Bronx Bomber Ball

After being rained out on Friday evening, the Yankees and Royals took to the field on Saturday afternoon for the first game of a day-night doubleheader to begin their three-game series.  The Yankees came in hot, riding a five-game winning streak, and sent JA Happ to the mound.  He was opposed by righty Jakob  Junis  of the Royals.  A seventh inning monster two-run home run off the bat of Luke Voit proved to be the difference in this one as the Yankees would go on to win by a score of 7-3.   Photo Credit: Charlie Riedel/AP Photo The Yankees’ offense started off hot in this one, plating two runs off  Junis  in the first inning.  Aaron Hicks drew a walk to start things off, before Voit singled to left to put first and second on with no outs.  Although both Gary Sanchez and  Gleyber  Torres would strike out on sliders low and away well off the plate, the inning still proved fruitful when Clint Frazier ripped a two-ru...

Heading into a three-game Memorial Day Weekend series against the Kansas City Royals, the Yankees are in first place in the A.L. East.  They are two and a half games ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays.   They have won six of their last seven games.  They swept the Baltimore Orioles in a four-game set, winning the last of the four games on a run driven in by an Aaron Hicks walk.  Players, the next of which will be James Paxton, are returning from the Injured List.   Not to put too fine a point on their situation, but, they are currently a pleasure to watch.

The Yankees have been one of the hottest teams in baseball over the past month, and that trend continued for the team in their four-game sweep of the lowly Orioles.  The Yanks bats were hot all series, scoring 34 runs in the four-game set, capped off with Thursday's thrilling 6-5 win.  Masahiro Tanaka shook off some early trouble in the second inning to pitch six strong innings, giving up just one run. Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images

A huge seven-run sixth inning helped lead the Yankees past the Rays, in a game where Aaron Boone decided to emulate the opponent by using Chad Green as an opener.  In the inning, the Yanks scored more than the opposing Rays did through nine innings thanks to great plate discipline from the bombers, who earned nine walks on the day.  Green lasted less than two innings, giving up two solo homeruns. He then gave the ball to Nestor Cortez Jr., who lasted four innings and gave up three runs for the Yankees, the last runs they would surrender all day.  Up until the bottom of the sixth inning, the game was looking to be a back and forth battle with both teams knotted up at five through five innings, with homeruns by: Brett Gardner, Aaron Hicks, Kevin Kiermaier, and Willy Adames.    Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images

Flashback to early 2018, and Yankees’ infielder Thairo Estrada endured a tragedy much bigger than the game of baseball. He sustained a gunshot wound in an attempted robbery back in his home country of Venezuela. His injury was not life-threatening, but still created consequences that the average baseball player does not have to go through. His initial surgery to remove the bullet was carried out poorly, arguably causing more damage than the initial wound, however he was cleared to play and felt ready to go. Photo Credit: Elsa | Getty Images

Coming into this final game of the three-game set, both teams had won one game with the Yankees winning game one in a one run contest and the Rays winning the second game in blowout fashion. With the Yankees looking to catch up to the Rays in the standings, this game was a crucial one for this rolling Yankees team. Julio Aguilar | Getty Images

After banking a nice, weekend series win against the Minnesota Twins, the Yankees looked to continue their winning ways against longtime nemesis Felix Hernandez. While Felix has dominated the Yankees countless times over the years, the story was quite different in this one. With more healthy reinforcements arriving in the form of Clint Frazier, the Yankees wasted no time jumping on King Felix en route to a 7 – 3 win Credit: Elsa/Getty Images

The Yankees will be forced to place yet another player on the Injured List, as Troy Tulowitzki suffered a calf strain during Wednesday’s game against the Tigers. The cause of the strain is unknown to this point; Tulo was simply replaced by Tyler Wade during the game and will be undergoing further testing. To take his place on the roster, the Yankees will be calling up infielder Thairo Estrada from AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Mark J. Rebilas / USA TODAY Sports

Spring training is underway and regular season baseball is less than a month away.  The New York Yankees reported to George M. Steinbrenner Field for their 23 rd  year of spring training in Tampa as they gear up for the 2019 season, looking for their third postseason berth in as many years.

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

In a recent unfortunate turn of events, Yankees #10 prospect Thairo Estrada was shot in the hip during an attempted robbery. He spent three days in the hospital, but has been released and is recovering now. The bullet is still lodged in his hip, however, and there are no plans to remove it in the near future. Estrada is supposed to fully recover and play in 2018, so that is good news for a young prospect who just might be on the doorstep of his first major league call-up. A breakout prospect who can play three infield positions and was recently added to the Yankees’ 40-man roster this offseason is a great candidate as a September call-up at the least. Jennifer Stewart / Getty Images

The Yankees pitching staff is debatably one of the best in the game, with names like Severino, Gray, Tanaka and Sabathia headlining the starting five. The Yankees have a core of talent that will compete every game until the last out is made. With names like Adams, Sheffield and Abreu, their farm system is also producing names that have shown success and who are projected to compete at the major league level. Over the last few weeks, Gerrit Cole and the Pirates have been rumored to be involved in a possible trade with the Yankees. Adding Cole to the staff will make the rotation a whole lot better and the Yankees would have a truly elite rotation.   Photo Credit: Getty Images

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

Justus Sheffield is a prospect Yankee fans have been very excited about since he came to the team at the 2016 trade deadline. He has been performing well in his first full season with the team and tonight at Arm & Hammer Park in Trenton, New Jersey, Sheffield was a big part of a special performance by the team. Credit: Martin Griff

History was made last night during the Trenton Thunder’s 9-6 win over the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, as Yankees No. 18 prospect Thairo Estrada hit for the cycle. The cycle was the third in Trenton’s history, and first in their postseason history, and helped the Yankees’ AA affiliate tie the postseason series against Binghamton 1-1. Beverly Schaefer / For The Times

The Trenton Thunder, the Double-A affiliate for the Yanks, will be sending four players to the All Star Game. The Yankees depth of their farm system is evident in this, as the Thunder are currently 50-28, three games ahead in the Eastern League standings. The four representatives for the July 13th ASG in New Hampshire will be right-hander Yefry Ramirez, lefty Justus Sheffield, SS/2B Thairo Estrada, and first baseman Mike Ford. Design Credit: Trenton Thunder

Anytime someone thinks of a Yankees middle infield prospect, their focus will automatically go to Gleyber Torres. No one else really is considered, due to the fact that Gleyber is widely considered to be a future superstar, no matter where his position is. However, there is another middle infield prospect in the Yankees’ farm system that is currently making a name for himself, and that is Thairo Estrada. Photo Credit: Martin Griff

Charleston RiverDogs: 24-14 (1st in South Atlantic League Southern Division Standings, 4.5 game lead) Overall : The Charleston RiverDogs have built a sizeable lead in the SAL Southern Division standings thanks to contribution from solid prospects, and prospects that are not very familiar names. Still, this is one of the most solid class-A teams with many guys that will surely reach Tampa this year, and some that will be knocking on the door to Double-A Trenton by season’s end. They are  over performing  their preseason expectations, but with the depth of their roster, there is not any reason they can't sustain the success they've enjoyed thus far in 2016.

Signed in November 2012 as an international free agent for only $49,000 along with higher touted prospects Jorge Mateo and Luis Torrens, infielder Thairo Estrada is slowly emerging as one of the most underrated members of the Yankees farm system after conquering short­-season ball as one of the youngest members of the New York­ Penn League in 2015 at the age of 19.