As I look at the calender I see it is already August 19th, and for the first time in a very long time I can’t start thinking about who I would like to see the Yankees match up with come October.  In fact I have been having more thoughts on who Brian Cashman should bring back and let ago (that is if Cashman himself is back for the 2009 season) in the offseason.  Still it’s not like the Yankees are completely out of it either, since they finally showed signs of life by defeating Kansas City in 2 out of 3 games this past weekend.  Yes we have sunk to the point where beating Kansas City is an accomplishment.  At 5.5 games out of the wildcard, I feel strongly that if the Yankees can cut Boston’s lead to 3 games by September 1st they will have a shot at qualifying for the playoffs for the 14th straight season.  It will not be an easy task however, since they’ll also have to jump over Minnesota, but with 3 games remaining against Boston this month, all at home, I feel 3 games is definitely an attainable goal.

The Yankees are hoping to get a boost tomorrow with the possible return of Hideki Matsui as they head to Toronto to take on Yankee killers AJ Burnett and Roy Halladay.  Surprisingly the problem for the Yankees this season has been their offense, not their pitching.  Cashman took step 1 to help the offense by trading for Xavier Nady, the right handed power bat this lineup desperately needed.  Then on Friday Cashman took step 2 by sending Melky Cabrera down to Triple A, thus eliminating a huge whole in the lineup.  Step 3 will be activating Matsui to the lineup, where his career .373 OBP and .483 slugging percentage will be  welcomed with open arms.  Matsui isn’t the all-star player he once was, but having his bat in the lineup is an immediate upgrade over Brett Gardner.  Not to mention Matsui’s ability to shoot the ball to left field should help the Yankees average with hitting with runners in scoring position.

Taking 2 of 3 games from the hot Blue Jays is an absolute must, but it certainly won’t be easy with Burnett and Halladay slated to pitch.  As of now here is the pitching match ups:

Tue: Rasner (5-9) vs. Burnett (15-9)

Wed: Pettitte (12-9) vs. Purcey (2-3)

Thur: Ponson (7-3) vs. Halladay (14-9)

Sadly I’m ashamed to say I wouldn’t be shocked if Toronto swept after looking at these match-ups.  Burnett is clearly pitching like he is opting out at the end of the year.  The Yankees never hit pitchers they have never seen, so Purcey will probably throw 6 shutout innings, and Halladay is in my opinion the American League Cy Young winner (yes even over Lee).  So let me cross my fingers and say the Yankees need to win 2 out of 3 to show me they have a chance at post season play.  Then of course they have to figure out a way to beat Baltimore, but we’ll worry about that on Friday.

Other Yankee Related News and Notes

- I covered it in depth on Friday, and I can confirm that Gerritt Cole indeed did not sign with the Yankees. He is 1 of the 2 first round picks who did not sign, Nationals first round pick Aaron Crow being the other. It’s a shame really, as its tough to fault the kid for going to college, however I still think its unfair how he mislead the Yankee organization by leading them to believe he would sign when the drafted him.  At least the Yankees are now guaranteed a first round pick next year, regardless of who they sign in the offseason, however the chances are very slim that whomever they select will be as talented as Cole.  Cole if signed, would have been one of the Yankees top prospects heading into 2009, possibly as high as number 4 or 5.

- Speaking of prospects, the Yankees have seen some of their minor league prospects rise and fall this past season, which is common in the tricky game known as minor league baseball.  The hitter-pitcher tandem I have been most impressed with is A ball catcher Jesus Montero, and High A right handed pitcher Zach McAllister.

Montero is just 19 years old, and already he is 6′4 and weights 225 pounds.  So the chances of him remaining at catcher are slim to none, which isn’t a bad thing since the Yankees have some catching depth in their system (Cervelli, Romine, Weems, etc) and that it looks that Montero will hit for enough power to justify a move to first base.  Playing at a level where he is about a year or even two years younger than everyone else, Montero has displayed a ton of power as he has slugged 15 homeruns and supports a .486 slugging percentage.  What’s most encouraging however is his ability to take a walk, which is supported by his .371 OBP.  Montero can be a special player if he stays motivated and injury free, and next year in Tampa should be a test for him, as the FSL is notorious for being a tough hitters league.  Still the Yankee brass will not rush Jesus, so he should have time to grow and mature as a hitter.

McAllister was a 3rd round selection out of high school in the 2006 draft.  McAllister is still just 21 and it appears is finally coming into his own in Tampa.  McAllister to put it nicely struggled in the NY Penn League in 2007, however those struggles can be attributed to the Yankees tinkering with his arm slot and teaching him a new repertoire of pitches.  However after his 2007 struggles, the Yankees scrapped the curveball and allowed him to start throwing his slider again.  Along with his low 90’s 4 seam fastball, his sinking two seam fastball and a new changeup, McAllister has founded nothing but success in high A ball in 2008.   At 6′6 the big righty has dominated hitters with an era of 1.94 in 83.2 innings pitched.  McAllister is highly likely to make Baseball America’s Top 100 prospect list, and now that eyes are on him 2009 becomes a huge challenge in his career.  Especially since he will likely be promoted to Double A Trenton which is the biggest challenge for any prospect, aside from pitching in the major leagues.

For every success there are twice as many failures unfortunately in the land of prospects, as the Yankees saw pitching prospect Alan Horne take a step backwards as he could just not stay healthy in 2008.  Also the demise of Jose Tabata in double A led to him being shipped to Pittsburgh in the Nady deal, something that Yankee fans would have though was impossible just two years ago, since Tabata was being tabbed as Manny Ramirez lite.  Still as I have mentioned before with Kennedy (although I’m not saying he’s done just yet), you put them out of your mind and move on to the next prospect.

That’s it for today, I’ll be back on Thursday to either sing the Yankees praises or to give them their last rites.  Until then it will be nothing but Yankee games and Olympic coverage for me.  Btw does anyone else think Michael Phelps can now pull a Cosmo Kramer and acquire the license plates that read ASSMAN?  Dude is unreal, as are the Jamaican track team.  They haven’t quite reached the elite level of their bobsledding countrymen, but they are close.  Also I say this now, if Bela Karolyi ran for public office, he would have my vote.  His late night rants on the age of the Chinese gymnast and the horrible judging has been a must see nightly in my household.   Anyways thoughts and comments can be sent to jvg019@yahoo.com.  Later.

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