Sports Illustrated | Joseph Randazzo: The Yankees bullpen remains the team’s most wobbly unit and it could be getting an exciting internal reinforcement soon. Relaying a report from Joel Sherman of the New York Post, Randazzo noted that Brian Cashman is considering calling up top pitching prospect Carlos Lagrange to provide a boost to a relief corps that could use some more swing-and-miss. Lagrange dazzled in spring with a fastball that reaches as high as 103 mph as well as a much improved slider and changeup. He still has a ways to go in the command department with just a 46.5-percent first-pitch strike rate and 11.5-percent walk rate in 11 appearances at Triple-A, but his high-octane raw stuff is certainly MLB-ready, and his potential call-up is being likened to Joba Chamberlain’s 2007 debut.
MLB.com | Thomas Harrigan: Much of the Yankees’ success this season can be tied to the performance of three homegrown stars. Cam Schlittler, Aaron Judge, and Ben Rice are currently the three most valuable players in baseball by fWAR. Since the start of free agency in 1976, the Yankees have only ever had one season where three homegrown players eclipsed the 5.0 fWAR mark: Andy Pettitte, Alfonso Soriano, and Jorge Posada in 2003. Judge, Schlittler, and Rice are well on pace to eclipse five wins each and could wind up with the greatest ever season by a trio of homegrown Bombers.
NJ Advance Media | Randy Miller: The Yankees raised eyebrows when they decided to bring back Paul Goldschmidt on a one-year, $4 million pact, but so far they have been vindicated in their decision. The 38-year-old has stabilized the DH role with Giancarlo Stanton and Jasson Domínguez out injured (enabling Rice to slide over to the DH spot, if not occupying it himself), with six home runs, 18 RBIs, and a 146 wRC+ in 32 games. For his part, Goldschmidt says he is learning to enjoy the small moments of what he called the back nine of his career, and relished the opportunity of getting to suit up for a World Series contender, one of the few prizes that has eluded him in his long and distinguished career.
The Sacramento Bee | Sean Campbell: Last Thursday, Sacramento officials lodged their proposal for an expansion MLB team, and Aaron Judge is a fan. Judge was born outside Sacramento and grew up 40 miles south in Linden, and has enjoyed the opportunity to play in front of family in friends with the A’s playing in West Sacramento the last two seasons. He met with Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarthy prior to their current series against the A’s and learned some of the details of the city’s proposal, Judge calling West Sacramento “great baseball town” deserving of an expansion franchise after the A’s complete their move to Las Vegas.
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