FWIW, my comment was not about Clippard’s stuff. That, I liked. It was just the way that he walked around the mound between pitches, etc. He just seemed like a kid – and not someone ready for the big league stage in New York. I could see him being eaten active in the Bronx right now – sorta like Melky last year.

MJ, I guess it happened as baseball expanded. Once there were so many rosters to fill, teams started stuffing their AAA squads with journeymen. AAA is still the final stop — Lester was there before being called up, Melky was there, and Hughes will be there next year — but the real test is in AA because all the true prospects are there now. There’s a kind of sad feeling in AAA. I don’t want to get too poetic about it, but there are so many over-the-hill, never-gonna-make-it guys clinging in AAA that it can get pretty depressing if you think about it too much.

Steve, I think you can only judge a pitcher on who he’s facing and what he does while facing them. And Clip — who I’ve seen pitch in Trenton and who I have to say I really, really root for (his underdog story is too long to get into here) — struck out eleven in seven innings. So while you’re right Clip isn’t ready for the majors (he’s only twenty-one years old) I think it’s just about learning more about pitching and working on gaining a few ticks on his fastball.

I want to say that it’s been around 10 years now, thereabouts, where Triple-A became a home for old-timers and the like, and Double-A became where the real prospects live en masse.

baileywalk – I have to say, I watched Clippard close yesterday. He looked good against the Double-A hitters. But, his actions/body language, etc., as he went about his business, screamed out “kid” to me – someone too young for the majors. It’s this type of gap that I noticed.

He didn’t look like someone who was ready to face major league hitters – yet.

Sort of off subject but do you (or anyone else) know when the gap between AA and AAA started to narrow? When I was a little kid, AAA was where all the prospects made their bones. Now it’s like AA is AAA and AAA is the weigh-station between the bigs and retirement.

This is why I don’t understand why the Yankees messed around with Kris Wilson instead of promoting Steven White. White is still considered a prospect. At worst, a good game in the majors by him elevates his trade value. Did the Yankees really expect anything from Wilson? He’s a Small clone — good changeup, lousy fastball, if he makes a small mistake they hit him hard. At least White has a good fastball. Starting Wilson cost us cutting the Sox’s lead to two. It was a dumb move altogether.

After pitching so many multi-inning games, Villone finally blew a lead (on a lousy changeup). Scott Proctor showed he’s Scott Proctor and gave up the lead run. The best thing about Dotel coming back is that Proctor won’t be the seventh-inning guy anymore.

And, Steve, going to Trenton games is a lot of fun. It’s three hours away for me, so I don’t go often, but I try to get there as much as a I can. One thing, though: it’s the level of competition, not the stadium and amenities, that separates AA, AAA and the big leagues. And AA and AAA aren’t far off from one another.

Wow, I spoke too soon about the White Sox rolling over to Boston. When I wrote that on the other thread, it was 5-3 in the top of the 11th and basically figured it a done deal. I hate the ChiSox but I hate the BoSox even more and am thrilled that we didn’t lose any ground to them.