Edwar Headed To Texas

After being designated for assignment last month, Edwar Ramirez has been traded to the Texas Rangers for cash considerations, according to Jack Curry of YES.

Good luck in Texas.

Edwar Ramirez DFA

With Chan Ho Park's arrival at Yankees camp down in Tampa today, the Yanks needed to open up some space on the 40-man roster, so they did so by designating Edwar Ramirez for assignment. This looks like the end of the Edwar era.

In 96 career games with the Yankees from 2006-2009, Ramirez went 6-2, with 2 saves, a 5.22 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP. In 98.1 innings pitched he allowed 57 earned runs on 93 hits, allowed 19 long balls, walked 56, and struck out 116. A lot of strikeouts, a lot of walks, and too many homers. If he only had a better fastball to go with that changeup he could be a pretty dominating reliever. Good luck Edwar, I hope you catch on some place else.

Add Edwar to the List of Call-Ups

Last night we learned that Mike Dunn, Mark Melancon, Ramiro Pena, and Francisco Cervelli would be joining the Yankees. Today, Chad Jennings informs us that Edwar Ramirez will also be added to the roster.

In 29 games for SWB Ramirez is 1-5 with 4 saves and a 3.18 ERA. In 51 IP he's allowed 18 ER on 39 hits, he's walked 16 and struck out 62. Oppenents are hitting .205 against him.

Replacing them on the SWB Yanks roster will be RHP Humberto Sanchez, RHP Eric Wordekemper,
and OF Freddy Guzman. There are still two spots open on the SWB Yanks roster and I will update this post as soon as those players are identified.

Also, Mark Feinsand is reporting what Jennings said yesterday, that Shelley Duncan and Austin Jackson could join the Yankees once the Triple-A playoffs are over.

Yanks Talk About The Loss of Adenhart

From Mark Feinsand:

"It's difficult for all of us in the baseball family," Girardi said. "You dream your whole life about playing in the big leagues, you make your first start and have a good start and then it's over."

Mark Teixeira didn't play with Adenhart during his two-month stint in Anaheim last year, but the first baseman, who had been informed of the news by Girardi just a few minutes before the story appeared on television, looked particularly shaken up.

"I feel for the organization," Teixeira said.

Girardi said Teixeira took the news hard, though the manager was clearly having a difficult time with it himself, tearing up as he spoke about the situation.

"It's terrible," Girardi said. "Just brutal."

Jose Molina and Edwar Ramirez both played with Adenhart in the Angels organization, and each of them remembered the 22-year-old as a terrific teammate.

"He was an awesome kid," said Molina, who was in spring training camp with Adenhart in 2006-07. "He was kind of quiet, but that may have just been because he was a rookie."

Ramirez said he used to hitch rides with Adenhart every day in spring training. He was thrilled when he heard the pitcher had made his big-league debut last May, then watched the highlights Wednesday night after Adenhart pitched six scoreless innings against the A's.

"It's shocking. He was a great guy," Ramirez said. "When I saw that he made it to the majors, I was so happy for him. And after last night? It's horrible."

And here's what Joba Chamberlain had to say:

"Life is short and this is a perfect example," Chamberlain said. "It sounds like he was just driving home after the game, and now he's not coming to the ballpark the next day. You can't take anything for granted, ever."

"We're all a family in the game of baseball," Chamberlain said. "We all have to go through things that are tough, but you can never put this into words. A young man pitches his tail off the night before for his team and the next thing you know, it's all over with. It's unfathomable."

As I said before, this is just a terrible loss. My condolences go out to the Adenhart family and the entire Angels organization.

Ramirez Out a Minimum of 3 Days

After going for an MRI yesterday it was revealed today that Edwar Ramirez has been diagnosed with “mild bursitis” in his right shoulder. This will keep him from throwing for at least three days.

That certainly doesn’t sound like a catastrophic injury, but let’s not forget that Steve Karsay and Tanyon Sturtze were initially diagnosed with the same thing before eventually undergoing major shoulder surgery. Certainly something to keep an eye on.

Edwar Sidelined With Sore Shoulder

From the AP:

Reliever Edwar Ramirez shut down his bullpen session early due to right shoulder tendinitis. He will be examined by Dr. Allen Miller on Monday.

Ramirez said he felt discomfort in the front part of his shoulder above the arm.

Hopefully it's not too serious.

Also on the injury front, Derek Jeter has a sore hamstring, but he says he's fine.

"It's no big deal," Jeter said. "It's really not an issue."

He participated in every drill today besides running, and he's expected to resume running tomorrow.

Two More Yankees Ditch the WBC

According to NorthJersey.com, reliever Edwar Ramirez will no longer be pitching for the Dominican Republic in the upcoming World Baseball Classic.

UPDATE: MLB.com is reporting that Jose Veras has also withdrawn from the WBC.

So far that's Melky Cabrera, Alfredo Aceves and now Veras and Ramirez who have all dropped out of the WBC in the last week.

13 Yankees Heading to the WBC

The 2009 World Baseball Classic rosters were announced tonight, here are all the rosters from MLB.com.

There will be 13 Yankee minor and major leaguers heading to the WBC, here's a list of those players and the country they will be playing for from Bryan Hoch's blog:

United States: Derek Jeter

Dominican Republic: Alex Rodriguez, Melky Cabrera, Robinson Cano, Damaso Marte, Edwar Ramirez, Jose Veras

Mexico: Alfredo Aceves, Jorge Vazquez

Italy: Francisco Cervelli

Panama: Jahdiel Santamaria

China: Kai Liu, Zhenwang Zhang

Former Yankees Bobby Abreu, Ivan Rodriguez and Bernie Williams will also be playing. Abreu for Venezuela, and Rodriguez and Williams for Puerto Rico.

Jim Kaat on Teixeira and the Yanks Bullpen

From Jim Kaat:

The latest deal by the Yankees gives them the gold standard for first basemen in Major League Baseball. Mark Teixeira is a tremendous combination of hitting for average and power, and on top of that, he's an excellent fielder. It solves their problem at first base, which has existed since Tino Martinez was not retained after a terrific run with the Yankees.

If you're a Yankee fan, you have to feel they may have bought the World Series ring that has avoided them since 2000. However, most of you that have read my thoughts or listened to them on the YES Network over the years know I'm a pitching guy. No matter how well Teixeira does, it still will be the guys at the end of the game that decide their fate. Unless they can just outscore everyone, and that never happens against good pitching. This should save some infielders a few errors on errant throws. This guy is good around the bag.

Anyone know who they're counting on to pitch the seventh and eighth inning yet? That's where I'd spend my money. But, like I said earlier, I'm a pitching guy... I always have been, and I always will be. I'd overpay Andy Pettitte for one year because he's "been" and "done" more than any of the new crop.

As I said before I would probably overpay for Pettitte too, but at this point I don't believe anyone is going to give him much more than the $10.5 million the Yanks offered him so I don't think the Yanks should up their offer.

With the bullpen I think the Yankees will be fine. Between Phil Coke, Brian Bruney, Jose Veras, Edwar Ramirez, Damaso Marte, and Jonathan Albaladejo, I think the Yanks will be fine from the sixth inning on.

I see the bullpen setting up like this:

Long Reliever: Aceves/Giese

Middle Relievers: Ramirez, Veras, Albaladejo, Coke/Marte

Setup: Coke/Marte, Bruney

Closer: The Greatest

I think that should be fine.

Don't forget, they also have Mark Melancon in AAA who may be ready to join the big club very shortly. And that's without even mentioning the five or six other arms the Yankees have in the minors waiting in the wings.

Kevin Millar: Just Shut Up

From Peter Abraham:

Kevin Millar was asked whether he thought Edwar Ramirez was throwing at him.

“One hundred percent,” he said. “I was upset they threw him out of the game because he’s really good hitting. He’s a cute little fellow, he doesn’t throw that hard and he doesn’t have very good stuff. So it’s probably a good idea they threw him out, because it probably would’ve been in Monument Park.”

That’s pretty funny. What’s even funnier is that Millar is 1 for 4 against Ramirez with three K’s.

It's a shame the ball didn't hit you in the face. Freakin' scab.

Girardi, Stop Using Farnsworth in the 8th

This year the 8th just isn't his thing, it really hasn't been since 2006, when he was actually decent. But since last year he's been absolutely awful, and it's time to give somebody else a shot.

This season Farnsworth hitters have hit .353 off him in the 8th inning. Last year opponents hit .299 against him in the 8th, by far his worst BAA in any inning. All this tells me is the pressure is getting to him in the 8th, let the guy be effective and pitch a less pressure packing inning, like the 6th or 7th, instead of forcing him to be the setup man.

Who to replace him? Why not give Edwar Ramirez a shot? For his brief career Edwar has only allowed opponents to hit .213 off him in the 8th inning. This year they're just hitting .154 against him in the 8th.

It would also be worth giving a guy like Chris Britton a shot, in his career he's held opponents to a .135 batting average in the 8th. And in late & close situations he's held batters to a .200 batting average. But we all know that for some reason Yankees managers hate Chris Britton and won't give him a chance.

None of this means either of these two will be great setup men, but it's certainly worth at least seeing if they can do the job.

Eventually the Yankees will call up guys like J.B. Cox and Mark Melancon, and hopefully one of them will be able to do the job, but until then why continue to lose games with Kyle Farnsworth on the mound? Give somebody else a chance.

Edwar Gets Help From an Unlikely Source

From Ed Price:

NEW YORK -- One day last winter, while Edwar Ramirez was working out at a field in Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic, David Ortiz came up to him.

"Pedro wants to talk to you," Ortiz said.

As in Pedro Martinez.

"I've seen you pitch," Martinez said, as Ramirez recalled yesterday. "and you've got an incredible changeup. You don't know what you have."

It was the changeup that enabled Ramirez, a right-hander, to climb from an independent league team in Edinburg, Texas, to the majors in less than a year. But Martinez's advice to Ramirez: Use your fastball more.

As a result of more and better-located fastballs, Ramirez has yet to allow a run this year -- including eight appearances in Triple A and eight in the majors.

In his prime Pedro Martinez was the greatest pitcher I've ever seen, and to get pitching advice, and praise from him about one of your pitches can only be a good thing. And its really seemed to help give Ramirez the confidence he needs to trust his stuff, and get the most out of his changeup.

The article also goes on to say that "Through almost-daily work with pitching coach Dave Eiland on his mechanics, Ramirez has been able to keep his fastball down and improve the velocity, from 88-90 mph to 90-92." So that's helped as well.

Bruney Out for the Year: Albaladejo and Britton Called Up

According to Chad Jennings, Jonathan Albaladejo and Chris Britton have been called up. He said there has been no word on any corresponding moves. More updates as they come.

In 8 games Britton is 2-1 with a 2.45 ERA at AAA Scranton-Wilkes Barre. Allowing just 3 runs on 11 hits and 4 walks while striking out 10 in 11 innings of work.

Albaladejo has also been very good at SWB, in 7 IP he's allowed just 2 runs (1.29 ERA) on 5 hits and 4 walks. In 5.2 innings in the majors this year he's 0-0 with a 3.18 ERA with 1 BB and 7 strikeouts.

Edwar Ramirez is probably sitting somewhere in Scranton wondering how much better he has to do to get another shot. In 9 innings this year in AAA he's allowed no runs, 2 hits and a walk while striking out 13. You can't pitch much better than that.

UPDATE: According to Peter Abraham, Brian Bruney has a torn ligament in his foot that will require surgery and is likely out for the season. What a shame, he's been very good so far and now is lost for the year. If you read this article from Tyler Kepner you know just how bad the last few days have been for him.

Sports Weekly's 100 Names You Need to Know in '08

This is the 12th edition of this list, that according to USA Today lists,

next wave of players coming into the majors, who, in our view could make the biggest impact during the 2008 season. These aren't necessarily baseball's 100 best prospects. Many top prospects are too far down in the minor leagues to contribute in the majors this season. Others are stuck behind established major leaguers.

Not all of the players on our list have rookie status, but our criteria for inclusion is that players must have had more innings or at-bats in the minor leagues in 2007 than they have had during all of their major league time.

Five Yankees made the list:

2. Joba Chamberlain, RHP, Yankees
Chamberlain, 22, burst onto the scene in mid-summer, soaring from Class A to the big leagues and creating a media storm with his dazzling performance. He dominated hitters with his 95-98 mph fastball and power slider. The Yankees kept him in the bullpen last year but plan to move him into the rotation, even if he starts the season as a reliever. He likely will be the fifth starter, enabling the Yankees to give him extra rest when needed to protect his valuable arm.

21. Ian Kennedy, RHP, Yankees
It's a testament to the depth of the Yankees' young pitching that Kennedy, 23, is regarded as only their third-best prospect behind Joba Chamberlain and Philip Hughes. Part of that stems from Kennedy lacking an overpowering fastball, but he makes up for that with superb command and mound savvy. Kennedy, a master at changing speeds and fooling hitters, had ERAs below 2.60 at all four levels he pitched in last year, including the majors.

25. Shelley Duncan, OF, Yankees
The son of Cardinals pitching coach Dave Duncan and older brother of outfielder Chris Duncan, Shelley Duncan broke in with the Yankees in 2007 after spending seven seasons in their farm system. Duncan, who can play first base and the outfield corners, had seven home runs and a .554 slugging percentage in just 74 at-bats. With Johnny Damon and Jason Giambi slated to spend time at DH next season, the latter may wind up platooning at first base with the right-handed-hitting Duncan, 28, unless the Yankees make a trade.

30. Edwar Ramirez, RHP, Yankees
Ramirez, 26, who spent 2005 and 2006 playing independent ball, is in the mix to make the roster this spring. He's got an above-average changeup, but his fastball is average at best and last season, he gave up six home runs in 21 innings.

87. Jonathan Albaladejo, RHP, Yankees
He followed up his stellar 2007 season with a 2-2 record, 2.42 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 26 innings in the Venezuelan winter league. The Yankees' middle-relief picture is far from settled, especially if they make Joba Chamberlain a starter, as expected. Albaladejo, 25, has a shot to become one of the Yankees' go-to relievers, even if it doesn't happen until sometime later in the season.

The entire list can be found here.

(Hat tip to WasWatching.com)