Preliminary 2010 Staten Island Yankees Roster

It is that time again.  Opening Day is here for the defending NY-Penn League Champion Staten Island Yankees who open their 2010 season this Friday against the rival Brooklyn Cyclones at the Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George.

This year the Baby Bombers will be led by Jody Reed who is filling in for manager Josh Paul who is currently with the New York Yankees filling in as the team’s bullpen coach.  It is not known right now how long it will be until Josh Paul but until that time Reed will be the interim manager.  Coaches Ty Hawkins and Pat Daneker are returning to lead the hitters and pitchers respectively.  They will be joined by first-time coach Justin Pope who recently retired from his career as a pitcher with the Yankees and Phillies organizations.

Below is a look at the players who will are in Staten Island for the first team practices.  An official roster will not be released until Friday.

Bryant Cotton – RHP

Bryant Cotton was signed as a non-drafted free agent out of Saint Louis University.  The 6 foot 2 inch right-handed pitcher spent two seasons with the Billikens after transferring from Butler County Community College.  The right-hander throws a plethora of pitches possessing a four-seam fastball, two-seam fastball, a sinker, curveball, splitter, slider and a change-up.  His main strike out pitch is his slider which he successfully developed over the past year.

Chase Whitely – RHP

Chase Whitley is out of Troy University.  The 15^th round draft pick was 7-3 with a 3.68 ERA in 32 relief appearances this season.  In 66 innings he struck out 65 and walked 24 while limiting opposing hitters to just a .211.  He possesses an average fastball that sits between 88 and 92 MPH, a plush change up and a fringe curveball that still needs to develop.

Manuel Barreda – RHP

Manny Barreda was drafted in the 12^th round of the 2007 First-Year Player Draft out of Sahuarita HS.  The young right-handed spent the majority of the last three seasons with the Gulf Coast League Yankees were he owns a combined 5-1 record with a 2.61 ERA, striking out 83 in 79.1 innings.  He pitched in two games for the Charleston Riverdogs last season where he was 1-0 with a 13.50 ERA in 2.2 innings.  Barreda has had some injury troubles over the past few years that forced him to miss games.

Michael O’Brien – RHP

Mike O’Brien was selected by the New York Yankees in the 9^th round of the 2008 First-Year Player Draft.  After signing he has spent the past two seasons with the Gulf Coast League Yankees where he only appeared in 17 games, 10 starts, he struck out a total of 58 batters in 64 innings.  The young right-hander throws a four-seam fastball, a circle changeup, and a curveball.

Samuel Elam – LHP

The New York Yankees drafted Samuel Elam in the 8^th round of the 2009 First-Year Player Draft out of Notre Dame.  After signing he opened up his professional career with the Staten Island Yankees but struggled with command of his raw stuff.  He was 0-2 with a 12.38 ERA in 10 relief appearances between Staten Island and the Gulf Coast Yankees.

Zachary Varce – RHP

Zachary Varce was selected in the 11^th round of the 2010 First-Year Player Draft.  Varce is listed as a starting pitcher.  He possesses a fastball that sits in the low 90s and touched 93 along with a with a slider, changeup and a split-finger fastball.

Richard Martinez – RHP

Martinez was signed by the Yankees on November 18, 2005 as an international free agent and went on to make his debut with the DSL Yankees in 2006. In 2007 he was 2-3 with a 4.67 ERA in 13 games for the DSL Yankees, most of them in the rotation. Martinez went on to make his United States debut with the GCL Yankees where he was 0-3 with a 4.50 ERA in 6 games.

Shane Greene – RHP

The New York Yankees selected right-handed pitcher Shane Green in the fifteenth round of the 2009 draft.

Nathan Forer – RHP

Freddy Lewis – LHP

Preston Clairborne – RHP

Nick McCoy – Catcher

Nick McCoy was drafted in the 36^th round by the New York Yankees.  He earned first-team All-WCC distinction for the Toreros this past season after he hit .351 with 3 doubles, 2 homeruns and 19 RBIs in league games.  Overall he hit .315 with 9 doubles, 4 homeruns, and 35 RBIs.

Shane Brown – Catcher

Shane Brown was drafted in the 23^rd round of the 2010 First-Year Player Draft and can play all over the place.  He was drafted as a catcher but has experience in the outfield and infield as well.

Jeffrey Farnham – Catcher

Jeff Farnham was selected by the Yankees in the 27^th round of the 2009 First-Year Player Draft.  Last season he split the year with the Gulf Coast League Yankees and the Charleston RiverDogs.  He hit a combined .297 in 25 games with 7 doubles, a homerun and 12 RBIs.

Casey Stevenson – Second base

Kyle Roller – First base

Garrison Lassiter – Third base

Jose Mojica – Shortstop

Carlos Urena – First Base

The Yankees signed Carlos Urena on July 2, 2006 as an international free agent. Urena went on to make his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League in 2007, splitting the season between the two Yankee teams in the league. Combined he hit .237 with 9 doubles, 2 triples, and 8 homeruns. In 2008 he played exclusively for DSL Yankees 2 where he hit .375 with 2 doubles, 1 triple and 1 homerun in only 6 games.

Luis Parache – Shortstop

Michael Ferraro – Outfield

Eduardo Sosa – Outfield

Centerfielder Eduardo Sosa was signed by the Yankees on July 2, 2007 as an international free agent. In his first professional season (2008) he batted .315 with 18 doubles, 4 homeruns and 37 RBIs. He played in 63 games with the DSL Yankees 2 and was tied for third with 80 hits.

Kelvin DeLeon – Outfield

Kelvin DeLeon was another international free agent signed by the Yankees on July 2, 2007. In 2008 he made his professional debut with the DSL Yankees 2 team and batted .289 in 235 at bats in 63 games. His 68 hits included 16 doubles, 2 triples and 9 homeruns with 43 RBIs. The young outfielder stole 8 bases while being caught 3 times. He did not go more then two consecutive games without recording a hit for the DSL Yankees until the final three games of the regular season.

Ramon Flores – Outfield

Left fielder Ramon flores was signed as an international free agent on July 4, 2008 and made his debut in 2009 with the Dominican Summer League Yankees and the Gulf Coast Yankees.  He hit a combined .208 with 5 doubles, 4 triples and a homerun in 62 games.  This season he saw some time with the Florida State League’s Tampa Yankees where he hit .286 in 4 games.

Readers Comments