round pick. Injuries have limited him to only 133 games in two professional seasons and, considering his calling card is pull power, two homers and a .316 SLG this year is a bad sign. Hall is healthy at the moment and if the Yankees want him to continue playing after all the injuries, sending him to Arizona is the way to do it.

OF Spencer Jones

2024 stats: .258/.333/.448 (121 wRC+), 16 HR, 37.8 K%, 9.7 BB% in 516 PA (AA)

The strikeout rate is still way too high, but Jones is hitting .318/.378/.574 (165 wRC+) in his last 33 games, and has some positive momentum for the first time all season. He is something of a long-term project, so anything that gets him more at-bats is worthwhile. Going to the AzFL and beating up on third tier pitching in a hitter friendly climate would be a good way to boost the ol’ confidence heading into the offseason. This one is really simple: Jones is the second best prospect in the system and you might as well keep playing him. Keep the development going in the AzFL.

OF Garrett Martin

2024 stats: .216/.326/.422 (112 wRC+), 12 HR, 28.0 K%, 9.8 BB% in 346 PA (A+)

A few randos go to the AzFL every year and Martin, an undrafted free agent signing out of Austin Peay last summer, seems like a decent bet to be one of those randos this year. I think? Maybe. I dunno. Anyway, the 24-year-old has been out of his mind the last month, slashing .304/.414/.569 (172 wRC+) in his last 23 games with High-A Hudson Valley. Two weeks ago he popped up in Baseball America’s Prospect Hot Sheet and they said he is “super athletic with power and on-base ability,” and is “tooled up and it looks like things are starting to click.” Who knows, right? The Yankees sent Ben Cowles to the AzFL last year and he wasn’t much of a prospect at the time, then he broke out this year. Maybe Martin is the next Cowles.

RHP Brett Phillips

That is indeed former outfielder Brett Phillips. He quit hitting and converted to pitching earlier this year, and the Yankees signed him to a minor league deal in late July. They sent Phillips to the pitching lab in Tampa for pitch design work for a few weeks, and he made his season debut with Low-A Tampa last Friday: 0 IP, 2 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 0 K, 1 HB, 2 WP. Only seven of his 20 pitches were strikes. Not great. Here’s the quickie Statcast data:

Never good when the algorithm can’t classify a pitch. The vertical movement suggests the two “fastballs” were really curveballs, but who knows. Point is, Phillips is giving pitching a go, and his first outing as an actual pitcher didn’t go well (he’s made a few position player pitching appearances in the big leagues). 

The Yankees are interested enough in Phillips to bring him in, spend time on him in the lab, and give him one of their precious few 165-player minor league contract spots. It stands to reason they’ll want to see this through, and the minor league season ends in two weeks. Sending Phillips to the AzFL is a way to get him more innings. Other recent converts have gone to the desert to get work. Hmmm.

RHP Eric Reyzelman

2024 stats: 1.23 ERA (2.49 FIP), 41.1 K%, 11.6 BB%, 0.49 HR/9 in 36.2 IP (Rk, A+, AA)

With Jack Neely traded, there is no clear cut top relief prospect in the system. It might be RHP Kevin Stevens (who went to the AzFL last year), though he was placed on the 60-day injured list last month. Reyzelman has the big strikeout rate despite being close to a fastball-only guy, and he too has missed a bunch of time with injuries. He’s a reliever, he’s currently healthy, and he’s missed time both this year and throughout his career. That makes him a pretty good AzFL candidate. 

C/IF Jesus Rodriguez

2024 stats: .302/.375/.481 (143 wRC+), 10 HR, 14.7 K%, 9.9 BB% in 333 PA (A+, AA)

Rodriguez, 22, is a personal fave, and I’m using the AzFL as an excuse to write about him. He was a 2018 international signing out of Venezuela and it took a while for his career to get going around the pandemic. It didn’t help that the system has been deep in catchers the last few years – Rodriguez has been teammates with Agustin Ramirez, Ben Rice, and Austin Wells at various stops – and he wasn’t a priority prospect.

But, he’s hit, and he’s hit a lot. Some of these stops are small samples, but sheesh, Rodriguez has put up numbers everywhere he’s been (until his current 23-game cameo in Double-A):

Rodriguez has played 35 games at catcher this year, 23 at third base, 13 in left field, and five at first base (and five at DH). The book on him back in the day said he was a catch-and-throw guy, but the bat has been ahead of the glove, and playing with all those more highly regarded catchers forced Rodriguez to learn other positions. He backed into some versatility and is a viable option at the corners and behind the plate.

For what it’s worth, Rodriguez was a SEAGER darling in Low-A last year (86th percentile), though his exit velocity and whatnot is just okay. He’s a Grade C prospect at best and I’m not sure what his future looks like, but I like him in a way we all like random minor leaguers. Rodriguez is performing well and could be one of those prospects you don’t expect to go to the AzFL to go to the AzFL. (He is currently on the 7-day injured list, so he'll have to get healthy to go to Arizona.)

Various injured pitchers

RHP Chase Hampton is the top name here. He’s made only seven starts and thrown only 18.2 innings this season around a Spring Training flexor injury and a current groin injury. I don’t know what the deal is with the groin injury (severity, timetable, etc.), but if Hampton is healthy in time, he’s an obvious AzFL candidate. He’s arguably the best pitching prospect in the system and he’s missed a lot of time.

LHP Brock Selvidge hasn’t pitched since early July because of a biceps issue and the Yankees put him on the 60-day injured list on Aug. 12th, so his season may be over. Even if he is healthy, it’s hard to think Selvidge will go to the AzFL. He’ll have to properly rehab – playing catch to bullpens to live BPs – before pitching in competitive games. Seems unlikely. I think Selvidge is an AzFL longshot.

RHP Brian Hendry, last year’s tenth rounder, missed four months with an unknown injury, but he returned late last month, and has made four starts on a very tight pitch count. Tight as in no more than 35 pitches. Hendry was drafted as a senior and he turns 25 next month. They don’t care how old you are if you can get outs, but the Yankees do need to get Hendry’s career going. An AzFL stint for innings makes sense.

The Yankees selected RHP Kervin Castro, a former prospect of note with the Giants, in the minor league phase of last year’s Rule 5 Draft. He had Tommy John surgery in June 2023 and should be facing hitters by now. With mid-90s heat and a knockout curveball, Castro is an under-the-radar candidate to get a 40-man roster spot this winter. Sending him to the AzFL for game action before the 40-man decision makes sense.

Other pitchers who missed time with injury and could get an AzFL assignment include RHP Sean Boyle and RHP Harrison Cohen. Both missed a bunch of time earlier this year but are healthy now. Others like LHP Will Brian and RHP Ryan Harvey are currently on the injured list, but maybe they’re close to returning. I dunno. Expect some pitchers you’ve never heard of to go to the AzFL. It happens annually.

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