SWB YANKEESSWB YANKEESA Times Leader Special Section Thursday, April 7, 2011

Complete schedulefor the 2011 season,including promotions.

Pages 6-7

Don’t missa game

Jesus Monteroremains one of Yan-kees’ top prospects.

Page 8

Future stillin Big Apple

Veteran managerDave Miley returnsfor another season.

Page 9

The manin charge

Makinga pitchfor No. 5

Makinga pitchfor No. 5

Yankees set sights on fifthconsecutive IL North title

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre pitcher Lance Pendleton

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DAVE MILEYPosition: ManagerAge: 49Now in his 25th season of minorleague managing, Miley long agoproved himself a huge success inboth developing players andgiving them something to shakehands about. He has 17 winningseasons on his resume, includingthe 2008 Governor’s Cup cham-pionship and four straight In-ternational League North Divisiontitles. Last year, Miley recordedhis 1,500th minor league victory,and guided SWB to the IL’s sec-ond-best record.

SCOTT ALDREDPosition: Pitching coachAge: 42Now in his third season with theSWB Yankees, New York’s toppitching prospects just keep get-ting better under Aldred’s tutel-age. The former major leaguepitcher who finished his careerwith the Philadelphia Philliesdeveloped a staff that earned fourIL pitcher of the week awards in2010. Over his past two seasons inTriple-A, Aldred help developcurrent New York Yankees startersPhil Hughes and Ivan Nova.

BUTCH WYNEGARPosition: Hitting coachAge: 51Under his guidance, the SWBYankees ranked second in theInternational League last seasonwith both a .277 batting averageand a .353 on-base percentage.But those numbers don’t begin toreflect what he’s meant to Scran-ton/Wilkes-Barre’s hitters. Hisknack for turning strugglingswings into big hits has proveninvaluable to New York’s topminor league players. The formerbig league catcher who caughtDave Righetti’s no-hitter and PhilNiekro’s 300th career victory withthe Yankees has proven a big hitwith Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s lineup.

FRANK MENECHINOPosition: CoachAge: 40A veteran of 450 major leaguegames, Menechino begins his firstseason at the Triple-A level afterserving as the hitting instructorfor Double-A Trenton the last twoseasons. His big league appear-ances came with Oakland andToronto over seven seasons, andhe also spent time in the Yankeesorganization in 2006.

Y A N K E E SC O A C H E S

That he’d be doing itAGAINST the home team?Well, thatwasn’t in his plans.“Yeah, but it’s a business,”

Jackson said. “Things happen allthe time. You just have tomoveon.”Quickly and abruptly, theNew

YorkYankeesmoved Jackson outof their plans.Hewas traded away before the

start of last season as part of apackage that broughtCurtisGranderson to patrol the outfieldforNewYork.And it left Jacksonwondering

why itwasn’t his job instead.“That’s overwith,” Jackson

said.His reputation as a future big

league starwent over the topwith the Scranton/Wilkes-BarreYankees.Jackson only added to his

billing as theYankees top pros-pect in 2009whenhe hit .300 forScranton/Wilkes-Barre,with 23doubles, nine triples, 67 runsscored and 65RBI.He became a valued commod-

ity during trade talks, and hisperformance inTriple-A ulti-mately helped theYankees ac-quire a provenAll-Star centerfielder inGranderson. The stand-out season at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre also helped Jackson get tothe big leagues – even if it had tobewith another organization.“Itwasn’t just that year in

Scranton,” Jackson said. “I got alot chance to learn anddevelopin the (Yankees)minor leagues.Every at-bat I got at every stop

helpedmegrow.”The talent theYankees fore-

saw fromJackson blossomed inDetroit last season.The center fielder became just

the fourth player inmajor leaguehistory since1901to score atleast100 runs, steal 30 bases andcollect180 hits, 30 doubles and10 triples as a rookie.Andhis play in center fieldwas

as silky-smooth as Scranton/Wilkes-Barre fans remember.As a reminder of that, Jackson

showedNewYork fanswhat theyweremissing during the season-openingweekend of 2011.He spent Sunday’s series finale

showing off his glove forDetroitagainst theYankees.Hewentdeep to thewarning track totrack down a shot fromGran-derson—themanhewas tradedfor –with a pretty over-the-shoul-der catch. Later in the game,which turned intoDetroit’s firstvictory of the season, JacksonrobbedMarkTeixeirawith ashoestring catch of a sinking linedrive.“I dreamed aboutmyselfmak-

ing plays all the time,” Jacksonsaid. “Any time I take the field,everywhere I go, I’m thinking I’vegot to get to balls (in the out-field) and score some runs (atthe plate).”He used to envision doing all

of that in the big leagues. Thatpart of his plan hasn’t changed,evenwhen Jackson’s expectedpath toNewYork took a detourand sent him fromScranton/Wilkes-Barre toDetroit.

A different path

AP PHOTO

Detroit Tigers center fielder Austin Jackson, a member of theScranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees in 2009, hauls in fly ball during agame at Yankee Stadium in New York last Sunday. Jackson hadexpected to make it to the big leagues with the Yankees, but hewas traded to the Detroit Tigers last season.

By PAUL SOKOLOSKI | psokoloski@timesleader.com

NEWYORK–Throughout his one seasonat Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Austin Jacksonspent countless hours dreaming of days likeSunday,where hewas racing through centerfield at Yankee Stadiumawing the crowdwith spectacular catches.

“It wasn’t just that year in Scranton. I got a lot chance tolearn and develop in the (Yankees) minor leagues. Everyat-bat I got at every stop helped me grow.”

Austin JacksonFormer SWB Yankee and current Detroit Tiger

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How are the Scranton/Wilkes-BarreYankees about to defend their perennialInternational League North crown with-out them?

Well, don’t worry, fans of Triple-A base-ball in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

The four-time defending InternationalLeague North Division champion SWBYankees are far from finished with cham-pionship runs.

In fact, they may be just getting started.With lower-league players of the year

Brandon Laird and Melky Mesa ready tocontinue their tears with a move up toTriple-A, a plethora of hitters who now

have big league experience and a pitch-ing staff primed with ex-

major leaguers, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre appearsheaded for another strongseason.

“We’ve got, on paper,some pretty good players,”

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre manager DaveMiley said.

Some of those players may look familiarto Major League Baseball fans.

New Scranton/Wilkes-Barre pitchersBrian Anderson, Buddy Carlyle, LancePendleton and Andy Sisco all have bigleague experience. Starter Mark Prior,who’s currently in Tampa, will be trying towork his way back to the big leagues andhe’s expecting to join Scranton/Wilkes-Barre soon. And Kevin Millwood, whoonce pitched a no-hitter with the Philliesand was the opening day starter for theBaltimore Orioles, could pass throughScranton/Wilkes-Barre, too.

The starting rotation for the SWB Yan-kees will be led by David Phelps, who is31-8 through his three-year minor leaguecareer, followed by Hector Noesi, AdamWarren, D.J. Mitchell and Andrew Brack-man.

“We’re hoping we have some high-

caliber pitching at the higher end (of theorganization), in both Double-A and Tri-ple-A,” Newman said. “And some positionplayers to pay attention to.”

The opening-day lineup will includeoutfielder Chris Dickerson, who spenttime with Cincinnati and Milwaukee thepast few years, and shortstop RamiroPena, who played in a backup role withthe parent Yankees the past two years.

The Triple-A Yankees will surely missJonathan Albaladejo, who was Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s version of Mariano Riverabefore heading off to play Japanese Base-ball for the Yomiuri Giants over the offsea-son.

Albaladejo not only set a franchiserecord with 43 saves last year, he put up aminiscule1.42 ERA, a 4-2 record andstruck out 82 batters in 631/3 innings.

Joining him on the journey to Japan isRomulo Sanchez, a starter who finished at10-8 and with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’ssecond-most victories last season.

They’re not the only holes the SWBYankees must fill.

Hard-hitting Juan Miranda, the cleanuphitter in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s lineupfor the past three seasons, was traded tothe Arizona Diamondbacks in November.Scranton/Wilkes-Barre will miss hisproduction, after the Cuban-born Miranda

Ready for another runSWB Yankeesskipper DaveMiley

By PAUL SOKOLOSKI | psokoloski@timesleader.com

Yankees may have some new faces, but it’s the same old goal

From left: fans can expect to see plenty of infielder Kevin Russo, infielder Brandon Laird, pitcher Brian Anderson and pitcher Fernando Hernandez.PETE G. WILCOX PHOTOS/THE TIMES LEADER

Their record-setting closer and one of their biggest win-ners are both gone to Japan.

One of their all-stars went to New York.And their biggest power bat is playing all the way

out in Arizona.

See RUN, Page 10

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ANDREW BRACKMANPostion: RHPAge: 25Ht: 6-10Wt: 230Last year: 5-4, Tampa (A), 5-7Trenton (Double-A)The former Yankees top draftchoice finally appears to bepicking up steam after missinghis first two professional sea-sons following "Tommy Johnsurgery." A former North Car-olina State basketball standout,the 6-foot-10 Brackman will bethe biggest SWB Yankees start-er, both in height and stature.He went 5-7 with a 3.01 ERA forDouble-A Trenton last season,and the New York brass is anx-ious to find out what he can doin Triple-A.

GREG GOLSONPosition: CFAge: 25Ht: 6-footWt: 190Last year: .263, SWB (Triple-A),.261 (Yankees)Known more for his defensiveprowess in the outfield, theeight-year pro did pretty wellfor himself at the plate in hisfirst extended major leaguecallup last season. Golson hit.261 in 24 games with the par-ent Yankees, and batted .263for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’sInternational League NorthDivision champs. Golson ac-counted for 91 runs with theSWB Yanks, scoring 51 anddriving in 40. His strong de-fense caught some attention inNew York.

BRANDON LAIRDPosition: 3BAge: 23Ht: 6-1Wt: 215

Last year: .291, Trenton (Dou-ble-A), .246 SWB (Triple-A)After leading the Yan-kees farm system with

25 home runs a yearago, Laird power-

ed himself into becoming oneof the brightest prospects inthe organization. Most of thatpop came at Trenton, whereLaird blasted 23 homers, 22doubles, drove home 90 runsand was named the EasternLeague’s player of the year. Hisaverage struggled a bit whenhe was promoted for 31 gamesat SWB, but he ended a terrificminor league camp with theYankees by hitting homers intwo straight games.

MELKY MESAPosition: OFAge: 24Ht: 6-1Wt: 189Last Year: .260 Tampa (FSL)His breakout year earned Mesathe Florida State League’sPlayer of the Year in 2010, andhis potential intrigued the par-ent Yankees so much, theyadded him to their 40-manroster following the season. It’seasy to see why Mesa has theorganization’s attention. Hisbatting average rose to a ca-reer-high with Tampa, where hescored 81 runs, drove home 74(including two grand slams)and stole 31 bases. He’s alsorated by Baseball America asbeing the best athlete andpossessing the best outfieldarm in New York’s farm system.

HECTOR NOESIPosition: RHPAge: 24Ht: 6-3Wt: 200Last year: 12-3 SWB, 1-2 Yan-keesThe biggest winner on the SWBis back for more, looking foreven bigger things this year.Noesi went 12-3 with a 2.86ERA at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre,and recorded 115 strikeouts in

145 innings. He wasn’t as im-pressive in New York, finishingwith a 4.50 ERA in 10 appear-ances (seven starts) during hisfirst major league action. Butas a reliever, Noesi had a 1.69ERA in three outings. Over hisfinal 14 Triple-A starts, Noesiwent 10-1 with a 2.19 ERA. Hisseason ERA ranked second inthe International League onlyto Baseball America player ofthe year Jeremy Hellickson.

RAMIRO PENAPosition: IFAge: 25Ht: 5-11Wt: 175Last year: .227 YankeesAfter winning a utility job withNew York in spring training,Pena showed signs of promisewhile playing in 85 games forthe parent Yankees last season.He hit safely in 12 of his 19starts from August until sea-son’s end, including a seven-game hitting streak. A sure-handed defender, Pena alsofilled in nicely around the in-field when Alex Rodriguez,Derek Jeter or Robinson Canowere injured or needed a dayoff. A hot start to the Triple-Aseason could send him back toNew York quickly.

KEVINRUSSO

Position: IF/OFAge: 26Ht: 5-11Wt: 190Last year: .259 SWB, .184 Yan-keesA natural infielder, Russo did

nothing to diminish his reputa-tion as a hard-nosed gamerwhen he found some successconverting to a utility role inthe outfield last year. Heearned a couple callups to theparent Yankees, and drovehome both runs in a 2-1 victoryover the Mets in his first majorleague start. In Triple-A, Russoput up a 12-game hitting streakand had an impressive .966fielding percentage whilebouncing around to secondbase, third base, shortstop, DHand all three outfield positions.Such versatility’s a big plus inthe eyes of New York.

ADAMWARREN

Position: RHPAge: 23Ht: 6-2Wt: 215Last year: .7-5, Single-A Tam-pa, 4-2 Double-A TrentonThe promising strikeout pitchermakes a jump to Triple-A thisseason after a standout sea-sons in New York’s lower levelsof the organization. He finished2010 with a 2.59 ERA and wasthe starting pitcher in fourshutouts. Warren also surren-dered three runs or less in 19 ofhis starts, which made theorganization take notice. Hegained even more attentionwhen he jumped to Double-A,and struck out a franchiserecord 15 batters in seven in-nings to earn the EasternLeague’s pitcher of the week.His promise has him slotted inthe SWB Yankees five-manstarting rotation.

On the 40-man rosterBy PAUL SOKOLOSKI | psokoloski@timesleader.comSome of them are doing their best to get to New York.Some of them have already been there.Either way, these players on Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s season-opening roster have already caught the

attention of the parent New York Yankees. That’s why they’re on the major league team’s 40-man roster.From promising first-round draft pick Andrew Brackman to Hector Noesi - who made his big league

debut for the Yankees last season - these are the guys who will be first in line to head to New York thisyear if the parent Yankees need to pluck someone from their farm system to play for them.And while Ramiro Pena may prefer to be playing for a New York team he spent the last two seasons

with as a backup, he’s not far away from returning. Just as powerful prospect Brandon Laird isn’t veryfar away from his first major league play.Here’s a look at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees players high in the minds of the parent Yankees:

Kevin Russo saw timein both the infield andoutfield last seasonfor the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees.

Greg Golson hit .263 with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre last season.

TIMES LEADER FILE PHOTOS

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BRIAN ANDERSONPosition: RHPAge: 29Ht: 6-2Wt: 220Last year: 2.08 ERA, Triple-AOmahaThe experiment to turn An-derson into a pitcher proved ahuge success, as he made acombined 14 appearancesthrough three levels of theChicago White Sox organiza-tion and finished with an out-standing ERA. This came afterAnderson spent the first sevenseasons of his professionalcareer as an outfielder, andbatted .227 in 355 majorleague games with the WhiteSox and Boston Red Sox. TheYankees are intrigued, and planto put him in SWB’s bullpen.

DOUG BERNIERPosition: INFAge: 30Ht: 6-footWt: 185Last year: .240, Triple-A Indi-anapolisScranton/Wilkes-Barre’s de-pendable shortstop of 2009returns to the organizationafter a season in the PittsburghPirates farm system. A scrappyposition player who can playshortstop, second or third base,Bernier is one of those guyswho does all the little thingsthat add up to victories. Hisbatting average was low atIndianapolis last season, butBernier reached base safely in10 of his final 12 games. Hiscareer .283 minor league bat-ting average may not suggestmuch stick, but his glove workis second to none when itcomes to steadiness.

BUDDY CARLYLEPosition: RHPAge: 33Ht: 6-3Wt: 210Last year: 4.88 ERA, JapanBack from a season with theHokkaido Nippon Ham Fightersof the Japanese League, themajor league veteran will headto Scranton/Wilkes-Barre tryingto rediscover the form that puthim on the mound for 104 bigleague games. He last pitchedin the majors with Atlanta in2009, going 0-1 with an 8.86ERA. He could wind up being avaluable asset to the bullpen.

KEI IGAWAPosition: LHP

Age: 31Ht: 6-1Wt: 212Last year: 3-4, SWBNow in the final season of hisfive-year, $23 million contract,the former Japanese Baseballstar hasn’t helped parent NewYork much, but he alreadyowns the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre franchise record with 32victories. Three of those camelast season, when Igawa - anatural starter - spent most ofthe season pitching out of thebullpen. Igawa won’t start theseason with the SWB Yankees,as he was given permission toreturn to his native Japan in-definitely to aid his family andfriends in wake of the destruc-tion of the nation’s tsunami.

GEORGE KONTOSPosition: RHPAge: 25Ht: 6-3Wt: 215Last year: 3.38 ERA, Double-ATrentonScranton/Wilkes-Barre fans arefamiliar with Kontos, who hasspent time with the Triple-AYankees during the past twoseasons. He went 0-1 pitching intwo games for the SWB Yan-kees last season, but did thebulk of his work with Double-ATrenton, where Kontos ap-peared in 27 games. During the2009 season, Kontos finishedwith a 3-4 record as a middlereliever with SWB.

WARNER MADRIGALPosition: RHPAge: 27Ht: 6-1Wt: 235Last year: 5-2, Triple-A Oklaho-ma CitySigned as a minor league freeagent during the offseason,Madrigal should add depth toScranton/Wilkes-Barre’s al-ready-strong bullpen. He’sappeared in 44 major leaguegames with the Texas Rangersafter being drafted as an out-fielder. Last year, forearm sore-ness made Madrigal missed theearly part of the season. Butafter a rehab stint at Double-AFrisco, he rebouneded in Tri-ple-A to hold opponents to a.215 batting average.

D.J. MITCHELLPosition: RHPAge: 23Ht: 6-2Wt: 193Last year: 11-4, Double-A Tren-

tonMitchell was one of thoseyoung guns who was promotedto Scranton/Wilkes-Barre andcontributed to a minor leagueplayoff run. He went 2-0 inthree starts for the Triple-AYankees and pitched well dur-ing a no-decision in a playoffstart. He’s looking for thatmagic to continue in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s starting rotationthis season after a dominatingyear at Trenton where he fin-ished 11-4 and held hitters to a.183 batting average in 22starts.

JESUS MONTEROPosition: CAge: 21Ht: 6-3Wt: 235Last year: .289 SWBAfter failing to win the backupcatcher’s job in New York thisspring, Montero is back formore seasoning with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. He led the Tri-ple-A Yanks with 21 homers, 34doubles, 75 RBIs and a .289batting average. Montero alsobegan trying to change hisreputation as a suspect defen-sive catcher. He led all Interna-tional League backstops with109 games, 785 chances and 76assists. He also threw out basestealers at a 23.3 percent clip.Despite his minor setback inspring training, his future in theorganization still looks bright.

LANCE PENDLETONPosition: RHPAge: 27Ht: 6-3Wt: 205Last year: 2-1 SWBThe Yankees got one of theirminor league prospects backwhen the Houston Astrospicked up Pendleton in the Rule5 Draft during the offseason,then returned him to New Yorklast week. Pendleton had adominating season as a starterwith Double-A Trenton lastyear, going 10-4 with 111 strike-outs. He also made six startsfor the SWB Yankees, finishing2-1 with 22 strikeouts in 34innings. He’ll be one of thestarters to watch on Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s staff.

DAVID PHELPSPosition: RHPAge: 24Ht: 6-2Wt: 185Last year: 4-2, SWB

The organization’s minorleague pitcher of the year lastseason returns to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after making asparking Triple-A debut lastseason. Phelps finished 2010 bygoing 4-2 with a 3.05 ERA in 11starts for the SWB Yankees.That came after he dominatedthe Eastern League with Dou-ble-A Trenton, where Phelpswon all six of his decisions, hada 2.04 ERA makes and wasleading the Eastern Leaguewith 84 strikeouts before hejumped up a level. During histhree-year pro career, he has a31-8 minor league record.

MARK PRIORPosition: RHPAge: 30Ht: 6-5Wt: 230Last year: 0.00 ERA, Inde-pendent League’s OrangeCounty FlyersOnce a third-place finisher inthe voting for the NationalLeague Cy Young Award, Pri-or’s been plagued by arm prob-lems that have cost him thepast three years of his career.He’s spent most of that timerehabbing two shoulder surger-ies, and wound up trying tomake a comeback last yearwith nine appearances as arelief pitcher in the GoldenBaseball League. The Yankeeswant to find out if he is any-thing close to the pitcher whowas one of baseball’s brightyoung pitchers with the Chica-go Cubs. Prior went 42-29 in106 major league starts andwas in Cy Young considerationfor his 18-6 season in 2003. Hewill begin the season in Floridabefore being shifted to Scran-ton/Wilkes-Barre at some point.

AMAURI SANITPosition: RHPAge: 31Ht: 5-9Wt: 205Last year: 3-2, SWBSlowly but surely, Sanit turnedinto a dependable reliever atScranton/Wilkes-Barre lastseason. He finished with a 3-2record and 6.35 ERA betweenthe Gulf Coast League Yankees,Single-A Tampa and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre a year ago. Thebulk of that work was donewith the SWB Yankees, whomixed Sanit into their bullpenfor some long relief, late reliefand even a start. Afterward,Sanit went to work in the Vene-

zuelan Winter League, wherehe had an ERA of 2.96 andwent 2-2.

ANDY SISCOPosition: LHPAge: 28Ht: 6-10Wt: 270Last year: 4-4, Double-A Rich-mondAfter 151 major league gameswith Kansas City and the Chica-go White Sox, Sisco was shutdown for two seasons afterundergoing Tommy John sur-gery. He came back last seasonwith Double-A Richmond, thengot himself in better shape byleading the Mexican PacificLeague in strikeouts over thefall. Following a strong springtraining in the Yankees majorleague camp, where Sisco hada 2.08 ERA in five appearances,parent New York was intriguedenough to start him in Scran-ton/Wilkes-Barre’s bullpen.

KEVIN WHELANPosition: RHPAge: 27Ht: 5-11Wt: 205Last year: 2-3, SWBWhelan raised his game inScranton/Wilkes-Barre’s post-season last year, when he wona game, had three strikeoutsand didn’t allow a run in 2 1/3innings. That came after Whe-lan began and ended the yearwith the SWB Yankees andfinished 2-1. In between, Whelanwas with Double-A Trenton,finishing 3-3 with 40 strikeoutsin 29 1/3 innings. He could seesome action in the role of asetup man or closer this sea-son.

ERIC WORDEKEMPERPosition: RHPAge: 27Ht: 6-1Wt: 215Last year: 5-0, SWB and Dou-ble-A TrentonWith the departure of Jonath-an Albaladejo to Japan, Word-ekemper is the most likelychoice to move into Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s closer role. Hedid well in late-inning relief lastseason, picking up five saves togo along with his unbeatenrecord while splitting timebetween Scranton/Wilkes-Barreand Trenton. He pitched fourinnings of postseason ball forthe SWB Yanks, and put up a2.25 ERA.

THE REST OF THE TEAM

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Buffalo BisonAffiliate: New York MetsManager: Tim Teufel2010 Record: 76-68(third place)2010 LeadersBA: Jesus Felciano, .339HR: Mike Hessman, 18ERA: Pat Misch, 3.23Wins: Dillon Gee, 13Saves: Two tied with 6

Durham BulAffiliate: TamRaysManager: Chtoyo2010 Record(first place)2010 LeaderBA: Elliot JoHR: Dan JohERA: Jeremson, 2.45Wins: RicharSantos, 14Saves: Winst23

Charlotte KnightsAffiliate: Chicago WhiteSoxManager: Joe McEwing2010 Record: 67-77(third place)2010 LeadersBA: Brent Morel, .320HR: Stefan Gartrell, 27ERA: Carlos Torres, 3.42Wins: Daniel Hudson, 11Saves: Ryan Braun, 18

Syracuse ChiefsAffiliate: WashingtonNationalsManager: Randy Knorr2010 Record: 76-67(second place)2010 LeadersBA: Brian Bixler, .285HR: Two tied with 15ERA: Shairon Martis,4.09Wins: Shairon Martis, 8Saves: Joe Peralta, 20

Rochester Red WingsAffiliate: MinnesotaTwinsManager: Tom Nieto2010 Record: 49-95(sixth place)2010 LeadersBA: Jacque Jones, .280HR: Brock Peterson, 19ERA: Matt Fox, 3.95Wins: Rob Delaney, 7Saves: Anthony Slama,17

Pawtucket Red SoxAffiliate: Boston RedSoxManager: Arnie Beyeler2010 Record: 66-78(fourth place)2010 LeadersBA: Bubba Bell, .293HR: Josh Reddick, 18ERA: Michel Bowden,3.66Wins: Robert Manuel, 8Saves: Fenando Cabre-ra, 22

Lehigh Valley Iron PigsAffiliate: PhiladelphiaPhilliesManager: Ryne Sand-berg2010 Record: 58-86(fifth place)2010 LeadersBA:Melvin Dorton, .287HR: Andy Tracy, 21ERA: Bill Mazone, 3.82Wins: Two tied with 8Saves: Scott Mathieson,26

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Toledo Mud HensAffiliate: Detroit TigersManager: Phil Nevin2010 Record: 70-73(fourth place)2010 LeadersBA:Will Rhymes, .305HR: Jeff Frazier, 25ERA: L.J. Gaganier, 3.51Wins: Alfredo Figaro, 10Saves: Jay Sborz, 19

Louisville BatsAffiliate: CincinnatiRedsManager: Rick Sweet2010 Record: 76-64(first place)2010 LeadersBA: Chris Valaika, .304HR:Wladimir Balentien,25ERA: Matt Maloney,3.34Wins: Matt Maloney, 10Saves: Jon Adkins, 10

Indianapolis IndiansAffiliate: PittsburghPiratesManager: Dean Treanor2010 Record: 71-73(third place)2010 LeadersBA: Steev Pearce, .326HR: Brandon Moss, 22ERA: Jeremy Powell,4.62Wins: Jeremy Powell, 11Saves: Jean Machi 23

Columbus ClippersAffiliate: ClevelandIndiansManager: Mike Sar-baugh2010 Record: 79-65(second place)2010 LeadersBA: Jose Constanza,.319HR: Jared Goedert, 20ERA: Josh Tomlin, 2.68Wins: Two tied with 10Saves: Vinnie Pestano,14

Norfolk TidesAffilaite: BaltimoreOriolesManager: Gary Allenson2010 Record: 67-77(fourth place)2010 LeadersBA: Justin Turner, .316HR: Michael Aubrey, 22ERA: Chris Tillman, 3.34Wins: Chris Tillman, 11Saves: 20

Gwinnett BravesAffiliate: Atlanta BravesManager: Dave Brun-dage2010 Record: 72-72(second place)2010 LeadersBA: Barbaro Canizares,.341HR: Mitch Jones, 19ERA: Todd Redmond,4.26Wins: Todd Redmond, 9Saves: Craig Kimbrel, 23

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He’s still their top minor league pros-pect.“Absolutely,” said Mark Newman, the

senior vice president of baseball oper-ation for the New York Yankees. “There’snothing that can happen within a fewweeks of spring training that can changethat. Jesus has some work to do.“But he has some kind of ability.”That talent will be honed with the

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees for asecond consecutive season, after Monte-ro was passed over for a backup catch-er’s job in New York this spring.“We know that he

can go to the bigleagues right now andplay,” Newman said.“He was going to thebig leagues to sit.(Trenton catcher)Austin Romine is thesame way. We don’twant them sitting onthe bench.”That gameplan sits

just fine with Monte-ro, who was favored intraining camp to re-place the injured Francisco Cervelli asNew York’s backup catcher.“The opportunity’s there,” Montero

insists. “I’ve just got to do everythingwell and do my best catching, hitting.”His best certainly impressed Scran-

ton/Wilkes-Barre fans last season.After a slow start in his Triple-A de-

but, Montero ratcheted things up – bothat the plate and behind it.He finished with a boom, leading the

SWB Yankees with a .289 batting aver-age, 21 home runs, 75 RBI and 36 dou-bles. Montero was also named BaseballAmerica’s top hitter for average and bestpower hitter in the Yankees farm sys-tem.“For a 21-year-old kid, his potential’s

off the charts,” Scranton/Wilkes-Barremanager Dave Miley said. “For howyoung he was in this league last year, tostart off (slow) the way he did and finishup (strong) the way he did, that’s acredit to him.”But with a .314 batting average, 48

homers and 251 RBI through four minorleague seasons, everyone knew Monterocould hit.It was his defense that gave New York

doubts.Montero worked overtime to quell

those last season.With the SWB Yankees, he handled

Ivan Nova, who’s now a starter in NewYork’s pitching rotation and since-de-parted Jonathan Albaladejo, who rangup 43 saves to smash Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s all-time record.Montero also threw out 30 of 129 base

stealers at a solid 23.3percent clip.“He got better at every

aspect of what he wasworking on,” Miley said.“He got better as the yearprogressed.”That progression ap-

peared to stop this spring.Montero was informed

last week he wouldn’t beleaving spring trainingwith the big league Yan-kees, that he was headedfor more time in Triple-A.

That news came after Montero wasjolted at last year’s major league tradingdeadline, when he discovered he was atthe center of trade talks – as the parentYankees tried to land pitcher Cliff Leefor a package of prospects.That deal was scrapped when the

Texas Rangers snuck in and stole Lee,leaving Montero relieved to remain inthe Yankees organization.“It’s all I’ve known,” he said at the

time.But he had no plans to return to Tri-

ple-A this season.Montero figured he had an ideal

chance to win the backup catching job inNew York, and was projected as theodds-on favorite to open his 2011 seasonlast week at new Yankee Stadium.With 39-year-old Jorge Posada being

shifted to designated hitter duties thisyear, the Yankees signed former DodgersAll-Star Russell Martin as their No. 1catcher. And when Cervelli was lost witha broken foot, Montero looked like the

most likely candidate to become NewYork’s No. 2 catcher.But he hit just .222 during big league

spring training, didn’t wow anyone withhis defense, and the backup slot he wasvying for went to journeyman GustavoMolina. Part of the reason was the Yan-kees wanted Montero playing regularly.According to Newman, that was al-

ways part of the plan.And while his second big league

spring training didn’t reward him with amajor league job, that doesn’t mean itwasn’t rewarding to Montero. Especially

since it gave him another spring of lis-tening to advice from a couple formermajor league catchers - Yankees managerJoe Girardi and his bench coach TonyPena.“It’ll help me out a lot this year,” Mon-

tero said. “All the older guys helped(make) the experience (worthwhile). Igot to work with Tony Pena, Girardi. Itwas a good spring training.”Now, he’s on a mission to make that

training pay off. Because the next timehe sees opportunity in New York, JesusMontero doesn’t plan to miss it.

Yanks still believe in Jesus

PETE G. WILCOX/THE TIMES LEADER

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre catcher Jesus Montero, right, walks off the field at springtraining with pitcher AdamWarren. Montero remains a big part of the New YorkYankees plans despite not heading north with the big league club.

By PAUL SOKOLOSKI | psokoloski@timesleader.com

First, the New York Yankees tried to trade him.Then they dismissed him from major league consider-

ation this season.But despite actions that suggest the contrary, the Yan-

kees aren’t even considering sacking Jesus Montero justyet.

“The opportunity’sthere. “I’ve just gotto do everythingwell and do mybest catching,hitting.”

Jesus MonteroSWB Yankees catcher

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They talk about Dave Miley in suchfriendly terms, as if they were speakingof a buddy, a brother or a favoriteuncle.The truth is, he’s more of a mentor

to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankeeswho play Triple-A baseball for him.And that means giving guys grief

every once in awhile.“If you play hard for him, he’s not

going to bother you,” said Detroit Ti-gers center fielder Austin Jackson, whowas the top prospect in the Yankeesorganization when he played underMiley in 2009. “But if you’re not work-ing or playing your best, he’ll let youknow about it.”That’s why Miley’s a manager.And throughout his storied career,

he’s become one of the best in minorleague baseball.On his way to leading the Scranton/

Wilkes-Barre Yankees to a fourthstraight International League NorthDivision title last season, Miley record-ed his milestone 1,500th career minorleague victory. During his 24 seasonsmanaging in the minors, Miley hascompiled an outstanding .571 winningpercentage with 17 winning seasons.Such success doesn’t happen by acci-

dent.“We’re lucky to have Miles,” said

Mark Newman, the senior vice presi-dent of baseball operations for theYankees who runs New York’s minorleague system. “He’s been a majorleague manager, a minor league manag-er at every level.“He’s seen every part of this business

you can see.”It’s not hard to detect Miley’s influ-

ence on Triple-A players.He’s sent position players Reegie

Corona and Eduardo Nunez along withpitchers Phil Hughes, David Robertson,Joba Chamberlain and Ivan Nova tothis year’s New York Yankees roster. Ahost of Miley’s former players, such asIan Kennedy and Austin Jackson, havefound major league success in otherorganizations. And over the past twoseasons, he’s sent a slew of Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees up to New Yorkfor fill-in stints.“He’s fabulous,” Mark Melancon said

of Miley.Melancon pitched parts of three

seasons for the SWB Yankees underMiley before being traded last year andsettling into the Houston Astros bull-

pen.“He’s definitely a players’ manager,”

Melancon said. “He will back the play-ers up to no end. And as far as a play-er is concerned, that’s all you can askfor out of a manager.”Miley doesn’t ask much.Show up on time, work hard, be the

best you can be. And hopefully, theTriple-A players he’s guiding now willbe in the major leagues someday.“I think you have to adjust as a man-

ager, depending on what kind of teamyou have,” Miley said. “I just try to putpitchers and position players in a spotto be successful. Then it’s up to them.”

It’s not up to Miley who he gets towork with.The parent Yankees made more than

90 roster moves with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre during each of the past two sea-sons, with player promotions, demo-tions or dismissals from the organiza-tion.That volume of turnover didn’t hap-

pen when Miley was managing theCincinnati Reds in 2003 and 2004, buthe’s dealt with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’sconstantly revolving door admirably.“At this level, it probably changes

more than at the next level,” Mileysaid.

The key for him has been not lettingsuch change transform his team’s for-tunes.Miley guided the Scranton/Wilkes-

Barre Yankees to the franchise’s firstGovernors’ Cup championship in 2008.He followed that up with an appear-ance in the Governors’ Cup finals in2009 and a fourth straight trip to thepostseason.“There’s not a guy in this clubhouse

who doesn’t want to be in the bigleagues,” Miley said. “We’re here. Wedevelop first. But it’s not a bad thing ifyou can win some games along theway when you’re developing guys.“Hopefully, we shake hands a lot

after games.”Miley’s made sure there’s plenty of

glad-handing over Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s seasons.“You’re trying to win for the fran-

chise,” Newman said. “But while youdo that, you have to develop playersfor the major league club. He (Miley)does an outstanding job.”Typically, the humble Miley deflects

such credit, instead praising his coach-ing staff of hitting instructor ButchWynegar and pitching coach ScottAldred, who have been by his side forthe past couple years.“I’ve been very fortunate, not just

here, but I’ve always had very goodcoaching staffs,” Miley said, soundinglike any successful business leader. “Ibasically let my coaches do what theydo best. Those guys are here for areason.”But judging by his record, Miley’s

probably the main reason his teamsalways seem to pull it all togetherthrough even the most tumultuousseasons.“He’s a great guy,” Jackson said.Which only proves nice guys really

can finish first.

Yankees skipper one of best in the business

Managing to succeedBy PAUL SOKOLOSKIpsokoloski@timesleader.com

PETE G. WILCOX/THE TIMES LEADER

During his 24 seasons managing in the minors, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre managerDave Miley has compiled an outstanding .571 winning percentage with 17 winningseasons.

“We’re lucky to haveMiles. He’s been a majorleague manager, a minorleague manager at everylevel. He’s seen everypart of this business youcan see.”

Yankees senior VP Mark NewmanOn SWB manager Dave Miley

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beltedacombined46homers and67 doubles with 177 RBI and 166runs scored over his past threeTriple-A seasons.AndEduardoNunez came off a

Triple-A All-Star season withScranton/Wilkes-Barre to makeNew York’s opening day roster.Nunez was named the Interna-tional League’s top shortstop ayear ago after hitting .289with 25doubles, 55 runs scored and 50RBI at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.Butacropofnewfaces,andold,

maymore thanmake up for thosedepartures.Joining Pena on the left side of

the infield is slugging third base-man Laird, who led New York’sminor league system with 25homerunsand102RBIayearago.Thebulk of that production cameatDouble-ATrenton,whereLairdbelted23homers, 90RBIandwasnamed theEasternLeague’s play-erof theyear.Buthealsosawbrieftime in Triple-A, where his bat-ting average dipped at the end of2010 but the ball started soaringagain with the SWB Yankees inspring training. Lairdblasted twohomers in two games during thefinal days ofminor league camp.“Wehopehe’sstartingtogethis

feetonthegroundandplaysreallywell in Triple-A,” Newman said.Not that many Scranton/

Wilkes-Barre Yankees are plan-ning to staygroundedatoneposi-tion.The strength of this team will

be its ability to jumpplayers fromspot to spot in the field.Infielder Doug Bernier, who

played mainly shortstop for the2009SWBYanks, isback in theor-ganization after a season in Pitts-burgh’s system and has the versa-tility toman secondor third base.So does Pena, who subbed for

Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter andRobinson Cano around the hornin New York. And Kevin Russoshowed he can play just aboutanywhere during a 2010 seasonwhere he spent time at three in-field positions, all three outfieldpositions and designated hitterwhile hitting .259 at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and earned his first31major league games with NewYork.“We have some flexibility, like

we’vehad in thepast,”Miley said.“Guys who can move all over theplace.”That ability for SWB players to

roam around doesn’t stop in theinfield.It covers the whole outfield,

where Mesa, Dickerson, GregGolson and Justin Maxwell -along with Russo -- promise toturn plenty of would-be hits intoouts this season.“Outfield is looking like a real

strong spot,” Miley said. “Wehave three guys in the outfieldwho can play center field, left orright.”Thebright spot isMesa,whose

sub-par career batting averagesuddenly shot to .260 in a break-out season forClassATampa lastyear. Combining power withspeed, Mesa socked 21 doubles,19 homers and drove home 74runs,while scoring81with31sto-len bases. His performanceearned him the Florida StateLeague’s playerof theyear award.Golson found his reward while

receiving his first extended bigleague callup last year, and madethemost of it by hitting .261 in 24games for the parent Yankees. Aformer first-round draft choice ofthePhillies,Golsonalsodeliveredin Scranton/Wilkes-Barre,wherehe hit .263 with 23 doubles, fivetriples and 10 homers. Whetherhewasplaying in themajor ormi-nors, Golson flashed his trade-mark glove in the outfield, and infact, gunned down a runner atthird base to end New York’s ex-tra-inning victory over TampaBay on Sept.14.Other SWB outfielders arrived

fromother organizations.Maxwell came from the Wash-

ington organization, where hespent as much time in themajorswiththeNationalsashedidatTri-ple-A Syracuse.Dickerson was acquired in a

late spring trade that sent pitcherSergio Mitre to the Brewers, andwent 3-for-3 with a double whenhe arrived in New York’s bigleague camp. Through his wholemajor league spring, Dickersonhit .333 with six RBI, three dou-bles,atripleandscoredsixrunsin18 games.“The outfield in Scranton is in-

teresting,” Newman said. “Thereare some really, high-caliber de-fensive players.”Speaking of high-caliber, top

prospect Jesus Montero figuredhe’d be playing in major leaguegames. But after battling for abackupjobinbigleaguecamp,thehard-hittingcatcherwasreturnedto Scranton/Wilkes-Barre formore seasoning.The SWB Yankees will gladly

take him.

RUNContinued from Page 3

PHILADELPHIA – He wasgoing to be the next Mar-iano Rivera, the New YorkYankees closer of the future,on his way to starring inpinstripes.Then he was gone. His

dreams of late-inning pitch-ing success at Yankee Stadi-um burst as if someone puta pin to his balloon.To Mark Melancon, being

traded out of the Yankeesorganization felt worse thanbeing stuck by a needle.“I was shocked,” Melan-

con said, “because it was soout of the blue. At thattime, I was focused on be-ing in pinstripes. It didn’treally enter my mind Iwould be pitching for some-body else.”He is pitching for the

Houston Astros now after amidseason trade last season,as a young reliever with achance to blossom in thebig leagues.And if that happens, Mela-

ncon can credit his rapiddevelopment to his time inthe bullpen of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees.That’s where Melancon

spent large parts of the pastthree baseball seasons, dis-covering to harness andsharpen the natural talentthat once had the parentYankees so high on him.“I think that was a huge

learning curve for me,” Mel-ancon said, “being with(Scranton/Wilkes-Barrepitching coach) ScottAldred. Working with himhas really helped me.”It raised Melancon to new

heights.For the first time in his

impressive pro career, Mela-ncon opened a major leagueseason in the big leagues,pitching as a middle relieverfor the Astros during theirfirst series of the yearagainst the PhiladelphiaPhillies.“I have always dreamed of

this,” Melancon said, “to beon a big league team tostart the season. It’s been a

lot of hard work. I just needto continue to be consis-tent.”He looked pretty steady

Saturday night in his firstappearance of the 2011 sea-son, working a pretty cleansixth inning against theheart of the Phillies lineup.After surrendering a leadoffsingle to Placido Polanco,Melancon struck out JimmyRollins and cleanup manRyan Howard on back-to-back half-swings before in-ducing a harmless, inning-ending grounder from BenFrancisco.That’s not exactly the

bottom half of a weak Tri-ple-A lineup.“I got the two strikeouts

on curveballs, which is myput-away pitch,” Melancon,26, said. “Polanco had apretty good hit with a fast-ball I left over the middle ofthe plate. I was just focusedon keeping him on first andpitching ahead in thecount.”He learned all of that –

setting up a hitter, using hiscurve as an out pitch, limit-ing the damage when run-ners get on – during histime with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. That’s where Melan-con starred as a key late-inning reliever during theteam’s 2008 Governors’’ Cupchampionship and led the

Triple-A Yankees in savesthe following season.In fact, Melancon called

Aldred the night of his firstmajor league opener to tellhim the good news.“I talked to him, just to

see how things are going,”Melancon said.Things seemed to be go-

ing pretty well for Melanconthrough his first four sea-sons in New York’s minorleague system, when thehard-throwing right-handerwas being groomed to even-tually replace the legendaryRivera in a closer’s role forNew York.But the ageless Rivera

doesn’t seem to be slowingdown much. And the orga-nization seemed to sour onMelancon last season, turn-ing the closer’s job atWilkes-Barre/Scranton overthe since-departed JonathanAlbaladejo.Then came the real stun-

ner to Melancon.On July 31, the Yankees

dealt him to the Astros in atrade that brought LanceBerkman to help in NewYork’s playoff run of 2010.That was just the latest in

a series of moves over thepast few years that broughtimmediate assistance toNew York in exchange forquality minor league players– a tribute to the Yankeesfarm system in general andin particular Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s ability tocultivate talent.And Melancon didn’t need

long to dig up positivethoughts about the deal.“After about five minutes

of realizing what type ofopportunity I had here inthe Astros organization, Iwas excited,” Melanconsaid.He took advantage of it by

going 2-0 with a 3.12 ERAin 20 games for the Astroslast season, and looks assharp as ever opening aseason in the major leagues.He doesn’t have to go

back far to find a place inhis heart for where he gothis start.

Ex- SWB reliever in majors with Astros

Beginning to blossom

AP PHOTO

Houston Astros relief pitcherMark Melancon says helearned a lot about pitching asa member of the SWB Yankees.

PAUL SOKOLOSKIpsokoloski@timesleader.com

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SHELLEYDUNCANwas desperate.The swing that blast-

ed 46 home runs overtwoTriple-A seasonswas starting to swandive, so hemade a last-gasp bid to get back on

track.Hewent right to ButchWynegar.This was before an International League

playoff game, while Duncanwas helpingthe Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees winthe 2008Governors’ Cup championship.BecauseWynegar has always been a

champion of teaching hitting.“I get such great satisfaction out of

watching guys get better,”Wynegar said.They get better around the Scranton/

Wilkes-Barre Yankees because of him.ThroughWynegar’s four seasons as

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s hitting coach, theTriple-A Yankees have led the InternationalLeague in runs scored and finished secondin the league last seasonwith a .277 battingaverage and .353 on-base percentage.

He’s helped top prospects Austin Jack-son (nowwithDetroit) and JesusMontero(backwith Scranton/Wilkes-Barre) workthroughmaddening slumps. He sent KevinRusso andColin Curtis up to the parentYankees for their big league debuts lastyear, and got GregGolson’s bat going intime for his first significantmajor leagueaction.“I think a lot of it is bondingwith the

players,”Wynegar said. “The guys in theclubhouse are good guys. They’re willingto listen to you. That’s the biggest thing inthis game, getting trust from the guys.”He never believed he’d be doing this

whenWynegar was playing13majorleague seasons as a catcher forMinnesota,the NewYork Yankees and California. Heretired andwalked away from the game forfour years, after being named the SportingNews American League Rookie of the year

in1976 and catchingDave Righetti’s no-hitter and Phil Niekro’s 300th victorywiththe Yankees in the1980s.“I never thought about coaching,”Wyne-

gar said.But some time away had him itching for

a return.At first,Wynegar remained close to his

Florida home, helping out the catchers andhitters at Rollins College in theOrlandosuburbs.That’s where coaching got in his blood.“After the first season, I said tomywife

(Debbie), ‘I loved that. That was fun,’ ”saidWynegar, a 55-year-old native of York,Pa.It turned evenmore entertaining in his

return to the pros.Wynegar served as an instructor in the

Texas organization from1995 through2002, then spent four seasons, then spentfour seasons asMilwaukee’smajor leaguehitting instructor.Under his guidance, the Brewers estab-

lished a franchise recordwith 327 doublesin 2005.

Shortly after that,Wynegar was hired bythe Yankees asmanager DaveMiley’sTriple-A hitting instructor.And the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees

have been swinging ever since.“It’s easy to pat guys on the backwhen

they’re going good,”Wynegar said. “Whenthey’re struggling is when they really needyou.”Theman needsmore sleep.He takes his job homewith him,mulling

over in hismind the flaws in the swings ofa dozen hitters or so at a time on a rosterthat’s always ever-changing, and trying tofigure out ways to correct their deficien-cies.“I’ll wake up in themiddle of the night

thinking about their swings,”Wynegarsaid.All so Scranton/Wilkes-Barre’s batters

can hit the daylight out of the ball.

Hitting coach having plenty of success

PETE G. WILCOX/THE TIMES LEADER

Butch Wynegar has served as the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees hitting coach for four seasons.

Swing’s the thing for Wynegar

Paul Sokoloski is a Times Leader sports colum-nist. You may reach him at 970-7109 or emailhim at psokoloski@timesleader.com.

PAUL SOKOLOSKIO P I N I O N

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