Somerset Patriot Baseball Coming in April

New Jersey hosts several minor league baseball teams. One of them is the Somerset Patriots who play in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. Two other New Jersey teams, the Newark Bears and the Camden Riversharks, also play in this league.

The Patriots play 70 home games in the TD Bank Ballpark which has a seating capacity of 6,100. The ballpark is located at 1 Patriots Park, Bridgewater, NJ 08807. The phone number is 732-494-9200. Their season begins on April 22nd. They play their first seven games on the road and then come home for their first home game on April 30th starting at 7:05 PM. They play the Bridgeport Bluefish. You can purchase tickets online. Prices range from $5.00 for lawn seating to $12.50 for premium field box seats.

Jesus Montero

Who is the most promising prospect the Yankees have? It might be a teenage catcher named Jesus Montero. He is highly regarded in and outside the Yankee organization and this MLB link indicates that he enjoys the leadership role that catchers have. That's a good sign. Current Yankee and all-star catcher Jorge Posada enjoys that role too.

Statistics about Montero are easily gleaned at this Baseball Reference.com site. Jesus Montero was born in Venezuela and is listed at 6'4" and 225 pounds.

New Stadium Insider indicates that Montero already has the ability to hit off-speed pitches. He finished up last season with the Yankees AA Trenton Thunder affiliate. His minor league stats have been impressive. Interestingly the New Stadium Insider piece states that he has hit better in the DH role.

An intriguing online analytical site makes predictions about Montero. I'm not familiar with their methodology or record of prognosticating success.

Jesus Montero is, not surprisingly, the focus of speculation as we go into this post season and witness the prospects of trades. It looks as if we should expect something substantial in return should he be dealt in a trade. Given Montero's superb reviews and Jorge Posada's age, as well as the affinity of Yankee fans for home grown talent, Cashman should get a very valuable package in return if Montero is traded.

It Takes More than Muscle

Inside The Brain of an Elite Athlete, a HUM-MOLGEN article, indicates that more than muscle power accounts for excellence in athletics. The article cites a paper, appearing in Nature Reviews Neuroscience, which points out a key role for the brain in athletic performance. Specifically, skills linked to awareness and movement correlate to changes in sensory brain areas and brain areas linked to movement.

Baseball's All-Star Game

The American League All-Stars defeated their National League counterparts by a score of 4-3. This marked the 13th consecutive All-Star game in which the American League has either been victorious (12 times) or tied (once). The game's MVP honors went to Carl Crawford, the Tampa Bay Ray outfielder. Although he neither scored a run nor batted one in, he made a spectacular catch which robbed Brad Hawpe of a possible home run in the seventh inning. Mariano Rivera picked up his fourth All-Star save.

The NL still has an overall lead in the competition. The totals of wins, losses and ties now stands at: 40-38-2. Access the MLB website story on the game here.

Interleague Play in 2009 and Stats from Prior Years

Interleague play has ended this season. It's a success at the gate. Fans get to see match-ups that were only dreamed about in the past. It might be the only chance some fans have to see particular stars from the opposite league in person.

The American League ran up a 23 game edge in games against their National League rivals. It's been a pattern since 2003, the last year the National League had the edge. Rivalries reborn with Interleague's return links to an mlb article on interleague play. It contains some interesting statistics gathered since interleague play began in 1997. Jim Thome has hit the most home runs and Derek Jeter has the most hits.

The Yankess had a 10-8 record but that was made possible only by winning their last five interleague games against the Braves and the Mets. The Yankees had played poorly against other teams and even managed to lose two of three against the Washington Nationals in Yankee Stadium. Chin Ming Wang started to pitch better but still has some way to go before getting back to the winning form of previous years. DH Hidecki Matsui was limited to pinch hitting for a nine game stretch in National League parks. The good news for Yankee fans though is that interleague play ended on a winning note as the Yanks return home with newly acquired outfielder Eric Hinske ready to join them. The Yanks have the best interleague record since 1997.

Yankee Pitching Prospects

The Future Of The New York Yankees: Pitching Prospects To Keep An Eye On is the title of this linked article of the Bleacher Report. The article, dated September 13, 2008, discusses four Yankee pitching prospects in some detail and gives honorable mention to others. Zach McAllister is one of the four. He was drafted out of high school in 2006 and stands 6'6" tall. His fastball is clocked in the low 90s but has good movement. He was only 20 years old when the article was written.

6'10" Andrew Brackman is another of the four. A first round pick in the 2007 draft Brackman has missed time due to Tommy John surgery. He has thrown both a two seamer and a four seamer, the latter in the high 90s. He also has excellent control.

Dellin Betances, at 6'9", is another big pitcher. He throws in the mid-90s and also has a reliable knuckle-curveball. His weakness has been too many walks.

Alan Horne rounds things out. Although 25 years of age Horne throws in the low to mid-90s and has has a good slider and change-up. He also throws strikes.

A Unique Yankee Prospect

Venditte the best from every angle is an MLB article about New York Yankee pitching prospect Pat Venditte. Pat Venditte is unique in being able to throw effectively with either arm. The ambidextrous relief pitcher played for the Staten Island Yankees during the 2008 season.

His first year in minor league baseball resulted in some impressive stats. He was 1-0 with an 0.83 ERA. Venditte led the New York-Penn League with 23 saves and allowed only three earned runs in 30 games. Staten Island is a Class A farm team. Venditte is 23 years old.

Robinson Cano "batee como si fuera Ted Williams"

"Como si fuera Ted Williams" dice Alex Rodriguez. Siempre regresa con un buen bate es un articulo de Robinson Cano, el segunda base de los New York Yankees. No importa el ano porque siempre acontece lo mismo en la segunda mitad. Cano es un bateador superior despues del Juego de las Estrellas. Segun el articulo:

Canó de nuevo demostró su explosión ofensiva en el primer juego de la serie contra los Mellizos, al batear de 5-2 con dos impulsadas. Una de esas carreras vino por medio de un gigantesco cuadrangular en la cuarta entrada cuando Canó envió a las gradas del segundo nivel en el jardín derecho una curva de Boof Bonser.

El quisqueyano dijo que cuando puede conectar bien, todas las pelotas saltan del bate de la misma forma -- pero no pudo contener su sonrisa cuando le preguntaron si vio en dónde cayó esa pelota. Fue su segundo vuelacercas en sus últimos cuatro juegos.

Canó está bateando de 19-10 en los cuatro juegos de los Yankees desde el descanso del Juego de Estrellas, y mientras su promedio de bateo ha aumentado después de la primera mitad, eso no es sorpresa.

El segunda base ha demostrado claramente que es un mejor bateador en la segunda mitad, exhibiendo un promedio de .338 en su carrera después del descanso del Juego de Estrellas. Pero Canó ha sido consistente durante el mes de julio, y el piloto Joe Girardi dijo que continúa mejorando.

The Young Yankees

Yanks prospects to contend for title tells us about some young Yankees. Some, like Joba Chamberlain, have already played in the major leagues while others have shown promise on a minor league level. Position players like outfielders Jose Tabata, Austin Jackson and Brett Gardner are discussed. Tabata played in the Florida State League last year. He suffered a wrist injury which caused him to miss playing time but managed to hit 307. He has speed and was only 18 years old last season. Austin Jackson is a five tool player who spent time playing for Tampa last season. Gardner is another speedster with many stolen bases to his credit.

The Yankees have a young catcher named Jesus Montero from Venezuela. He received a large bonus to sign with the Yanks. Montero played in the Gulf Coast league and has power.

Pitchers include a six feet seven inch right hander named Dellin Betances and relief pitcher Eric Wordekemper. Wordekemper, a righthander, spent almost the entire season with Tampa and compiled an impressive ERA.

Humberto Sanchez, acquired in the Sheffield trade, missed last season because of Tommy John surgery but is back for 2008. He will be 25 years old in May.