FSN Nick Swisher's a Reliever Now?

I didn't know the Yankees dealt him...and that he became a pitcher.

Yanks Acquire Hinske

Some news out of NY, the Yankees have acquired infielder/outfielder/Mark DeRosa-like player Eric Hinske from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for cash and to minor league players.

Hinske, hit .255 with 18 runs, 9 doubles, 1 HR and 11 RBIs in 54 games (13 in right, 6 at first, 3 at third, and 29 pinch-hit appearances. He also played on the 2008 AL Champion Rays, the 2006 and (World Series-winning) 2007 Red Sox, and the 2002-2006 Blue Jays.

He will report to Yankee Stadium which means a roster move will be made for his return. I would think that either Ramiro Pena or Brett Tomko will be sent down or designated for assignment to clear up room.

The Yankees sent over RHP Casey Erickson and OF/C Eric Fryer to the Pirates along with cash for Hinske. The Yankees traded LHP Chase Wright for Fryer earlier this year.

Yanks Win Bidding For Dominican Catcher

According to George A. King III of the New York Post, the Yankees have agreed to terms with Dominican catching prospect Gary Sanchez. Sanchez, 16, isn't able to sign with a major league team until the international signing period begins on July 2nd. Until then, no deal can be made final. That being said, Sanchez expressed a lot of interest of joining the Yanks and has agreed to a deal which includes a $2.5MM signing bonus. 

Sanchez is not expected to hit as well as, fellow international-signing catcher, Jesus Montero, however he is more adapt defensively. 

The other international prospect the Yanks are viewing is infielder Miguel Angel Sano who has drawn interest from multiple teams. He will be tougher to sign due to the inflation of competition, but it all depends on how much desire the Yankees have for the young shortstop. After all, they have still not found a decent replacement for when the captain hangs up his pinstripes. 

Other Notes:

Despite having sent a scout to watch him, the Yankees show no interest in signing, former Red Sox and Met pitcher, Pedro Martinez. Martinez has been working out for scouts in the dominican republic, but, according to his agent, seeks a deal worth at least $2MM. The Yankees would only be interested if he would be willing to accept a minor-league deal......Yanks' first round pick in this years draft, Slade Heathcott, was with the team the during the Nationals series and took BP while wearing a full uniform. He has yet to sign.....Possible 2010 draft No. 1 pick and S.I. coverboy, Bryce Harper will play for the Yankees this summer against the Red Sox (no not like that). Harper, 16, was one of many players picked for the Yankees to play a Red Sox high school team. Both clubs will choose various high school prospects, put them in uniform, and pin them against each other in Fenway. Harper has expressed a lot of interest in joining the Yankees in the future, listing "Playing in pinstripes" as one of his goals in Sports Illustrated.

Bruney Activated; Yanks DFA Veras

Before the news, a quick little update: I apologize for having not posted in a while. I had a lot on my plate. 

But now onto the real news:

You never really want to claim that one player could determine the fate of your club's season, but that's pretty much what Brian Bruney is to the Yankees. If he stays healthy, the bridge from Startersville to Motown (and I don't mean Detroit) could be renamed from its previous name of "Verascokeandeveryfifthdaysabathia Bridge" to "Brian Bruney." That would go a long way towards pushing the Yankees to a very strong run deep into the postseason. 

Today, the first step was taken as Bruney was activated from the disabled list. However, I praise the Yankees for the second part of that move more than the first. For in order to clear up roster space, the Yankees had to DFA RP Jose Veras, a move that was the entire 2009 season in the making.

Veras struggled with his command all season long so it seemed like he was the obvious choice for the boot. The other possible candidates were RHPs David Robertson and Brett Tomko. 

Robertson has put up very nice numbers this season and has been probably the most reliable reliever for Joe Girardi. Tomko had good numbers, although his last outing quickly inflated those, and gives the Yanks a lot of versatility in the pen.

In the end, I'm sure that Veras will get picked up by a club in desperate search of relief pitching (like the Nationals who the Yankees kick off a series with in a little over half an hour from now, wouldn't that be interesting if Veras pitched against the Yanks in this series). He's a flamethrower who's still only 28 and could be very attractive to said teams. However, the Yankees got rid of another Kyle Farnsworth-type pitcher in favor of a dominant setup man so it's still a win for them.