Sheff Surprise
The theory went that the Yankees would be able to get middle-level players for Gary Sheffield. Perhaps some prospects, but no one special. The reality is that the Yankees did very well in trading Sheffield yesterday to the Detroit Tigers. They received three pitching prospects, two of whom I know nothing about, save that they look like hard throwers based on their strikeout numbers, but one of whom I had heard of. He's Humberto Sanchez, who first came to my attention when he pitched in the Futures Game this past summer. He threw one scoreless inning, but the more important data is that he was touted as one of the Tigers' top pitching prospects, if not the top, and that he had put up some impressive numbers at Double A. There was talk that he could join the Tigers later in the season. He didn't, but he got a call up to Triple A, where he got off to a good start before tailing off and suffering an arm problem. The arm problem bit gets me nervous, but it sounds like the Yankees got exactly what they needed. A young hard-throwing pitcher who's Major League ready. Expect to see Sanchez in the rotation this season. Hope that he becomes a solid member of the staff, joining Wang and eventually Philip Hughes in a triumvirate of young studs who can front the rotation for a long time.
Cross-posted on THTRB.