The latest minor moves from around MLB…
- The Twins released reliever Jason Bulger from minor league camp, La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports. The 33-year-old right-hander appeared in five games with the Angels last year and signed a minor league deal with the Twins in November.
- The Twins released Steve Pearce, according to Dustin Morse of the team's communications department (on Twitter). Pearce, 28, appeared in 50 games for the Pirates last year, posting a .515 OPS in 105 plate appearances. He has MLB experience at all four corner positions.
- The Yankees released Preston Mattingly, according to the Associated Press (via the Miami Herald). Mattingly, the 24-year-old son of Dodgers manager Don Mattingly, signed a minor league deal in January and had been playing with the Yankees' Double-A team.
Amazing the amount of former players kids who fizzle out, or just become bench players at best at the MLB levels.
Wonder if will ever see again another 3 generation like the great Boone’s? Ray/Bob/Aaron/Brett?
The pressure on those kids has to be tremendous. It would be much easier to get caught up in your own hype at a young age and lose focus on baseball.
There are a few chances out there for it to happen again, but it definitely isn’t likely.
It amazes me how long some of the kids of former players who can’t hit the sphere with the stick hang around. That’s baseball nepotism at work.
Exactly..
I can understand drafting people (way down) to show your team’s personnel that they at least TRIED to show loyalty and bring them into the organization, just not using a #1 overall as a point.
Not going to look back and see if Mattingly was a LAD coach in ’06 when his kid was drafted by the LAD, but if that played any part, then I would say it was a mistake.
teams do draft their own FO and playing personel/coaching staff kids. boston just in 2010-11 took one of their owner’s kids and Yaz’s grandson.. just in rounds 30-late 40’s. Kapstein is even a decent prospect, while “little” Yaz went to college.
Just different ways o take FO/coaching talent like you said and have a feeling LA learned that also, just like Boston back in the 70’s learned to stop drafting 6’5 hulking figures who couldn’t move and all they could do was hit the ball as far as the eye could see? or K out.. Buck Baker. Otis Foster, Rocky Alburtis….
I was hoping to see Griffey Jr and his son play with each other before jr retired. So much for
That…
Oh it happens now and then, like brother combos and the Niekro brothers. Just rare.
What always is strange is how often these kids are drafted so high, just because of the lineage. Sean Burroughs comes to mind right off as another bust.
Burroughs was decent enough for 2 seasons. He isn’t his dad at all, but I think it had less to do with natural ability to hit for average with some decent strike zone judgement and more to do with his lifestyle off the field.
That was pretty much my point: Top/lotto style pick that never panned out and was drafted high because he was jeff’s son in a lot of ways. It happens an awful lot.
His lifestyle? yeah it got in the way of his career, but he was destined to have become a bench player anyway really. 3b with little power generally don’t last long as starters, unless they play GG defense and hit like the dickens.. AKA Wade Boggs/Billy Mueller and Burroughs is not in that mold.
It’s no offense, just a famous players sone, whose dad was a good one that was drafted in the 1st round (and high) who ended up being another waste of a pick.. it has happened way too often with teams in doing that.
As the poster above brought up.. Griffey jr’s are rare.
I don’t know, I think they might have been swayed by his LLWS showing too 😉
Yeah I believe he signed to play WR at Arizona.
The article says and I quote ”
Mattingly, the 24-year-old son of Dodgers manager Don Mattingly, signed a minor league deal in January and had been playing with the Yankees’ Double-A team.”
I think that is an overstatement. While it’s true Preston Mattingly was signed by the Yankees he has never appeared in a game for any of the Yankees minor league teams.
Thanks for that clarification, Ultimate YankeeFan… I saw Mattingly play for the Dodgers’ Single-A team in Rancho Cucamonga last year so I didn’t think he had ever played a game in the Yankees’ organization…
…back to the Youtube trick basketball shots for Mattingly (he’s good at that at least).
Reports are Bulger is looking to catch on with any teams in proximity to Santa Monica.
interesting. never thought about that with baseball in regards to sons.
i’ve been witnessing in junior hockey a whole wave of ex-NHLer kids. there’s a standout or two, but most look like they will be solid workman-and-up professionals. they seem to realize that it’s not just about living the big dream, but that it is about a way to make a (well-rewarded) living
It rarely works out, but sometimes it does. Mattingly was picked in the first round, and I believe his dad was a coach for the Dodgers in ’06. Maybe it looked like he had real promise then (benefit of the doubt) but the nepotism is letting him hang out for six years in the minors with what looks like no chance of advancing.