Happy Memorial Day to all BP readers! While you may be enjoying a barbecue or a day off, remember those soldiers who fought so valiantly to sustain your livelihoods. We can salute Yankees pitching prospect Alex Robinett, who is off on military leave this season after playing in the Yankees minor league system in 2015. But since there are no other active duty or veteran minor league players in the Yankees organization, this Yankees minor league update will use veteran in the other sense of the word, focusing on older players with more baseball experience. This is in no way meant to trivialize the work of our nation’s military veterans, but instead an opportunity to shine a light on some longtime players who have ended up in the Yankees system.
Donovan Solano– IF- Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (AAA)- The 28 year-old Solano is hitting .296 this season with one home run and 16 RBI. He has not walked very much, drawing only 11 walks in 185 plate appearances, but this has been a trend for him, as he has a career 5.6% walk rate in his major league career. He doesn’t hit for much power or demonstrate much speed on the base paths (he has two steals this season and 11 in his major league career), but he can play multiple positions in the field. At second base, where he played most of his major league career, he has a .988 fielding percentage, proving that he can play good major league defense. The Yankees have played him at third base a fair bit, where he has made two of his six errors this season, but Solano has still demonstrated an ability to post a high fielding percentage and make plays in the field. He may be called up during the season to serve as a utility man.
Pete Kozma– IF- Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (AAA)- Kozma, a former first round pick of the Cardinals, has accumulated 621 major league at-bats with three home runs, 52 RBI, eight stolen bases, and a .222 average in his big league career. Kozma has not done too well historically in the batting average department, hitting a career .235 in his minor league career that spans almost 3,000 at bats. This year he is hitting .190 with a .272 on-base percentage, with no home runs but four stolen bases in seven attempts. Kozma has made five errors this season in the field, but at his natural position of shortstop, he has only made two. Kozma may make sense as another utility infielder at some point, but given his struggles at the plate, that will be unlikely unless he can get on a hot streak offensively.
Anthony Swarzak– P- Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (AAA)- The 30 year-old journeyman has bounced between major league rotations and bullpens, but now finds himself in AAA with the Yankees. In 13 games (8 starts), he has gone 1-4 with a 4.22 ERA, a 1.27 WHIP, and five saves in five opportunities. Since being moved to the bullpen to close out games for the RailRiders, he has allowed three runs while striking out an impressive 15 batters in 9 2/3 innings. He also has allowed only one walk over that span, and if he can continue to rack up strikeouts at this rate, it will not be long before he’s on the “Scranton Shuttle” to the Bronx.
Phil Coke– P- Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (AAA)- Coke, who was drafted by the Yankees back in 2002, has bounced around over the last few years before returning to the Yankees this season. Coke has been a reliever for most of his major league career, even making three appearances with the big league Yankees earlier this season. Recently, however, the Yankees have tried to test out Coke as a starter. Before his call-up in early May, Coke had a start where he threw five shutout innings, striking out seven, walking two, and allowing three hits. On Tuesday, Coke had another start, going five innings again, striking out four while allowing four hits, one run, and no walks. The Yankees may try to stretch out Coke, allowing him the opportunity to maybe provide a spot start or long relief for the big club. But after being designated for assignment, clearing waivers, and accepting the assignment to AAA, Coke will need to show some further development before returning to the majors.
