On Friday the 13th, the New York Yankees rose from the dead, made some noise and acquired two starting pitchers that will make them favorites to repeat as division champions.The Bronx Bombers dealt prized catching prospect Jesus Montero to Seattle in exchange for 22-year-old Michael Pineda. They also agreed to terms with free-agent pitcher Hiroki Kuroda, according to ESPN.Pineda went 9-10 with a 3.74 ERA for the Seattle Mariners as a rookie last year.Pineda adds more youth to the Yankees rotation behind veteran ace CC Sabathia. After Pineda, the Yankees have ...
Go west, young man, go west. That's Montero’s destiny.It was finally fulfilled today, when the New York Yankees and Seattle Mariners partnered up again for a trade involving Jesus Montero. No, King Felix was not involved. Instead, the No. 2 ace and Rookie of the Year candidate, Michael Pineda, was the headliner.The Yankees shipped off Montero and Hector Noesi. Noesi saw a few spot starts in the end of the regular season, but mostly long relief last year. In return, they received right Michael Pineda and pitching prospect Jose Campos.At ...
It seems as if the New York Yankees weren't sleeping during this offseason after all. It has been confirmed via MLB that the Yankees will send top hitting prospect Jesus Montero, along with Hector Noesi, to the Seattle Mariners for top pitching prospect Michael Pineda, along with Jose Campos.Just minutes after that deal was announced, the Yankees confirmed that they signed pitcher Hiroki Kuroda to a one-year deal worth $10 million.Pineda pitched his first major league season in Seattle during 2011 and ended with a 9-10 record and a 3.54 ERA. He ...
As I reflected on the New York Yankees following their 2011 Division Series loss to the Detroit Tigers, the feeling was not optimistic, to say the least. While I was very proud of the 2011 team and all they accomplished given the pitching rotation in place, I certainly doubted the future of the team.The lineup looked great without question; Robinson Cano, Brett Gardner, Curtis Granderson and Mark Teixeira are all young, and I still believe Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter have productive years left in them. The pitching staff is ...
Whether you like the trade of Jesus Montero and Hector Noesi for Michael Pineda and Jose Campos or not—and to be clear, this writer does not—you have to think that Brian Cashman is absolutely relishing the role he's played in all of this.This is the kind of deal that makes Cashman feel good about himself, the kind he would like the world to think he would make a habit of pulling off regularly if he was running a low-budget team as opposed to the richest in the game. That Cashman gets to leave Scott ...
The New York Yankees' quiet winter came to an end in a loud way on Friday night, when they traded power-hitting catcher Jesus Montero along with Hector Noesi to the Seattle Mariners for top pitching prospect Michael Pineda and Minor League hurler Jose Campos (via MLB.com)Just about an hour later, news broke that New York's rotation would be further boosted with the signing of free-agent right-hander Hiroki Kuroda to a one-year, $10 million deal (via ESPN).In less than 60 minutes, Ivan Nova went from the Bombers' second to fourth starter, ...
Despite laying quietly in the weeds for the entire offseason, the New York Yankees were extremely busy on Friday, making great strides in shoring up a starting rotation that had a lot of holes in 2011 and was a question mark heading into 2012. First, they traded their top prospect and potential stud catcher/DH Jesus Montero to Seattle for one of the majors' brightest young power arms in Michael Pineda. Later, they signed veteran pitcher Hiroki Kuroda to a one-year contract worth a reported $10 million. In doing so, they ...
What a night.First, Jesus Montero gets shipped out of town for Michael Pineda, and now Brian Cashman finally gets the Japanese pitcher he has lusted after for almost a year.While Hiroki Kuroda is no spring chicken—the righty turns 37 next month—the Yankees have signed him to a one-year deal for between $10 and $11 million, pending a physical.Kuroda has only pitched for the Los Angeles Dodgers over his four-year major league career, but the veteran has the ability to pitch in the AL East, arguably baseball's toughest division.With the Dodgers, ...
News around the big leagues on Friday night was overshadowed by the trade between the New York Yankees and Seattle Mariners, involving two highly valued prospects. It would send Jesus Montero to Seattle, and rookie All-Star Michael Pineda to fill out the rotation in the Bronx.However, New York did make another move that might finally give them a very good rotation for their 28th World Series Championship, agreeing to terms with pitcher Hiroki Kuroda. The contract is reportedly to be a one-year deal worth $10 million.Kuroda, who will be 37 years of ...
Both the New York Yankees and the Seattle Mariners have been quiet this off season. It looked as if both teams were content to go into the season without making any major moves.Then it was reported that the Yankees and Mariners have agreed on a deal that will swap two of the top prospects in the game. The Yankees will send catcher Jesus Montero to Seattle in exchange for pitcher Michael Pineda.This trade is a perfect move for both teams: The Mariners were in need of an offensive catcher and the ...