TMS wrote:http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20101118&content_id=16144408&vkey=news_nyy&c_id=nyy&partnerId=rss_nyy

Juan Miranda traded to ARI for a righty pitching prospect

Just heard about this trade at a party last night. I liked Miranda but it's a nice little move I guess -- Miranda just wasn't gonna get any time here with the big club, not the time he really needs anyway (nothing left to prove in the minors), and it looks like Allen was pretty highly-regarded within the Diamondbacks' organization. Doesn't look like the fireballer I was told he was last night but he looks like a quality young arm, we're just gonna have to wait for him a little bit.

Here's an up-to-date scouting report on Allen from Scout.com as of this morning:

Prospect Profile: RHP Scottie Allen

By Keith Glab
Senior Editor
Posted Nov 19, 2010

The Arizona Diamondbacks traded the second-best right-handed pitching prospect in their farm system in order to land 27-year old first baseman Juan Miranda. Here is an in-depth scouting report on Scottie Allen, possibly the latest young D-backs star to get away.

Vitals:

Name: Richard Scott Allen
Draft: 11th round, 2009
Position: Right Handed Pitcher
DOB: 7/03/1991
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 170 lbs
B/T: R/R

History: Although Scottie Allen fell to the 11th round of the 2009 draft, that was more of a reflection on how likely teams thought the high schooler was to sign a professional contract than on his talent. Allen's $125,000 signing bonus was equal to that of their sixth-round pick, Bradin Hagens.

So far, Allen's bonus has looked like a bargain. Although he was a late sign, Allen pitched 4.1 shutout innings in the 2009 Pioneer League playoffs, allowing only one hit and a hit batsman while striking out five and recording a victory. Allen needed to catch a break in order to get that playoff opportunity, however.

"Before [the playoffs] even began, I was a long reliever and not getting to throw many innings," explained Allen. "One of our other relievers, Bradin Hagens, wound up doing something to his foot and missed a couple of weeks. So I took his role as the setup to the closer and ended up getting a few more innings in that way."

17.2 regular season innings, to be precise, with Allen allowing only one earned run. Combining the regular and post- seasons, Allen dazzled a 0.41 ERA in 22 frames. The strength of that performance, combined with a Diamondbacks minor league system beset by injury, gave Allen a chance to pitch in the Midwest League this season at the tender age of 18. While his 4.73 ERA seems ordinary, he allowed only one unearned run in 78 innings, struck out 79 batters, and walked only 22.

"I know I wasn't supposed to be brought up this early," Allen said of competing in a league full of more experienced players. "You don't really notice it. I mean you can see that the other guys are older and more mature, but all the guys around you seem to bring you up to their level."

Makeup: Allen's no-fear mentality in that regard may be his greatest asset.

"He'll attack the zone - he doesn't care who you are or what you've done in the past," said Mark Haley, Allen's manager at South Bend. "He's just focused on what he does."

"He doesn't back down from anyone, he trusts his stuff, and he goes after hitters," concurred Silver Hawks pitching coach Wellington Cepeda. "Those are good qualities to have as a young kid."

Traditionally, the ability to control the strike zone was the first thing that the Arizona front office looked for in a young pitcher, but with the overhaul of the scouting and player development departments, it appears that the organization is less interested in a command and feel prospect without a dominant pitch.

Pitches: Fastball, Curveball, Slider, and Changeup

Allen's fastball sits between 88-91 mph, although it has been clocked as high as 93. It only features decent movement, but Allen has repeatable arm action that allows him to command the offering with great precision. Like any teenage pitcher, Allen can come out of his delivery every now and again, but nothing to an extent that it would create a future concern. Consistent arm mechanics are crucial to Allen developing successful secondary pitches, though.

"Last year I came into the league with just a fastball and a curveball, and I developed a changeup and a slider halfway through the season," Allen told FutureBacks.com this summer. "Actually, I'm most comfortable with the changeup and the slider now - I have no idea why."

When teams first scouted Allen, they thought his curveball had a chance to be an above-average pitch at the big league level. It still does, but it is Allen's straight change that most excites his coaches and most frustrates opposing hitters.

"Allen's done great with his changeup; he's probably got the best one [on the Silver Hawks]," touted Haley. "He can throw that almost any time. He can keep people off his fastball because that changeup's so damn good."

So while at 6-foot-1 and 19-years old Allen is a good candidate to add velocity to his heater, that may not be necessary for him to succeed if he can continue to refine his secondary offerings.

"I give him a lot of credit; he uses all his pitches and mixes them well," said Cepeda.

Projection: Allen has several different avenues available to him in his quest for the major leagues. The rotation makes more sense for him than the bullpen does due to the early development of his changeup, his good instincts for mixing pitches, and his willingness to attack the zone. On the other hand, his stuff could still develop to the point where he doesn't need to out-think hitters as much and might be suited for late-inning work in that scenario. Allen's ceiling is probably an Esteban Loaiza-type career in which he generally provides solid middle-of-the-rotation innings but can also break out with an incredible season if he gets everything clicking on all cylinders.

ETA: The Yankees rarely have cause to rush a prospect to the big leagues due to their talented roster and payroll flexibility, so expect them to limit Allen's innings and take him one level at a time.

Finestrg wrote:

TMS wrote:Albaladejo released

Just saw this on TV. Was given a few chances and unfortunately he never looked like an answer outta the pen for us on the major league level but the man did have an exceptional year at AAA. 4-2, 1.42 ERA, 43 saves, 82 Ks in 63.1 IP, .170 BA against as Scranton's closer...Great numbers right there. You don't try and trade this guy off first before you release him??? Wow.. There's a lot of teams out there looking for bullpen help..We couldn't have gotten anything for a guy with those numbers?? Crazy..Well that closes the book on Tyler Clippard -- we got nothing for him as it turns out and Clip pitched well for the Nats this year..

that is a headscratcher for sure... figure we could have at least got a midlevel prospect at the very least... ah well.

& word, Clippard's #'s in Washington were very solid this year... 3.07 ERA w/a 1.21 WHIP in 188.2 IP is not too shabby

BTW, I heard Dave Eiland was fired (and took his leave last year) because he had a drinking problem. And when Burnett confronted him about it during the season, he popped him in the eye and thats where the shiner came from.

Finestrg wrote:

VDesai wrote:We signed Larry Rothschild to be our pitching coach. He's best known for the being the PC on the Marlins championship team in 1997, the first Devil Rays Manager (was not very succesful) and the Cubs pitching coach for the last several years. Should be a pretty good get for us.

BTW, I heard Dave Eiland was fired (and took his leave last year) because he had a drinking problem. And when Burnett confronted him about it during the season, he popped him in the eye and thats where the shiner came from.

No ****? Wow...Hey do the dates coincide --- Eiland leaving the team & AJ's black eye? I wonder..All the while I was thinking it was some kind of domestic thing & his old lady knocked him out. LOL..If that's really true they did a good job of keeping it in-house because if that had gotten out, the distraction/fallout could've really undermined the team..Who knows, if the media got a hold of that, Eiland would've been fired on the spot, AJ would've gotten suspended &/or fined (who knows if he threw any punches back, we never saw Eiland), the whole thing would've been one big mockery and maybe we don't make the playoffs..Maybe Girardi's let go too for all we know..Really strange situation considering Eiland's absence was thought by many as being a big factor that contributed to AJ's tailspin. Little did we know that it was probably the best thing for both guys and the team at the time.

Burnett makes me laugh too -- Again if true, WTF dude, you pitch like GARBAGE all year long save for only a handful of games and then you have the nerve to go get stupid with your pitching coach over something personal for Eiland that may have been quite serious?? Maybe he should've kept his mouth shut and worried a little more about earning his damn paycheck and a little less about his pitching coach's drinking problem. Crazy..

i have no problem at all with AJ for being concerned about his coach's drinking problem... that's just the human thing to do... his on the field performance should have had nothing to do w/that whole episode... i think it was just another one of AJ's off years... he's never been the most consistent pitchers over his career... hoping he bounces back next season.

Finestrg wrote:

TMS wrote:

Finestrg wrote:

VDesai wrote:We signed Larry Rothschild to be our pitching coach. He's best known for the being the PC on the Marlins championship team in 1997, the first Devil Rays Manager (was not very succesful) and the Cubs pitching coach for the last several years. Should be a pretty good get for us.

BTW, I heard Dave Eiland was fired (and took his leave last year) because he had a drinking problem. And when Burnett confronted him about it during the season, he popped him in the eye and thats where the shiner came from.

No ****? Wow...Hey do the dates coincide --- Eiland leaving the team & AJ's black eye? I wonder..All the while I was thinking it was some kind of domestic thing & his old lady knocked him out. LOL..If that's really true they did a good job of keeping it in-house because if that had gotten out, the distraction/fallout could've really undermined the team..Who knows, if the media got a hold of that, Eiland would've been fired on the spot, AJ would've gotten suspended &/or fined (who knows if he threw any punches back, we never saw Eiland), the whole thing would've been one big mockery and maybe we don't make the playoffs..Maybe Girardi's let go too for all we know..Really strange situation considering Eiland's absence was thought by many as being a big factor that contributed to AJ's tailspin. Little did we know that it was probably the best thing for both guys and the team at the time.

Burnett makes me laugh too -- Again if true, WTF dude, you pitch like GARBAGE all year long save for only a handful of games and then you have the nerve to go get stupid with your pitching coach over something personal for Eiland that may have been quite serious?? Maybe he should've kept his mouth shut and worried a little more about earning his damn paycheck and a little less about his pitching coach's drinking problem. Crazy..

i have no problem at all with AJ for being concerned about his coach's drinking problem... that's just the human thing to do... his on the field performance should have had nothing to do w/that whole episode... i think it was just another one of AJ's off years... he's never been the most consistent pitchers over his career... hoping he bounces back next season.

No idea what AJ could've said to him but you usually don't get punched in the face for "being concerned" about a friend's problem.."Hey coach, I don't even have to tell ya man, you know I'm there for you.." type stuff, you know? Yeah, you usually don't get popped in the face for coming off sincere and caring like that..I know that's how I approach my friends in time of need and I never once got punched in the face for it...My bet is that, if there's anything to this (and maybe VDesai can shed a little more light on this when he gets a min) AJ clowned him or embarrassed somehow, maybe more than once, and Eiland lost it..I mean who the hell knows bro, we weren't flies on the wall but if I had to guess, that's how I picture it over AJ showing some discrete concern where Eiland just snapped out of nowhere..What seems more plausible? And if AJ did clown him, then he got what was coming to him as far as I'm concerned..Naturally, only if it went down like that--like I said, who knows I wasn't there---maybe Eiland's a nutjob..

someone who has a drinking problem is apt to get defensive if confronted about the issue... believe me i've had to intervene w/people in the past, not everyone takes having their problems brought to light with patience & understanding... plus for all we know Eiland could have been drunk at the time it happened... since none of us were there i wouldn't assume anything either way... i don't think AJ is the type if guy that would take someone popping him in the eye lightly unless he actually cared about the guy who hit him... dude studies MMA.

September 18 2010 Last updated at 04:13 PM ET
Yankees Mum on A.J. Burnett's Black Eye
By FanHouse Staff
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As if Yankees fans weren't feeling twitchy enough about A.J. Burnett's ability to show up big for them in October, now they have reason to wonder once again about what the pitcher is doing off the mound.

Burnett pitched against the Orioles Friday night with a rather prominent black eye, and both he and manager Joe Girardi declined to address what might have led to the wound -- though Burnett did acknowledge it wasn't a baseball-related injury.

"I'm not going to comment on it, but I understand you guys have to ask," Burnett told reporters. "There are more important things going on right now with this team than my eye. It was a huge win for us. Let's talk about baseball. I understand you have to ask, but I'm not going to comment on it."

The only other illumination he provided consisted of a vague statement that it was something he "had to deal with" and was moving on.

Girardi took basically the same tack.

"I knew that question was going to be asked, but I'm not going to comment. The story was that he pitched well and I'll leave it at that."

It was only two months ago that Burnett had to leave a game after cutting both hands when he slammed them on a pair of clubhouse doors in a rage. He was upfront about that mishap, and perhaps should be given credit for not making up some outlandish story about the black eye.

But considering he plays in New York -- and isn't exactly the most popular guy around -- you have to figure the real story on this one will come out sooner or later.

just by him saying it was something he had to deal with sounds to me like he wasn't the instigator in this case... if he was then don't u think he'd be the one on the way out instead of the pitching coach? think about it.

TMS wrote:
just by him saying it was something he had to deal with sounds to me like he wasn't the instigator in this case... if he was then don't u think he'd be the one on the way out instead of the pitching coach? think about it.

See now I wouldn't assume that. Let's be honest bro, the article you supplied above is pretty vague to say the least. I couldn't conclude anything from it..No details whatsoever..He very well could've been the instigator and then realized once he got punched in the face that he crossed the line..Then later, maybe feeling bad about it, he chose to go the high road, knowing he was wrong to begin with..Or better yet he was told by Cashman & co. to just go the 'no comment' route and go out there and pitch...No one way of looking at this unless we have all the facts. Otherwise it's nothing but speculation. I know this though -- even with AJ pitching poorly last year, he makes a ton of money and was a very important part of the starting rotation -- it's a lot easier to make a coach disappear than it is a multi-million dollar player that a playoff-bound team was leaning on to help them get to the post-season. We see it all the time in sports -- coaches are usually the first to go over players if something isn't working or goes wrong. Not always but usually..Esp. if the player makes as much money as AJ Burnett does. And esp if the coach has a drinking problem and is the only one who got physical...And this wasn't even the head coach or manager, this was a pitching coach..Just sayin'.

VDesai wrote:From what I heard they were actually pretty tight and AJ was dependent on Eiland somewhat. I think the confrontation was two friends airing it out a bit, and obviously it got somewhat heated. I don't know that it was malicious, but I think it explains some of the issues with what went down last year. Also explains why Eiland got the boot- I think he did a good job in his tenure here, but his personal issues were too much of a distraction.

I wonder how many people were around for the altercation.. A full locker room, only a couple of guys, just AJ & Dave..The more people that were around for it, the harder it would be to keep quiet you would think..Like I said earlier, I'm glad it was kept away form the press and handled internally..That was the right way of going about it..The press would've turned that into a circus and it would've been a major distraction..

yanks have been doing the short 2-yr deals with rivera and its worked out fine. have a bounce back year and then don't suck in the contract year the next time around and i'm sure they'll give him another 2-3 yr deal. if he keeps at the hit pace he had last year (180), after 3 more seasons jeter will be 6th on the hit list with 3466 hits. he'll be well within reach of tris speaker (3514), musial (3630), and hank aaron (3771) for the yanks to want to bring him back on a 1-2 yr deal at the very least.