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Chase Madorsky Matt Linder On Monday, the Yankees signed second baseman, Neil Walker to a one-year deal worth up to $4.5M, including incentives.  Although the team has plenty of young options to play second base, the deal for the veteran was too good to pass up, in their eyes.  The organization was roughly $20M under the vaunted $197M luxury tax threshold, so it used the financial flexibility to bolster the one position with some uncertainty. The 32 year-old hit .265/.362/.439 with 14 home runs in 111 games with the Mets and Brewers last season, which closely mirrors his career totals.  In addition to Walker's ability to get on base, he is a switch-hitter with strong contact skills.  His ability to produce from the left side (his better side) and put the ball in play helps balance a lineup dominated by strikeout prone right handed sluggers.  Defensively, Neil is an average second basemen, but he also can provide some insurance at third and f...

Brendan Kuty Matt Linder Now, it is time for the sixth and final installment of my Yankees Top 30 Prospect ranking, 1-5. Kim Klement 5. Chance Adams – SP -2017 Performance: Adams picked up last season where he left off in 2016.  He began the year in Double-A, posting a 1.03 ERA in 35 innings over 6 starts.  This display of dominance earned him a promotion to Scranton.  In Triple-A, he threw 115.1 innings with a 2.89 ERA and 103 Ks.  Despite Chance’s success last season, he did not get called-up to the majors at any point in 2017. -Strengths: There is a lot to like about Adams beyond the eye-popping stats.  He is able to control a mid-90s fastball that exhibits “explosive rise” according to Baseball Prospectus.  Due to Chance’s quick arm action, his slider has late-bite and is a true strikeout pitch.  Another plus with Adams is his injury history, or lack thereof.  His repeatable and smooth delivery might be one...

Riveraveblues.com Matt Linder As I mentioned at the end of my last article, the Yankees have a number of promising young players knocking on the door to the major leagues.  Therefore, even after the Yankees make their off-season moves and address their roster openings, they will still have some questions to answer, specifically with top infield prospects Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar. Torres, who is rehabbing from Tommy John surgery to his non-throwing elbow, is currently rated as the top prospect in all of baseball by MLB.com.  Although he is a tremendous talent, Torres has less than one hundred at bats in AAA and as a result, needs to start the season in Scranton to make up for the plate appearances he lost after his injury.  He has the ability to play third base, shortstop and second base, and his bat will play at any of the three positions.  However, the spot he may be most valuable at is second base.  I know Starlin Castro is a four-time all ...