Nice turn around for Alderson. He was highly thought of and maybe now, he's becoming the pitcher the Pirates hoped for.

I did not know he was moved up, wonder if they stretch him out with Lincoln up? I suppose he could work in middle relief.

"I approve of this thread!"

You realize it represents the future and further enrichment of Bob don't you?

Yankees wanted to release Igawa, but they were stuck with him because of a strange rule.

I guess paying his whole salary even by cutting him is a strange rule.

"I did not know he was moved up, wonder if they stretch him out with Lincoln up? I suppose he could work in middle relief"

I had no idea either. Just saw his name in the boxscore. I think they were trying to stretch him out (2 or 3 inning appearances) to at least see what they have in him and if starting is ever gonna be an option.

"I guess paying his whole salary even by cutting him is a strange rule."

Not what I wrote. Not the rule mentioned. Have no idea where you got that from. There is no question they were obligated to pay his salary. The reason why they couldn't release him was the tax system on payrolls.

Once again, the salaries of players on the roster or released are taxed when the team gets past a certain threshold, which the Yankees were past. The loophole is there is no tax on salaries of players in the minors not on the 40-man roster. So by taking Igawa off the roster and keeping him in the minors, rather than releasing him, the Yankees saved millions of dollars (money they would have been taxed under the baseball agreement at the time). That is the rule I mentioned.

Okay, just looked it up. Because they were over the threshold so often, Yankees are taxed at a rate of 40 percent. Igawa made $4 milion a year. Every year the Yankees kept him in the minors, rather than releasing him, saved them $1.6 million dollars.

I got to see the WV Power take on the Charleston Riverdogs Thursday and Saturday night. The guy who really stood out for me was Alen Hanson. Not only is he a good hitter and runner, he also seemed to just fine playing shortstop. What I really noticed was how confident he played whether in the batters box or on the base paths.

I think between him and Jarek Cunningham, who I saw play last year, the Pirates might have some legitimate middle infield prospects for the first time in a long time.

The other guy who really got my eye, believe it or not, was Rinku Singh. He breezed through his innings on the mound with a few strikeouts and a very impressive diving stop and throw by Singer at 3B.

The WV team's lineup appears to be living up to the hype, filled with some incredibly athletic talent from top to bottom. Hopefully this will translate to the higher levels in the organization. Maybe Hanson will be ready to take over in 2014 when Barmes contract is up.

Good to see Tony Sanchez playing well so far this year.

Hitting .282 with 3 doubles and a triple in 39 at bats.

Also has a .364 OBP, good for third on the team. Gotta think he gets a call soon.

Is he playing sober or drunk?

I actually look forward to looking up the WV box scores each day to see how Hanson, Polanco, and Bell are doing. Unfortunately, the highly touted high school pitchers Allie, Kingham, Dodson, Stevenson are not producing favorable results. Zach Von Rosenberg has been on the DL. Maybe they need a veteran catcher like in Bull Durham. Diaz and Schwind are not exactly top catching prospects, and there is a lot invested in those arms.

Any idea how Jose (JUMBO) Diaz is doing in AAA . If this guy ever gets promoted he could sign a million dollar contract with Primanti Brothers .

http://www.milb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?t=t_ibp&cid=484&stn=true&sid=t484

Diaz is considered to be a very good defensive catching prospect.

Actually was talking about the pitcher , Mongoose sent me a link . Thanks , glassers

Thanks , looks like he is doing ok not great but not bad either , the fans in Pittsburgh would love this guy . Reminds you of Casey Hampton .

Stats through Sunday – Week 3

AAA Indy 7-9

Hitting Prospects –
Chased’Arnaud is on the DL.
Eric Fryer with a .653 OPS, 4 2B, 14 Ks and 2 BBs.
Matt Hague, .490 OPS one double 4Ks 1 BB
Gorkys Hernandez .686 OPS with 2 2B, 15 Ks 8 BBs 3-5 SBs
Starling Marte, .745 OPS 3 2B, 2 3B, a HR and 8-9 on SBs, 14 Ks 2 BBs
Jordy Mercer .623OPS,3 2B, two HRs and 15Ks to 5 BBs,

Pitching Prospects –
Tim Alderson 0.00 ERA 3 Ks, BB in 3 innings.
Jeff Locke 3 starts 4.80 ERA with 15ks, BB in 15 IP.
Bryan Morris pitching badly, 8.10 ERA 10Ks 2 BBs in 6.2 IP
Rudy Owens 3 starts 2.84 ERA 13 Ks 0 BBs in 19 IP
Justin Wilson 3 starts 3.57 ERA 17 Ks and 9 walks 17.2 IP

Other –Brandon Boggs with 4 HRs1.017 OPS. Jeff Clement with an OPS of .868, still no HRs, 7 2B. I do not think he is an option to be called up yet. Dan McCutchen one start 3.97 ERA 10ks 3 BBs 11.1 IP. Brad Lincoln two starts 2.25 ERA 9/0 k/BB in 12 innings, up with the big team now. Daniel Moskos 1.93 ERA 6Ks 4BBs 4.2 IP. JoJo Reyes 2 starts 3.27 ERA 8Ks 3BBs 11 IP.

AA Altoona 7-8

Hitting Prospects –
Ramon Cabrera .636 OPS 1 2B 2Ks 2BBs
Jarek Cunningham .722 OPS 3 2B HR 11Ks 3BBs
Matt Curry .716 OPS 4 2B 10Ks 5BBs
Robbie Grossman .634 OPS 3 2B HR 9Ks 16BBs
Brock Holt .808 OPS 3 2B 7Ks 11BBs 2-5 SBs
Tony Sanchez .774 OPS 3 2B 1 3B 11Ks 4BBs
Adalberto Santos 1.134 OPS 4 2B 2Ks 5BBs

Pitching Prospects –
Nate Baker 3 starts3.29 ERA with 8 Ks 9BBs 13.2 IP
Victor Black 1.35 ERA 7Ks 3 BBs 6.2 IP
Mike Colla 3 starts 5.14 ERA 12Ks 5 BBS 14 IP
Brandon Cumpton 3 starts 4.15 ERA with 9Ks 3 BBs 17.1 IP
Aaron Pribanic 3 starts 7.36 ERA 6 Ks 11 BBs 11 IP
Jhonathan Ramos 0.00 1K 1 BB 2.1 IP
Duke Welker 1.08 ERA 6Ks BB 8.1 IP

Other – Andrew Lambo .493 OPS 2 2B 6Ks BB. Aaron Poreda 3 starts 2.25 ERA 6Ks 11 BBs 16 IP

A+ Bradenton 7-9

Hitting Prospects –
Evan Chambers .629 2 2B 16Ks 10 BBs 4-5 SB
Alex Dickerson .700 2B HR 10Ks 5 BBs 1-1 SB
Drew Maggi .750 3 2B HR 11Ks 5 BBs 5-5 SB
Gift Ngoepe .517 3B 17Ks 3 BBs 2-3 SB
Carlos Paulino .548 2B 3B HR 10Ks 2 BBs 4-5 SB
Mel Rojas .749 3 2B 3 3B 17Ks 3 BBs 4-5 SB

Pitching Prospects –
Colton Cain 3 starts 3.55 ERA 9 Ks to 7 walks 12.2 IP.
Gerrit Cole 3 starts 5.25 ERA with 18 Ks to 4 walks, 12 IP.
Josh Poytress 0.00 ERA 2Ks 2 IP
Casey Sadler 1.64 ERA 13K 2 BB 11 IP
Jameson Taillon 3 starts 2.63 ERA 18 Ks 2 walks 13.2 IP.

Other – Benji Gonzalez .921OPS 2B HR 4Ks 8 BBs. Hunter Strickland 3 starts 2.08 ERA 10 Ks 2 BBs 13 IP. Eliecer Navarro 1.65 ERA 13 Ks 2BBs 16.1 IP.

A West Virginia 5-12

Hitting Prospects –
Josh Bell .683 OPS 5 2B HR 1 SB 21Ks 2 BB
Jodaneli Carvajal . .734 OPS 4 2B 3B HR 0-2 SB 10Ks 3 BB
Dan Gamache . .724 OPS 5 2B 1-2 SB 14Ks 6 BB
Wily Garcia . .470 OPS 2 2B HR 3 SB 18Ks 2 BB
Alen Hanson .683 OPS 8 2B 3 3B 4HR 5-7 SB 17Ks 5 BB
Jose Osuna .735 OPS 6 2B 0-1 SB 13Ks 5 BB
Gregory Polanco .870 OPS 2 3B 4 HR 7-8 SB 16Ks 6 BB

Pitching Prospects –
Steson Allie 54.00ERA with a k and 8BBs .2 IP
Orlando Castro 8.31 ERA 8Ks 4 BBs 8.2 IP
Zack Dodson 3 starts 4.20 ERA 15Ks 6 BBs 15 IP
Zach Fuesser 3 starts 3.27 ERA 9Ks 10 BBs 11IP
Nick Kingham 4 starts 10.24 ERA 7Ks 7 BBs 9.2 IP

Other –Junior Sosa .864 OPS 2B 2 3B 2-3 SB 5Ks 2 BBs
Matt Benedict 4 starts .84 ERA 18Ks 5 BBs 21.1 IP Rinku Singh 3.65 ERA 12Ks 3 BBs 12.1 IP

My bad...Hansen's OPS is 1.200. I copied Bell's for formatting and did not change the OPS.

BLAST FROM THE PAST

Brad Eldred, 1b, Tigers. The Pirates gave Eldred his only extended big league look in 2005, the season after he mashed 38 homers in the minors and ranked as the organization's No. 8 prospect. Things may have played out differently for Eldred, then 25, had he run with the opportunity, but he batted just .221/.279/.458 in 208 plate appearances. Life as a Triple-A slugger can be lucrative, though, and Eldred has made the most of it. He's been in demand as he's bounced from Indianapolis to Charlotte to Syracuse to Colorado Springs to Fresno to Toledo while slugging .529 and belting 146 homers in parts of eight seasons. This week, Eldred mashed five home runs for the Mud Hens (to give him an International League-leading eight on the year) while batting 11-for-31 (.355) with 12 RBIs. The 31-year-old now has 235 career home runs in the minors, a total that puts him neck-and-neck with Buffalo's Valentino Pascucci in second place behind active leader Mike Hessman.