Aceves Signs Minor-League Deal With Red Sox

I know the Yankees pen is pretty solid, at least on paper, but why couldn't they have thrown a deal like this at Aceves? Maybe they know something about his injuries that the Sox don't, but I think it would have been smart to keep Ace.

Yankees Hope to Sign Aceves to Minor League Deal

Via Joel Sherman:

#Yankees would like to get Aceves back, but on minor lge deal so he can rehab injuries/not take up 40-man roster spot

Despite his being non-tendered last week, few believed that we had seen the last of Alfredo Aceves in pinstripes - in fact, many suspected that this was the motivation from the moment the announcement was made. That being said, a challenger has emerged:

#Rockies among teams interested in recently non-tendered #Yankees RHP Alfredo Aceves.

While Aceves' timetable for return has fluctuated a great deal over the last several months, there's no denying that he has a fair amount of potential value. Aceves performed admirably out of the bullpen in 2009, and he has the stuff and track record to suggest that he could serve as a fifth starter. Here's hoping the Yankees can bring him back on-board.

No Contracts For Aceves & Moseley

Not surprised about Moseley, especially with Mitre getting a deal yesterday.

As for Aceves, I think Ben from RAB summed things up pretty well. Basically, he doesn't think they want to waste a 40-man roster spot on someone with the injury issues Ace has, and will try to sign him to a minor-league deal. I agree completely.

Surgery For Gardner and Aceves

According to Mark Feinsand, Brett Gardner will have surgery next Tuesday due to right wrist tendinitis. Gardner should be 100% by spring training.

Alfredo Aceves already had his surgery on November 30, to repair a fractured left clavicle sustained in a bicycle accident while home in Mexico. He will rest for six week before beginning three months of rehab.

The Lineup & Some Bad News On Aceves and Marte

Here's the lineup via Chad Jennings:

Brett Gardner LF
Derek Jeter SS
Mark Teixeira DH
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Robinson Cano 2B
Nick Swisher RF
Lance Berkman 1B
Curtis Granderson CF
Francisco Cervelli C

Jennings also passes along this from Pete Caldera:

Girardi says Aceves out for the year, and feels same about Marte.

Not good news for the Yankees pen, but it's not really a surprise. Once they each suffered their latest setbacks you knew this was coming.

Setback For Aceves

From Mike Ashmore:

Alfredo Aceves has been scratched from his outing tonight. He went back to NY, possibly to have his back re-examined.

This can't be good. At this point, I doubt we'll see him again this year.

Some Info From Cash

Marc Carig had a bunch of tweets yesterday with info about various topics from the General Manager, here is a rundown:

From Cashman, it sounds like Aceves will make at least one more rehab appearance.

...

Also from Cashman: Hughes IP limit applies only to regular season. In playoffs, it's "all hands on deck." Hughes a candidate to start.

...

Cashman also Ivan Nova as an option to help the rotation if needed.

...

Cashman says the Yankees aren't looking to make any waiver trades: "This is the team we've got."

Nothing too surprising, just felt like passing it your way.

Aceves Getting Close To Return

If you missed it in the minor league report, Alfredo Aceves threw two perfect innings last night in Trenton. Mike Ashmore had are some quotes from Aceves on his outing:

“Of course I’m happy. I didn’t feel nothing in my back, that’s the important thing. I feel like I could play again. I’m here to do my shoulder stuff and for (the media), and now I’m coming back to see the game.”

“I’m probably going to stay for six days; five-six days, here in Trenton. Probably having another start here, maybe two, I don’t know. I don’t have that decision in my hands.”

“It was the same for me (as the outing in Scranton), because I didn’t feel pain in my back…”

“(I haven’t felt pain) for two, three weeks.”

Great news for the Yanks. The pen has already started to turn things around, and the addition of Aceves will only make it better.

Aceves To Begin Rehab Stint

Very good news for the Yankees, as injured reliever Alfredo Aceves will begin a rehab stint with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees tonight. He will start the game and throw one inning. Hopefully his back doesn't start acting up again, because the addition of Aceves could be huge for this bullpen.

A Setback For Aceves

From Marc Carig:

Reliever Alfredo Aceves was sent to New York after suffering another setback while throwing off a mound in Tampa. It's been a rocky back rehab for Aceves, who looks more and more unlikely to return this season.

Not good. Not good at all.

Updates From The Disabled List

Here's a summary of some injury updates from Chad Jennings:

Marcus Thames - Is rehabbing with the SWB Yanks and will play a full game for them today. He could be back with the Yankees as soon as tomorrow.

Sergio Mitre - He threw a 10-pitch inning yesterday for the Single-A Tampa Yankees. On Monday, he is set to throw two-innngs for Tampa.

Girardi said it’s “reasonable to assume” that Mitre will be ready to join the team after the all-star break.

Alfredo Aceves - Monday, Aceves will throw his first “advanced” bullpen session, is scheduled for 40 to 45 pitches off a full mound, and will throw all of his pitches. He's still behind Mitre in returning to the Yankees, but this is a good sign.

Nick Johnson - Johnson is still a long way away. He's "scheduled take dry swings with a light fungo bat this afternoon," and he could he’ll hit up to 20 balls of a tee. If he gets through that with no problems, Johnson will go to Tampa to continue his rehab.

Girardi said Johnson is “weeks” from rejoining the team. “This is a process we understand is going to take a while,” Girardi said.

Out of this group, I think Aceves is the most important. I've said this many times, but he was one of the keys to last year's bullpen success, and the Yankees could use him desperately right now.

Burnett's Foot Passes Test, Will Start Monday

After some concerned surfaced yesterday about his sore foot, A.J. Burnett was cleared to start Monday in Arizona after a problem-free bullpen session this afternoon.

“It was a good day today,” Burnett said. “It didn’t bother me. I was worried yesterday and the day after my start, but not today. I’ll be good to go for Monday.”

... It feels “night and day different” since Thursday. Girardi said he’s confident Burnett will be able to pitch as scheduled in Arizona.

So the Yankees are two-for-three for the day on the injury front. Aceves is working his way back and Burnett is fine. Jeter did sit out today's game with a sore heel, but he's not scheduled to have any tests so I don't think it's too big a deal.

Aceves Making Progress

Here's an update on Aceves from LoHud's Chad Jennings:

Alfredo Aceves said he felt good after roughly six minutes throwing off a half mound. He will find out later today whether he’ll make the Yankees west coast road trip, but Aceves seems to think there’s a chance he will instead go to Scranton for a rehab assignment.

Girardi is a little more cautious and said he thinks it's too soon to know when Aceves will be back.

Aceves' Season Could Be Over

From George A. King III:

The back injury that put Alfredo Aceves on the disabled list could be season-ending and might result in surgery to repair a bulging disc in the lower back.

Aceves stopped a throwing session Tuesday in Tampa and is in New York to be examined by Dr. Chris Ahmad. According to manager Joe Girardi, nobody knows when or if Aceves will try to throw again.

"He has a disc problem," Girardi said of the valuable right-hander who hasn't pitched since May 8 in Boston when he felt discomfort covering first base. "It's something a lot of players deal with it when it's not symptomatic and it's symptomatic."

Aceves was a huge part of this team last year so this would obviously a big blow to the Yankees bullpen. If he does end up going under the knife, the Yankees will need guys like Robertson, Mitre, Gaudin, and Park, or at least a couple of them, to step up and fill the void.

If there's any more info on Aceves I will update this post.

Updates On Vazquez and Aceves

Here's some good and bad news. First, the good: Javier Vazquez threw a bullpen session today and reported no pain. He was able to throw all of his pitches and it looks like he'll be able to make his start on Thursday. “It felt normal,” Vazquez said. “I didn’t feeling it pitching so I’m ready to go Thursday.”

And now the bad: Alfredo Aceves suffered a setback today during a flat ground throwing session. After six or seven pitches Aceves felt something in his lower back and was forced to stop. The Yankees aren't sure what they're going to do from here, but Chad Jennings says it sound possible that Aceves will go back to New York for some more tests.

Here's Some Good News: Aceves is Feeling Better

This is from CBS Sports Fantasy News:

RHP Alfredo Aceves will try playing catch Wednesday, the first time he will throw since landing on the DL last week with a bulging disk in his lower back. Aceves has no timetable to throw off a mound, but manager Joe Girardi noted the reliever "has a little hop in his step and appears to be a lot better."

Not having any idea of when he will be back is discouraging, but at least he's on the mend.

Last year, Aceves' versatility helped the team solidify the pen. He's can be a long-man, short-man, setup guy, mop up guy, or in other words, anything the Yankees need him to be. So it's no surprise that the Yankees pen has struggled in his absence. Getting him back, along with Curtis Gradnerson and Jorge Posada will be three things that help the Yanks get back in the right direction, but until they do come back the guys who are out there must step up. This division is far too good for mediocre baseball.

Yanks May Call Up Melancon To Help Bullpen Issues

Chad Jennings is reporting that the Yankees will likely call Mark Melancon up from Triple-A Scranton, but they're waiting to see if tonight's game can be played before they make the move. He also says that Boone Logan or Greg Golson could be heading to Scranton to make room on the roster.

With the exception of Sunday's game, both Joba and Mo have looked good at the end of games, the problem is getting there. The loss of Alfredo Aceves has really started to take its toll on the pen. David Robertson has been better lately, but still isn't the same pitcher we saw most of last year. He's walking 6.17 batters per nine compared to 4.74 last year, and his homers are way up, from 0.82 per nine last year to 2.31 so far in 2010. He also has relied on his fastball a lot more this year, throwing it 78.1% of the time, compared to 68.7% last year. Batters may be sitting on his fastball, and that could be causing the jump in homers.

Besides Robertson's struggles, the Yankees have no idea what they have in Chan Ho Park. He had a couple good outings before hitting the DL, but overall has been a disappointment. And Damaso Marte and Logan have both been ineffective.

The bullpen is an issue right now, there's no doubt that. But it has been like this in each of Joe Girardi's first two seasons as manager and each time he found a formula that eventually worked. Hopefully, Melancon can pitch well at this level and help the pen find itself. Other pitchers to keep your eye on are Jonathan Albaladejo and lefty Royce Ring, who have both pitched well for Scranton this year.

Golson Up, No Sign Of Miranda

There have been reports going around for two days now saying the Yankees were going to call up Juan Miranda. Today, Chad Jennings is reporting that Greg Golson, not Miranda, is with the team and is listed on the lineup card as a bench player.

Golson is likely going to take Alfredo Aceves' spot on the roster. Not sure if these means they've nixed their plans to call up Miranda, but as of now he's not with the team.

Aceves To The DL

The Yankees place right-hand pitcher Alfredo Aceves on the 15-day DL today with a bulging disc. Here's some quotes from Ace and Girardi via Mark Feinsand:

"He felt fine until he had to actually go through the movement," Girardi said. "Just walking around, in the tub, the stretching, he felt fine. When he had to (throw), he felt it grab. I was optimistic."

Said Aceves, "As soon as I got loose and put in a little bit of power, it pinched me. I've got to shut it down for more couple of days. We'll see."

Aceves said he's suffering from a bulging disk, so he will fly back to New York today, though he said he won't be examined by a doctor and undergo tests until tomorrow.

"I'm going to take my time to get back," Aceves said. "I want to get back and try to pitch to help my team. I don't want to rush. And I don't want to rush my back."

This is a rough loss for the Yanks, and makes the return of Chan Ho Park that much more important. Any updates from his examination tomorrow and I'll post them here.

Aceves Should Only Miss A Few Days

Andrew Marchand is reporting that Alfredo Aceves believes he will miss two or three days because of his stiff back. This isn;t anything new for Aceves, and Marchand says he wasn't too concerned.