New York Yankees Notes: Roster Moves, Scranton and Protests

The Yankees are coming off a rather tough stretch where they went a disappointing 4-8.

Now that the Red Sox and Rays are behind them, they will start rolling against some weaker competition.

I’m not sure if that includes the Mets, who have been both up and down this year, mostly down. The two teams start the first of two Subway Series tonight.

First, here are some news bits.

• The Yankees have been juggling their roster quite a bit lately. Before yesterday’s game they put Jorge Posada on the DL and called up catcher Chad Moeller. To make room for Moeller on the 40-man roster, they put Nick Johnson on the 60-day DL.
• RHP Mark Melancon was also sent back down to the minors. If you are looking for directions from Scranton, to the Bronx he is your man to ask. In his place the Yankees recalled infielder Kevin Russo, who is becoming more of an outfielder too.
• Brian Cashman also told Chad Jennings that if he were not on the Scranton DL, outfielder Colin Curtis would likely have gotten some major league time by now.
• The Yankees have signed 26-year-old catcher Rene Rivera, according to Mike Ashmore, who will take Moeller’s place as the backup in Scranton. This could be a very temporary relationship ended when Posada comes off the DL.
• Speaking of Scranton, the Yankees announced that they have extended their relationship to keep Scranton/Wilkes-Barre as their Triple-A affiliate through the 2014 season.
• Finally, as expected, the Yankees lost their protest of Tuesday’s game against the Boston Red Sox. I don’t think anybody really thought it would hold up.

That’s all for now. We’ll have more later today on the Yankees' struggles, and we should have a Subway Series preview up at some point too! So make sure to check back here at Bronx Baseball Daily throughout the day for the latest Yankees news.

One more thought: If it’s not too late when you are reading this, there is a Yankees game on the MLB Network from 1990. Yeah, that team sucked, but it features a Deion Sanders vs. Bo Jackson matchup and vintage Don Mattingly (actually, 1990 was probably the worst year in Mattingly's entire career). It started at noon, so be quick like a bunny.

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• May 19, 2010 -- The Yankees Long List of Injuries, Updated (2)