Manuel Banuelos’ season is over. He will be shut down, with hopes of pitching a few innings in winter ball. Banuelos had been rehabbing a series of problems in his left elbow since May. He pitched just 20 innings in 2012.
Banuelos was still one of the youngest players at Triple-A, and showing promising stuff before hitting the disabled list. He isn’t expected to require elbow surgery, and likely is being shut down as a precaution more than anything. There’s no reason to rush him back from injury. Still, he has lost considerable development time, and will have to have his innings count treated with kid gloves for at least one more season.
The Yankee farm system has been devastated by injuries this season. Jose Campos barely pitched a game due to a bum elbow. Austin Romine is just now finishing his rehab. Mason Williams is down with a torn labrum, although he should recover fine. Ravel Santana has had trouble recovering from his devastating ankle injury. The list goes on.
Injuries will always be a problem with prospects. We should always keep this in mind when evaluating them. Initial reports found that David Adams’ 2010 ankle injury would have no lasting baseball effect, but it took him nearly two years to return to his previous level of competitiveness. We should treat Manuel Banuelos with extra skepticism, even if the Yankees legitimately believe that he will make a full recovery. As a small pitcher, Banuelos is vulnerable to taxing loads on his body. The possibility of elbow surgery down the line is significantly more likely at this point, even if he starts pitching again in the winter.
Tyler Austin, Gary Sanchez, and Mason Williams are now clear standouts as the top-3 Yankee prospects. Banuelos has the stuff to hang with them, but injury risk pushing him pretty far down. How far down? I don’t know. But for a guy who was a clear #1 prospect just a year ago, Banuelos sure has fallen quickly. More bad news for the Yankee system.
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7 Responses to Manuel Banuelos Shut Down For The Season
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TIQ IQ
Jst when u thought u cudnt have more problems
We really missed the boat on acquiring talent when these guys had value.
The lesson here for the organization is to add high-ceiling pitching every year, at every opportunity. This may help the big club directly or indirectly — pitching is the most liquuid asset, because it is always in demand. And the sorry fate of the “killer Bs” points up the need for lots and lots of arms, because most them simply never make it.
Since most of them never make it I’d rather trade for ones that have proven themselves. It sure would be nice to have cost-controlled Gio Gonzalez right now instead of the “killer Bs”
I would still have concerns with Gio in the AL East and it’s fair to say he wouldn’t have the same numbers pitching for the Yankees that he does with the Nats right now. Also at the end of the day I’d make the Montero, Noesi for Pineda, Campos trade every time over the package of Montero, Banuelos+ it would have taken to get Gio. Pineda was the higher upside pitcher, with more years of control, showing better control than Gio ever hinted of having. I know we have the benefit of looking at everything with hindsight now, but at the time no one would have rathered paid more for Gio Gonzalez over the Michael Pineda trade.
Montero and Banuelos was a starting point, not the final asking price, as evidenced by the package that ended up going
You mean the package in which they gave up 3 of their top 8 prospects after Bryce Harper, plus Tom Milone who’s only pitched to the tune of a 2 WAR for the A’s this year? It certainly would have cost more than Montero and Noesi, you wouldn’t have got anything close to Campos thrown in, and it’s likely Banuelos would’ve had to been included to beat out the A’s.