The Yankees Call Up Claggett, Option Miranda

According to Chad Jennings of the Scranton Times-Tribune, the Yankees have called up relief pitcher Anthony Claggett from triple-A Scranton, and in a corresponding move optioned first baseman Juan Miranda back to the minors.

This means the Yankees are back to carrying 13 pitchers.

It seems like overkill to me, especially considering that they don’t really have a backup first baseman since the Xavier Nady injury has forced Nick Swisher into the starting right fielder role.

It is doubtful they will carry 13 pitchers for long.

Claggett is likely just up for insurance, and he will probably be sent back down within the week.

There is an outside chance he could hang on to the team, and somebody like Jonathan Albaladejo could be sent down instead, but that is unlikely.

If you are wondering why the recently demoted David Robertson was passed over and Claggett was called up instead, it’s because he was sent down within the past 10 days.

The rules state that once a player is optioned down to the minors he must remain there for at least 10 days unless he is replacing a player going on the DL.

For those of you who don’t know who Claggett is, he was acquired by the Yankees when they traded Gary Sheffield to the Detroit Tigers.

He’s not one of their top prospects, but he has been a strong pitcher in the minors over the past couple of years.

This season, he has made three appearances. In a little over five innings, he has a 1-0 record, a 3.38 ERA, and has allowed eight hits, one walk, and six strike outs.

The rest of his stats can be found here.