YankeesRedSox.com

The Yankees added Jeff Marquez, Steven White and Francisco Cervelli to their 40-man roster today. The moves were made because it is the deadline to add players to the 40-man which protects them from being eligible for the Rule 5 draft.

With these additions and the addition last week of Scott Patterson, the Yankees have 39 players on their 40-man roster. That does not include any of the free agents they have supposedly resigned, so the Yankees will have some work to do to get back under 40.

Of the four guys, Patterson could be in the bullpen out of camp, he dominated at AA, but he is 28. Marquez is an interesting guy, but I think he will be moved to the bullpen. White has to be considered in the second tier of Yankees prospects. He has shown a pattern of getting to a new level in the minors, struggling at that level and then doing well the following year. That does not bode well for him in 2008 in the majors, but we will see.

The most interesting name is Cervelli. His .287/.387/.397 line in Tampa doesn't look very impressive until you note that the league OPS was a .713, putting Cervelli .081 points above it. He will have to prove he can keep hitting when he goes to Trenton this year, but at least there is someone who can be called up to give the Yankees a third catcher in September.

One name not on the list is Eric Duncan. It's not a shock, because Duncan just hasn't been good enough to merit inclusion, but it means they could technically lose him in the Rule 5. Then again, I don't know if a team would be willing to keep him in the majors for an entire season.