BREAKING: Yankees trade Jesus Montero for Michael Pineda

The Yankees traded their most beloved and touted prospect in recent memory, for an unproven 22-year-old starter (he turns 23 in five days.

That's right. Jesus Montero, who is also 22 and made an impact on the Yankees last September and earned a spot on the playoff roster, was traded to the Mariners for Michael Pineda, according to Jon Heyman. Heyman adds that more players are involved and the Yankees initially inquired about Felix Hernandez but were denied.

UPDATE: The Yankees also gave up Hector Noeisi and the Mariners gave up Jose Campos.

Rangers-Yankees Series Preview:

The AL West leaders are in town, and the Yankees are without their captain, at least for tonight.

The Yankees have beaten the Rangers two out of three at home and on the road this season, and the Rangers have lost five of their last seven games.

On the Hill:
Tuesday: Alexi Ogando (7-0, 2.10) vs. CC Sabathia (7-4, 3.15)
Wednesday: Derek Holland (5-1, 4.41) vs. Ivan Nova (5-4, 4.30)
Thursday: C.J. Wilson (7-3, 3.09) vs. TBA*

Another reliever down: Joba Chamberlain, roster changes

The Yankees have lost Joba Chamberlain for at least the next three weeks, as he was placed on the disabled list with a strained flexor muscle today.

The Yankees also claimed Jeff Marquez and sent Hector Noesi down to Scranton.

The Yankees already had lost Rafael Soriano and Pedro Feliciano to injury before today.

Yanks’ comeback falls short, Garcia lit up

The Yankees dug themselves into a hole early, and they never made it out. Jon Lester and Jonathan Papelbon made sure of that.

Scoreboard Says:
Red Sox 6, Yankees 4
W: Jon Lester
L: Freddy Garcia
S: Jonathan Papelbon

Robinson Cano’s heroics end marathon in 15th, Hector Noesi dazzles in debut

I napped through four innings, but still got to see 11. The Yankees led 1-0 in the ninth, but Mariano Rivera blew it and it took six extra innings for a team to deliver with runners in scoring position. Believe me, both teams had their chances, but the Yankees prevailed. 

Scoreboard Says:
Yankees 4, Orioles 1
Win: Hector Noesi
Loss: Jeremy Accardo

Questionable Call:
Bartolo Colon threw eight sensational innings, but Joe Girardi removed him after just 87 pitches in favor of Mo.

Rafael Soriano hits DL, Yankees recall Chris Dickerson

After visiting team doctor Chris Ahmad today, the Yankees placed Rafael Soriano on the 15-day disabled list with elbow stiffness. They recalled speedy outfielder Chris Dickerson to take Soriano’s roster spot.

Soriano hasn’t pitched since Friday, so the Yankees have already refigured their bullpen. Here’s what it looks like:

Hector Noesi replaces injured Luis Ayala

With Luis Ayala headed to the DL, Hector Noesi was called up to take his spot as the last man in the bullpen.

The Yankees placed Ayala on the 15-day DL today after he sustained an injury to his lat muscle on Saturday. Ayala allowed two earned runs in his first appearance as a Yankee, but then pitched a scoreless inning against Minnesota and then two more against Boston.

In one Triple-A start this season, Noesi allowed three runs (two earned) on nine hits over five innings whiles striking out four.

Mariano Rivera debuts, Yanks cut prospects

I wish I could have seen it live. I’ve missed it dearly. Mo’s cutter is a thing of beauty. The placement. The lack of emotion. The hitters’ confusion and their broken bats. After seeing it on replay, nothing’s changed (video), except for maybe the high socks?

I really liked Russell Martin’s reaction to catching the thing.

“When you’re in the box, it’s a nightmare,” Russell Martin said. “When you’re behind the plate, it’s the complete opposite… That’s the best cutter I’ve caught, for sure. It’s cause, normally you see some kind of spin and his, you don’t see the spin. There’s no side spin. It just cuts. I don’t know how he does it.”

It’s nice to get a new opinion on it, and nice to hear the detail about the spin. Sounds unhittable. And it is.

The Yankees slimmed their locker room a tad today, cutting 11 young guys.

Yankees starting pitcher prospects could see major league bullpen time

Maybe the Yankees don’t need to sign any reliever this offseason. Yankees Vice President of Baseball Operations Mark Newman said it wouldn’t be difficult for starting pitcher prospects to make the transition.

“When they get to Triple-A, they don’t need a full year doing that,” Newman said. “They need a month or two of adjustment. They still need innings. You don’t want to limit innings by putting them prematurely in the bullpen.”

Click through to see who Newman might be referring to.

Yankees top prospects [Baseball America]

I like to check in on Yankees prospects during the season from time to time, but the offseason gives me a chance to analyze them more closely.

Baseball America is the go-to source for MLB prospects, and Trenton Thunder beat writer Josh Norris got a hold of its 2011 top 10 Yankees prospects before it released them. Without further ado, here are the top 10 (in comparison to last year):

What happened to…?
Arodys Vizcaino was traded to the Braves in the Javier Vazquez deal … Zach McAllister went to the Indians in the Austin Kearns deal … J.R. Murphy had a rough year in mid-A ball … Jeremy Bleich underperformed in AAA.

New guys…
Dellin Betances made a name for himself, again, last year in high-A and AA … Hector Noesi shined in AA last year and earned a promotion to AAA … Eduardo Nunez had a brief stint in the majors last year, showing he could hit, run and field … Brandon Laird showed great power numbers for AA and earned a promotion to AAA.

Dellin Betances and Manny Banuelos scouting reports

MLB Fanhouse’s Frankie Piliere brings us scouting reports of two of the Yankees’ top pitching prospects: Manny Banuelos and Dellin Betances. Coincidentally, Josh Norris of The Trentonian is reporting both have been promoted to Double-A.

Banuelos scouting report: Piliere gave the 19-year-old southpaw plenty of praise in his report. Most notably, he confirmed his sudden increase in velocity (from 90-92 last year, 93-96 this year). Piliere concludes the report saying, “If he can remain healthy and keep his shorter frame in check, he is a true front-of-the-rotation type pitcher.”

Betances scouting report: The major question with Betances is his health. Piliere wrote the sky is the limit for the 6-foot-8 right-hander as long as he can stay healthy. He throws mid-nineties with decent control, and Piliere compared him to Josh Beckett.

---
This is obviously great news for the Yankees, as the organization is as strong as it has ever been from top to bottom. Just look at the Trention Thunder’s rotation, potentially, with these new additions:

1. Manny Banuelos
2. Dellin Betances
3. Hector Noesi
4. Andrew Brackman
5. Adam Warren

If you aren’t familiar with the Yankees’ prospects, Noesi and Brackman have had brilliant seasons thus far.

Consider this your mid-month Yankees minor league prospects report.

Romine, Noesi have strong showings at Futures Game

Two Yankees prospects participated in the 2010 Futures Game yesterday, Trenton Thunder catcher Austin Romine and pitcher Hector Noesi.

Romine, 21, went 1-for-2 with an RBI double and is hitting .281/.360/.421 with six homers and 44 RBIs on the year.

Noesi, 23, tossed a scoreless second inning allowing just one hit, while sporting a 6-1 record and 1.74 ERA with a 0.95 WHIP on the year.

Great seeing two more Yankees compete in this game. Jesus Montero would’ve been a third this year, but he had already played in the game the last two years — which is the max, apparently.

Yankees minor league prospects update

It’s the middle of the month and it’s time for another minor league prospects update for Yankees fans.

The organization is not as packed with prospects as it was before the trades made this past offseason, but there is still plenty of talent.

For starters (literally), the once “dead” prospects Andrew Brackman and Dellin Betances are seemingly back. Both were high up on the Yankees top prospect lists a couple years ago, but have since dropped off because of injuries and ineffectiveness. Now, both are still young (24 and 22, respectively) and dominating in High-A Tampa.

But let’s focus this minor league update on some talent closer to major league ready.

Triple-A: Scranton/Wilkes Barre Yankees  
Jorge Vazquez 1B: He just received a well-deserved promotion to Scranton after tearing up Double-A for 10 games, where he went 16-for-41 with a .390 BA and four doubles. With Scranton, he’s 3-for-11 with a homer and four RBIs. Vazquez is 28 years old and was signed out of Mexico last year. A quick promotion is a major signal that the Yankees like what they see from this guy.

Jonathan Albaladejo RHP: I think we all know who this guy is. He relieved for the Yankees last year, but wasn’t good enough to keep his job out of spring training this year. However, he is absolutely dominating Triple-A so far in 2010. In 31 2/3 innings, he’s holding hitters to a .143 BA and a 1.14 ERA with 22 saves. However, the Yankees opted for lefty Boone Logan yesterday when Sergio Mitre hit the DL. But I’m OK with it. This way, I won’t have to type his last name so much.
Full Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Triple-A stats here.

Double-A: Trenton Thunder 
Brandon Laird 3B: Laird earned a spot in the Thunder lineup by impressing in spring training this season, and he has continued to impress in Double-A this year. In 62 games, he’s leading the league in RBIs (62) and is third in home runs with 14, while hitting a respectable .305. Laird received major attention from the organization when he completed the cycle with a walk-off home run on May 27.

Hector Noesi RHP: Noesi is having an outstanding season thus far, starting the year in High-A ball and earning a promotion to Trenton. He has thrived in both leagues, combining for a 2.66 ERA and a .221 BBA in 71 innings for an 8-2 record. His most recent start was his first career complete game and the start before that featured 10 strikeouts. He’s won three of his first four games with Trenton. I’m keeping a close eye on Noesi.
Full Trenton Thunder Double-A stats here.

High-A: Tampa Yankees stats here.
Low-A: Charleston RiverDogs stats here.
(All of the used stats are prior to action on 6/16.)