Melancon Promoted To AAA

It's about time.

After dominating and piling up 75 innings between Tampa and Trenton, Marky Melancon is finally on his way to Scranton.

By now you know all the stats. If not, click on the "Mark Melancon" label at the bottom of this post. The numbers speak for themselves, to go along with glowing scouting reports on his make-up, work ethic, etc.

One would assume this is where the Yankees begin regulating Melancon's innings a bit more, so that he is only pitching a frame per outing. For Tampa and Trenton Melancon often times pitched three or more innings per appearance - which can be somewhat deceiving due to the extremely low number of pitches-per-inning he was requiring.

Yesterday's NY Post article on Melancon quoted a scout as saying the following:

"Just a year [after the surgery], to have everything back with his kind of stuff . . . that's exceptional," the scout said. "A kid can't come back the way he did without working hard."

"There are some guys who are middle relievers, that don't have the mentality to come in at the end of the game," the AL scout said. "But the way he goes about his business and gets the job done . . . once you see him, you'll know."

The article also cited the scout as saying Melancon's plus fastball currently sits 92-94 mph and his filthy power curveball is between 81-84 mph. When I saw Melancon at Trenton his fastball topped out at 95, so that sounds about right.

With the hearty workload Melancon's tasted so far this year coming back from Tommy John surgery, it's not certain whether he will enjoy a September call-up. However, he may receive the same treatment which prospects like a teenage Phil Hughes received before breaking into the majors by visiting the Yankees clubhouse when the team's at home - though he would not be allowed to sit in the dugout.

Also, Brian Cashman called buzz that Phil Coke had a torn labrum "completely false." As was the plan all along, Coke has been moved to the bullpen to limit his innings.

Melancon: I'm Ready For Bigs

A confident Mark Melancon told NY Times scribe Tyler Kepner he could pitch in the majors right now in an insightful, if not excitable, piece today:

Reliever Mark Melancon sat alone with a reporter in the vacant stands before Wednesday’s game, and he did not flinch when asked if he was ready for the majors.

“I think I could be ready as soon as they want me,” Melancon said. Later, he added there was no reason to think a call-up was far away.

“If I pitch well and continue to do what I’m capable of doing, I don’t see why not,” Melancon said. “Why not? Why isn’t it close? I really do believe I am capable of doing what they’re doing, all those guys out there. So, yeah, I think it’s close.”

“He’s getting extended right now in Double-A,” said Jeff Patterson, the Yankees’ West Coast scouting supervisor, who helped sign Melancon. “He’s definitely not a guy who can only pitch one time through a lineup. He can turn a lineup over.”

Against San Francisco Giants minor leaguers Wednesday, Melancon allowed one hit and faced the minimum nine batters. He mixed changeups and curveballs with a fastball between 91 and 94 miles per hour, and threw just 32 pitches.

“The stuff has to be there, but you have to have the will and the determination to get better,” [Mariano] Rivera said. “You don’t see that a lot in the rookies and minor leaguers. He always asks questions, interesting baseball questions.”

Melancon says his stuff is better now than it was before the injury, because he developed the changeup while he was hurt. He throws his curveball across his body now instead of fully extending his arm, which led to the elbow damage.

Though I've now seen Melancon multiple times in person, it will be very fun to watch him at the major league level. That hammer curve and bending fastball up to 94 mph is going to be tough to hit at any level. Not to say Melancon won't have some growing pains at the highest level, but his toughness will make it easier on him than most rookies.

Horne To Rejoin Scranton,Kontos, Melancon Dominate AA

Alan Horne will return to the Scranton rotation and, as a result, one of Karstens, Igawa, Giese, McCutchen or Marquez will be getting demoted or converted to the bullpen. Horne is now officially scheduled to pitch Sunday for Scranton.

Phil Coke's stay at AAA will be an abbreviated one as he is to be sent down to Trenton in order to make room for Horne. Though Dan McCutchen has been struggling during the start to his AAA campaign, the recent big league bullpen problems may call for converting Danimal to the bullpen.

It may have been the plan for McCutchen all along to become a major league bullpen contributor. And, considering someone must be moved to make room for Horne, now might be the opportune time for such a conversion. [This is merely spitballing on my part]

McCutchen's fastball, which regularly hovers above and below 92 mph, could receive a few extra ticks. The compliment of his changeup and curveball as potential outpitches could make him a valuable commodity out of the pen. Maybe most importantly is McCutchen's bulldog mentality on the mound and his eagerness to attack the strikezone.

Meanwhile in Trenton, George Kontos continues to flash dominance over AA hitters by tossing 7 innings of one-run ball, allowing 3 hits, striking out 7 and walking 2. Wednesday night's performance from Kontos lowered his season ERA to 3.01.

It's been a major turnaround for Kontos considering early April saw him pile up more walks than strikeouts. As of today, Kontos now boasts a very respectable 63 strikeouts to 25 walks over 68.2 innings. In his last five starts Kontos tossed 33 innings [going seven innings in four of five starts] with 30 strikeouts, 9 walks and 8 earned runs on just 19 hits.

Joining Kontos in AA dominance is Mark Melancon who tossed another three scoreless innings of work, earning his third victory of the year. Over the three frames Melancon struck out 2, walked zero and allowed one hit, dropping his ERA to 1.53 on the year. Through 17.2 innings at the AA level, Melancon has allowed just 10 hits and 2 walks while striking out 15 and limiting opposing hitters to a .169 batting average.

A promotion to AAA may soon be in order for the dominant Melancon should he continue such a high level of success. I would venture to guess Melancon will find himself pitching to AAA hitters by mid June.

The Melancon Speaks

To The Thunder Blog and discusses his velocity, repertoire as well as being labeled "The Next Joba."

Ashmore: For someone who hasn’t seen you pitch before, can you give me a scouting report on yourself in terms of what you throw and your mentality out there?

Melancon: “I have a two-seam fastball, four-seam fastball, curveball, and a changeup that I’m working on now. I feel a lot more comfortable with it than I did four or five weeks ago. I’m trying to incorporate all those pitches. Just kind of a bulldog mentality…I go after guys, and I’m not afraid to come in and locate inside. That’s kind of my mentality.”

Ashmore: I’m sure I’m not the first person to tell you this, but that curveball you’ve got is pretty nasty. Is there a certain way that you throw it that makes it so successful, or…

Melancon: “I think my arm speed. I don’t spike it, it seems like a lot of guys…the new thing to do is spike it (a different way of gripping the pitch). I never had a feel for that pitch. When my curveball’s not as good, it’s usually because my arm speed isn’t there. I tell myself to throw it hard and mimic a fastball arm speed.”

Ashmore: So do you feel like your velocity is where it was before, or do you feel like you’re throwing harder…

Melancon: “Well, in college, I’d sit 92 or around there. And that’s where I’m sitting now. I feel like I wouldn’t get that velocity earlier in the year and now I feel like I’m getting it sooner in the year. But I still haven’t thrown that many innings in competitive games to know if I’m going to gain more velocity or what. But as of right now, I’m very happy with my velocity.”

Ashmore: Everybody says stuff like “the next Joba” when it comes to you…again, I’m well aware I’m not the first person to tell you that. But when people do say that to you, or you do hear that, what comes to mind…

Melancon: “Well, I’m thankful for Joba opening the door. Him and Ian, proving that young guys can do it. But at the same time, that’s fine if they compare me to Joba, because that’s a good thing. He’s doing really well. I don’t take that to heart as a bad thing.”

Melancon goes on to describe how important it was for him to close games at Arizona U. and how difficult the "very strenuous rehab" was coming back from Tommy John surgery.

As Big Club Falters, Minors Prosper

The big club in the Bronx may look like the Bad News Bears recently, but the Yankees minor leaguers are giving fans something to smile about.

With Joba Chamberlain's meteoric rise through the minors a well-chronicled journey last year, fans will be much more inclined to keep their ears open for the next young fireballer. Hopefully some of my thoughts will contribute toward your overall prospect knowledge in some capacity.

Periodically throughout every week I will recap the most noteworthy goings-on in the baby bombers arena. Today the focus will be on rising pitching prospects who all took the mound on Tuesday night.

Zach McAllister continues to dominate Sally league:

Last night - 8 innings, 6 hits, 1 earned run, 0 walks, 6 strikeouts.

Over his past two starts McAllister [pictured above] has thrown 15 innings, struck out 17, walked zero and allowed one earned run. That's domination. Over nine starts this season McAllister has had exactly one outing which was not very good.

Mark Melancon's progression has been superaltive:

Last night - 3 hitless and scoreless innings, 4 strikeouts, 1 walk, 5 groundball outs to zero in the air. [Melancon entered the game in a 0-0 tie and held off Reading until his team scored three runs in the top of the 10th before closing it out with a 1-2-3 inning]

Once again, that's domination. If you had never heard his name before and went to see him pitch now, you would assume Melancon had been making his way through the minor league ranks for at least a couple years before arriving in Trenton. [Try 37 career minor league innings] His mound demeanor and stuff continue to soar off scouting charts.

JB Cox knocking on the door:

Last night - 1.2 innings, 0 hits, 0 earned runs, 1 walk

His last professional season - which was at AA Trenton - was a dominant campaign for the former Texas University closer. Since returning from elbow surgery this year, Cox has pitched 16.1 innings with a 1.65 ERA and 2.38 GO/AO rate. Safe to say the sinker/slider repertoire remained intact for Cox. Should JB continue to pitch this well at AAA - for say a month or so - he could soon bolster a Joba-less bullpen.

Scott Patterson recovers from early woes:

Last night - 1 inning, 0 hits/runs/walks/strikeouts

In his last nine appearances, Patterson has not allowed an earned run. Over those 9.1 innings the funky righthander allowed 6 hits, 2 walks to go with 9 strikeouts. On the year Patterson has now tossed 20 innings, giving up 17 hits while striking out 19 to just 5 walks and posting a solid 2.70 ERA. It would seem Patterson has fully returned after a poor start to his 2008 season.

Ivan Nova looking to get on track:

Last night - 8 innings, 2 hits, 0 runs, 6 strikeouts, 1 walk

In by far his best start of the season, Nova looked like the dominating pitcher many Yankee fans hope he can develop into. Though this season - and somewhat his career - has been extremely inconsistent, the 21 year-old still has a great deal of promise, evidenced by last night's performance. There had been rumors this April that Nova had lost some of the velocity off his plus fastball [which averaged 93mph last year], but building on his last start would help to quiet his critics.

TRENTON REPORT:Mark Melancon Is A Monster

Made my way to Trenton last night to see Trenton vs. Portland with top Red Sox pitching prospect Justin Masterson taking the hill. However, the real reason for my visit was the much anticipated arrival of Mark Melancon, who had recently been promoted from A+ Tampa.

I've heard about his flawless make-up, devastating stuff and mad dog mentality on the mound. I'd read several scouting reports on him since the Yankees drafted him in 2006. However, this was the first time I'd seen him in person.

My expectation level was reminiscent of the first time I saw Joba Chamberlain pitch. That night, Joba struck out 12 batters over six scoreless innings.



Melancon was not as dominant - he allowed an earned run over his two innings of work - but you quickly understand why so many scouts drool over the former Arizona closer's ability.

As soon as he entered the game, the crowd perked up, particularly the countless scouts who had lost interest after Masterson coughed up seven earned runs. Seated next to me were Trenton starters Dan McCutchen, George Kontos and Chase Wright, who were all in the house to chart Melancon's pitches and catch a first glimpse of their new closer.

His pitching arsenal:

Fastball: sat at mostly 93-94 mph throughout the outing and topped out at 95 mph.. He threw a more sinking heater at 91 down in the zone. His arm slot is nearly over the top (or basically high three-quarters) making the 94 mph fastball drive downward on hitters and probably seem even faster than it already is. A plus fastball in terms of velocity, movement and command.

The lateral movement it generates, however, may be the most impressive characteristic to the pitch. Melancon is able to command the fastball well inside, though he did leave a few pitches out over the plate, a single and RBI double coming as a result. The majority of the time Melancon's heater bent in and out of the zone as he attacked hitters with a 7-1 lead.

Curveball: The epitome of an outpitch, Melancon possesses an absolute hammer power curveball hovering around 80-81 mph. He showed the ability to drop the pitch in for a called strike as well as bury it in the dirt for swinging strikes. Potentially a plus-plus pitch, Melancon throws it with great conviction and bite.

From my vantage point behind homeplate, the ball just seemed to be on a continuous downward spiral. This comes in part because of Melancon's high release point. Following his fastball, the curve has great depth and simply drops off the table, somewhat like Francisco Rodriguez's big breaking ball. Two of his four strikeouts came on the pitch.

Changeup: An average major league offering, Melancon's change sits in the low 80s. I believe Melancon only threw the pitch twice during his two frames and while it seemed he commanded it well enough to throw it for strikes, the movement and deception was not particularly exceptional. The simple fact of the matter is that Melancon does not need a third pitch to succeed at the major league level. His fastball and curve are that strong.

Barring an injury, there is no doubt in my mind that Melancon will be pitching in New York this Summer. The only question is when and in what capacity. With guys like Dave Robertson, Ross Ohlendorf, Dan McCutchen and possibly Scott Patterson having the ability to set up for Mariano Rivera, Mr. Melancon will have some competition for the eighth inning role. But I'll still put my money on Melancon.

The final line for Melancon's first appearance at AA Trenton: 2 innings; 2 hits; 1 earned run; zero walks; 4 strikeouts.

For what it's worth, Masterson's 87-91 mph sinking fastball has about as much movement as I've ever seen at the minor league level. His secondary pitches - a slider and change - paled in comparison but Masterson's command and movement of his sinker may be good enough that he will rarely need his off speed stuff.

[Photos & Video thanks to The Thunder Blog]

Joba's Potential Replacements,Cox and Melancon Promoted

Two possible substitutes for Joba Chamberlain in the back of the Yankees bullpen, Mark Melancon and JB Cox, were each given a promotion to AA and AAA respectively.

Cox is the more advanced of the two, mostly because he has logged more professional innings before going down with his elbow injury. Melancon probably has the best stuff, however, and may have the better make-up to pitching in the eighth inning.

Whatever the case may be, both Cox and Melancon have the stuff and mentality to contribute to the Yankees big league pen this summer.

From the SWB Yanks blog:

The Yankees on Tuesday promoted J.B. Cox to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre...

Thanks to a text message good friend John Nalbone, is that Mark Melancon is taking Cox's place in Trenton. Melancon has been in Tampa where he's allowed one run in his past 13.1 innings. He's also walked two and struck out 15 in that span.

The Yankees brass just took another meaningful step toward inserting Chamberlain into the starting five.

Melancon Not Hurt

There had been some clamoring yesterday over Mark Melancon and his health. The powerful righthanded reliever was said to have entered Thursday's Tampa Yankees game but was removed before throwing a pitch. Many had worried Melancon had been injured in some way, but it was apparently human error as manager Luis Sojo forgot to add him to the Tampa Roster:

Mark Melancon is not hurt. He didn’t enter the game after throwing warmup pitches (that I took video of and analyzed like the Zapruder film), because T-Yanks Manager Luis Sojo forgot to put him on the roster. Just a simple brain fart. Don’t feel bad for freaking out though Yankee fans, until the game ended and this was figured out, Yankee brass in the stands were in a state of panic as well.

Dellin Betances was more than healthy in his first Charleston start, striking out eight allowing two runs on three hits over five innings.

Betances, Garcia Look "Very, Very Good." Over at the SWB Blog by Chad Jennings comes the author's comments regarding two more promising young pitching prospects.

A commenter asked Jennings about pitching prospects Dellin Betances, Christian Garcia and Mark Melancon and this was his answer:

I wasn't at the Class A games because I traveled with the Triple-A team, but I talked to Patrick from Pinstripes Plus before the game and I know he was there. On his site he's saying Betances and Garcia were both outstanding but doesn't mention Melancon. I don't want to go into specifics because he has it as subscriber only content. Since I wasn't there, I don't want to steal his stuff. To give a general idea, though, it sounds like those two were very, very good.

Betances, who has hit 99mph with his fastball as a teen, is coming back from an injury-shortened season, shutdown after less than 30 innings of work. His velocity dipped into the 89-91mph range, but he is apparently back on track, hitting 92-94 on the gun consistently and able to touch 96 at times. The question for Betances is mechanics. As long as he can consistently repeat his delivery and armslot, his stuff should flourish - as well as his health.

Garcia has all the stuff in the world to become an elite major league arm, but has been bitten by the injury bug since being drafted out of high school. He needed Tommy John and serious knee surgeries in successive years, bringing his development to a halt. If he returns to the old Garcia, he features a plus fastball in the mid-90s to go along with a devastating curveball and changeup. His career as a professional ballplayer [at least with the Yankees] may soon become a question mark since he will be eligible for the Rule V draft this year. Should he not make major steps forward, he may be out in the cold considering the bounty of talented arms the Bombers now have injected into their farm system.

Melancon Has Eyes On Prize. Mark Melancon [pronounced Mel-an-Sun], lockdown college closer at Arizona and rising relief prospect following last year's Tommy John surgery, offered his reaction to being deemed "the next Joba." Melancon knows there's a lot to be accomplished before even receiving a chance to occupy a late-inning role, mainly conquering Tampa, Trenton and Scranton Wilkes-Barre.

Sherman: Melancon May Be 'Next'

Joel Sherman, a great source for Yankee management information - but not so much on player development - offered another piece on the emergence of Mark Melancon.

The article, titled "Melancon The Next Joba?" tells the abridged story of the righthanded reliever's organizational rise, though he has yet to do anything besides close out the NY Penn league playoffs.

Melancon throws a four-seam and two-seam fastball along with a nasty power curveball and a developing changeup. The four-seamer ranges from 92-94 and tops out at 96 mph, but the two-seam sinker is his real fastball weapon which runs from 90-93 mph. He sinks the ball expertly, but the lateral movement is filthy as well. His power curveball is reminiscient of Josh Beckett's or K-Rods, in that it is thrown in the 82-84 mph range and looks like a fastball before diving into the dirt. Ian Kennedy - who was a PAC-10 rival in college - calls his curve "the Melancon."

As this Yankees blog and countless others had implied months ago, Melancon has the ability and the moxy to become a late inning weapon this year. If he can recapture the level of performance he had while closing games at the University of Arizona, Melancon can eventually become Mariano Rivera's replacement - as Baseball America contends in their annual prospect handbook.

Of course, such a solution remains several months and several leaps away from fruition as Melancon has to first conquer Tampa, Trenton and Scranton's minor league levels before sniffing the big leagues. He also has to prove himself to be a durable power arm completely recovered from last fall's Tommy John surgery.

Furthermore, the path which Joba Chamberlain takes will determine Melancon's route, as a move of Joba to the rotation midseason would open up a major hole in the Yankees bullpen. An opportunity which Melancon would drool over.

From the Sherman piece:

Mark Melancon did not pitch an inning last season. He has pitched 62/3 innings in his entire minor league career. Yet, Yankees officials speculate Melancon could pull a Joba, emulating Mr. Chamberlain by rocketing from the Florida State League to late-inning Yankee relevance in one season. This season.

"I thank Joba for opening that door," Melancon said after a simulated two-inning batting practice session.

The scouting report on Melancon is above-average fastball with command (though his control was sketchy yesterday), a power curve that some in the organization equate as an out pitch to Chamberlain's slider and, as Nick Green, who hit against him in the BP session, said an ability to hide the ball in his delivery. However, what every Yankees official cites as Melancon's greatest asset is a serious, professional, determined makeup.

"This guy wants to compete and will not get rattled," minor league pitching coordinator Nardi Contreras said.

If the Yanks were to get nothing else from that process besides Kennedy and Chamberlain, it would be considered an excellent draft. But the Yanks think they will get more. Oppenheimer said the Yanks "felt blessed" how the draft fell, allowing them to grab six players ranked in the top 70 on their board: Kennedy, Chamberlain, Melancon, Zach McAllister, Dellin Betances and Colin Curtis. The Yanks also believe pitchers from that draft such as George Kontos and Daniel McCutchen, particularly, but perhaps David Robertson and Tim Norton, too, have a chance as major league relievers.

That is one hell of a draft just on IPK and Joba alone. But add Kennedy, Chamberlain, to McAllister, Betances, Kontos and McCutchen and all six arms are potential contributors to the 2008 season or front-line rotation prospects of the future.

J. Brent Cox Had Tommy John Surgery

Originally, it was rumored to have been minor elbow surgery for injured relief pitching prospect J. Brent Cox. However, PinstripesPlus reported Saturday that Cox had indeed undergone Tommy John surgery:

The Yankees drafted J. Brent Cox in the 2nd round of the 2005 MLB Draft out of the University of Texas. Succumbing to Tommy John surgery this past season after dominating the Double-A level in 2006, he is rehabbing his way back to the mound and he appears to be on track for a healthy return as soon as the start of the 2008 season.

His injury is reportedly not as substantial as most which require TJ surgery, and Cox might therefore come back from the procedure quicker than most.

Spending a full season at AA-Trenton in 2006, Cox dominated the Eastern League at 22 years old. Over 77 relief innings, he posted a 1.75 ERA, allowed 54 hits, struck out 60 and walked 24 batters.

Cox may be joined by fellow TJ rehabber Mark Melancon, who is also looking to make an impact at the major league level in 2008.

Farm System Piles Up Hardware

With their postseason brought to an abrupt and disappointing end, the rising juggernaut of Yankees young arms were recently rewarded for a dominant 2007. The Pitcher of the Year award for all of Minor League Baseball went to Ian Patrick Kennedy. Also worthy of recognition, Edwar Ramirez was named the Minor League Baseball Reliever of the Year after an absurd compilation of dominating statistics. Not to be outdone, Alan Horne was named the Pitcher of the Year in the Eastern League. An excerpt depicting each pitchers' domination appears below.

Ian Kennedy:

The California native was named MiLB.com's Pitcher of the Year, leaving Kevin Slowey in the unenviable position of bridesmaid for a second consecutive season. Kennedy finished the Minor League season with a 12-3 mark... [He] dominated at three different levels by posting a 1.91 ERA, a .182 opponents batting average and striking out 163 while walking only 50 over 146.1 innings pitched.

Alan Horne:

The 24-year old has been the ace of the Northern Division leading Trenton pitching staff, compiling a record of 12-4 with a 2.97 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP while striking out 158 batters and walking 51 in 142.1 innings of work this season. The 6’4”, 195 lb. hurler has been dominant for the Thunder all season, giving up one earned run or less in 13 of his 25 appearances and striking out at least seven batters in a game 13 different times.

Edwar Ramirez:

The 26-year-old's stats were indeed eye-popping. Between Double-A Trenton and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Ramirez pitched 56 2/3 innings, allowing 26 hits and 22 walks while striking out 102. Five runs were charged to him all season in the Minors, resulting in a ridiculous 0.79 ERA. Hitters managed a .135 batting average against the reliever at both levels.

People tend to forget that Horne was a first-round draft pick back in 2001, but decided to attend Florida University instead of turning pro. Since that time, Horne was injured, required Tommy John surgery and has recovered. His 2006 season may seem a disappointment regarding numbers, but several mechanical and delivery tweaks certainly had something to do with it. This year's seen a more comfortable Horne take the mound, and the result was domination of AA hitters. Next year, he will likely join AAA-Scranton's rotation and compete for the first major league promotion of 2008.

Kennedy's and Edwar's rise was much more publicized, and for good reason. Though Kennedy's season was cut short by supposed back issues, the 165 aggregate innings thrown between the minors and majors probably forced Yankees management to shut him down due to an innings cap. While Edwar burst upon the major league scene by striking out a side o' Twinkies, he fell back to Earth once hitters adjusted to his changeup. Next year will determine if he can adjust back, hinging on an improved command of his fastball as well as the development of his slider.

Mark Newman and Damon Oppenheimer hope that next season will bare the same fruit, with potentially dominant relievers Mark Melancon and JB Cox each returning from arm surgeries.

--

During a golf tournament he co-hosted along side Johnny Bench, Roger Clemens told reporters that he hasn't ruled out another comeback for 2008. The Yankees will not want or require his services on the field, but Clemens intimated that he would enjoy working with the numerous young pitchers off the field. And, like every other member of the team, the Rocket said he thinks Joe Torre should return next season.