Bronx Bomber Ball

In a span of 48 hours earlier this week, Yankees' General Manager Brian Cashman pulled off two trades to bolster both the starting rotation and bullpen as the Yankees hit the dog days of summer, still within striking distance of Boston for the AL East crown.  New York has one of the stronger lineups in baseball and few spots for obvious upgrades, so Cashman chose to focus on the other side of the ball.   Photo Credit: Frank Franklin/AP Photo

In what has turned out to be a busy week for the Yankees and Brian Cashman, they have acquired left-hander J.A. Happ from the Toronto Blue Jays, as confirmed by Jon Heyman. The Blue Jays will receive IF Brandon Drury and OF Billy McKinney in return. Photo Credit: AP

Last year Cashman acquired Sonny Gray, Jaime Garcia, David Robertson, Tommy Kahnle, and Todd Frazier before the July 31st deadline, which helped drive the Bombers to game seven of the ALCS, but they gave up some of their better prospect in the process. The team has its sights set on a championship, so GM Brian Cashman will undoubtedly upgrade the team's pitching at the deadline, but who and for what? AP/Gregory Bull

Part two of our farm system update focuses on the top ten hitters in the Yankees’ farm system. While only seven of New York’s top 30 prospects are hitters, and one being the recently promoted Gleyber Torres, the Yankees'  depth is clearly in their pitching, but there are still a few up and coming hitters who can make an impact in the near future.  All stats are through Sunday, May 20th and all rankings are per MLB.   Photo Credit: Newsday

We are now more than a full month into the 2018 season, and despite some early struggles and injuries, the Yankees put together a solid first month that was capped with an exciting nine game winning streak. This Yankee team, headed by rookie manager Aaron Boone, has found their footing and gotten white hot as of late. The lineup has gotten a shot in the arm from the additions of energetic youngsters Miguel Andujar and Gleyber Torres but one place where they have not gotten that from is the leadoff spot and longtime leadoff man Brett Gardner. With some prospects and familiar names starting to get healthy and Gardy struggling mightily it's fair to wonder, is his playing time in jeopardy, if he doesn't pick it up?   Photo Credit: Zimbio

Through the first five games of the 2018 season, Giancarlo Stanton has started in left field twice, and Aaron Judge has started a game in center field. Why? Because the Yankees, the team with too many outfielders, ran out of outfielders due to multiple injuries. Let’s check in and see how these guys are progressing. Corey Sipkin

After another New York Yankee was injured in today's loss against the Toronto Blue Jays, the Yankees have called up Spring Training standout Miguel Andujar to replace outfielder Billy McKinney on the 25-man roster, according to Bryan Hoch of MLB.com . Photo Credit: Charles Wenzelberg Last season, Andujar batted .315 with 16 home runs and 82 RBI while playing for the Yankees’ Double-A and Triple-A affiliates. Andujar only played in 15 games this spring, but during those games he slugged four home runs, batted .267, and had a tremendous .928 OPS. Critics of Andujar questioned whether he was ready defensively for the MLB; he struggled in the minors with consistency in the field, and while he has a very strong arm, he needs to work on his throws’ accuracy. Yankees manager Aaron Boone spoke to NJ.com about Andujar’s defensive ability before Spring Training began, “I think he has the skills to be a major league third baseman defensively… There's no question in my mind th...

The Yankees dropped their first game of the season today as Tyler Austin’s two home runs and CC Sabathia’s solid start were not enough to propel the Yanks past the Jays. Dellin Betances had an implosion on the mound in the eighth, and the Yankees saw Billy McKinney and Adam Warren leave the game with injuries. Photo Credit: AP

The 2018 New York Yankees have an insane amount of star power, headed by the power-hitting duo of Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton. Baseball fans all over the country know these two names extremely well, and even non-sports fans are becoming familiar with these stars. Both players showed why they have gained their popularity in the Yankees' 6-1 win over the Blue Jays on Opening Day; Stanton made an incredible first impression with two no-doubt home runs, and Judge hit a line-drive double that displayed glimpses of his amazing 2017 season. However, stars like Judge and Stanton are just like any other player; they have games where they perform well and games where they do not. Thankfully, there is so much more to the 2018 Yankees' lineup than just Judge and Stanton, and Aaron Boone's team proved that in last night's 4-2 victory against Toronto.   Photo Credit: Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images

Ever since the retirement of Mark Teixeira, first base has been a black hole for the Yankees. Greg Bird’s emergence in 2015 made the Yankee universe optimistic for the future at the position, but now going into his third injury-ridden season, the Yankees cannot rely on him to be their first baseman for years to come. Sure, the Yankees could sign another Chris Carter-like stop-gap like Mark Reynolds to man the fort until Bird returns (hopefully), but at a certain point, the Yankees have to move on. There is no denying the talent that Greg Bird possesses and how much of lineup presence he provides when healthy, but if he cannot stay on the field, his talent matters nothing.   Photo Credit: NY Post

With the recent news of Greg Bird’s surgery, the first base spot for the Yankees is suddenly wide open. Bird is expected to be out of the lineup for six-to-eight weeks, and with only a couple of days until Opening Day, it looks like Neil Walker and Tyler Austin will platoon at first base for the duration of Bird’s recovery. It seems like a long time since Austin’s debut home run that just climbed over the corner of the right-field wall back in 2016, a day that is marked as the arrival of the Baby Bombers after Aaron Judge went back to back with Austin in the Bronx. Austin has bounced back and forth between the pros and minors since that day and looks to finally get a shot to secure himself a spot on the major league roster. ADAM HUNGER — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

The Yankees farm system is all the rage right now in the world of baseball, with Gleyber Torres, Miguel Andujar, Estevan Florial, and many more, but one man that has gone under the radar until recently is Swiss army knife Billy McKinney. One of the players acquired in the 2017 Aroldis Chapman trade, McKinney is having a great spring so far, putting his name among the other Baby Bombers. BaseballAmerica.com

Entering the day, the New York Yankees had 37 players occupying their 40-man roster with an 8:00 PM EST deadline looming in which 40-man rosters across baseball would freeze ahead of the December 5th Rule 5 Draft. The Yankees had a number of top prospects outside the 40-man roster who would otherwise be Rule 5 eligible unless added, but not enough spots to protect them all.  At the start of the day, the team was looking to protect INF Gleyber Torres, RHP Domingo Acevedo, INF Thairo Estrada, 1B/OF Billy McKinney & RHP Albert Abreu. Photo Credit: MLB.com

The Yankees enter the 2017-18 offseason with one of, if not the best farm system in Major League Baseball. By now you know the big names. There's MLB Pipeline’s #1 overall prospect Gleyber Torres, there's top arms Chance Adams and Justus Sheffield, there's top outfield prospects Clint Frazier and Estevan Florial, and of course there's Miguel Andújar, a 3B/DH prospect who possesses possibly the best bat in the organization. But look beneath the surface and you'll find other hidden gems; lesser known names that might just force their way onto the 25-man roster at some point next season. Photo Credit: USA Today Sports

While Gleyber Torres and Justus Sheffield got all the attention in the Aroldis Chapman blockbuster trade this past summer, outfielder Billy McKinney was an interesting fourth piece. McKinney has finished as high as #88 on MLB.com’s prospect list and #85 on Baseball America’s top prospect list. Since his stock dropped significantly in 2016, the Yankees were able to buy low and roll the  dice. Photo Credit:  Gregg Slaboda   Breakdown: At 6’1” and 205 pounds, left handed outfielder Billy McKinney was the 24th  overall pick by the Oakland Athletics in 2013 out of Plano West Senior High School in Plano, Texas. A year later, McKinney was traded along with shortstop Addison Russell and pitcher Dan Straily to the Chicago Cubs for pitchers Jason Hammel and Jeff Samardzija. McKinney has put up some decent numbers over his minor league career, including his 2015 season when he batted .300 with seven home runs and 64 RBIs in 106 games across High A and Double ...

When the Yankees decided to sell and traded Aroldis Chapman to the Chicago Cubs, the biggest name everyone liked to talk about in the return was Gleyber Torres. While his name is definitely worth mentioning as the headliner, another name worth digging into from the trade is outfielder Billy McKinney. Photo Credit: Martin Griff | Pinstriped Prospects

Let me preface this article by saying this is certainly a long shot. But in a season full of ups and downs (mostly downs thus far), Yankee fans cannot help but wonder if Brian Cashman and the Bombers have a legitimate shot at landing one of the best starting pitchers in all of baseball. Photo via the Associated Press

Undecided on whether they will commit to being ‘buyers’ or ‘sellers’ at this year’s trade deadline, Brian Cashman and company pulled off the first major trade in the week leading up to the deadline on Monday. In a deal that works for both sides, Cashman and Cubs GM Theo Esptein agreed to a deal of Aroldis Chapman going to the Cubs in exchange for top prospect Gleyber Torres, fifth ranked prospect Billy McKinney, Adam Warren, and throw-in Rashad Crawford. After receiving that large of a return for what is essentially a two-month rental of Chapman (barring an extension) for the Cubs going all-in for a World Series ring, ESPN’s Buster Olney has since reported that the Yankees may now focus on fielding offers for their other dominant lefty, Andrew Miller. And with Chapman hitting free agency this season, and his expressed desire to potentially return in the winter , the Yankees should sell high on Miller, then resign Chapman this offseason. Photo Via The Associated Press

Photo Credit: Jason Miller | Getty Images After weeks of speculation and over 12 hours of intense trade rumors circulating between the Chicago Cubs and New York Yankees, Aroldis Chapman has finally been traded. A trade that had the potential to turn into an all-out blockbuster, the official trade that has been announced is Cubs number one overall prospect, Gleyber Torres (SS), number five prospect Billy McKinney (OF), familiar face Adam Warren (RHP), and Rashad Crawford (OF) for Chapman. Official trade: #Yankees get: Gleyber Torres (Cubs #1 prospect) Bully McKinney (#5) Adam Warren Rashad Crawford #Cubs get: Aroldis Chapman — Bronx Bombers (@BronxBomberBlog) July 25, 2016