Yankees roster moves: Manny Banuelos added to 40-man roster, Mickey Storey claimed

The New York Yankees made roster moves Tuesday to protect five prospects in their organization, including highly-regarded pitcher Manny Banuelos, while claiming Mickey Storey off of waivers from the Houston Astros.

Storey pitched respectably in 26 games as a reliever for the last-place Astros, registering a 3.86 ERA in his first big league season. The 26 year old struck out 34 batters in 30 innings and had one loss.

Banuelos is the team's No. 4 prospect, according to MLB.com, but only played in six games in Triple-A this year as a sore elbow kept him off the mound for the majority of the season. The 21-year-old Dominican native underwent Tommy John surgery in October, meaning he might not be able to pitch on any level in 2013.

The team also added four other players to the team's 40-man roster to bring that tally to 39: lefty Francisco Rondon is the player highest along in the team's system, as he advanced to Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre after going 5-0 in 41 games at Double-A Trenton. Righty Brett Marshall had a 3.52 ERA and 120 strikeouts in 27 starts at Double-A Trenton, and fellow righty Jose Ramirez had a 3.19 ERA in 18 starts at Single-A Tampa. Lefty Nik Turley had a 2.89 ERA between Tampa and Trenton. The only position player, 20-year-old Ramon Flores, hit .302 with Single-A Tampa.

Tuesday was the last day teams could add players to the 40-man roster to prevent other teams from taking them in the Rule 5 Draft. Players on the 40-man roster are eligible to be called up to the major-league squad, and will need to be designated for assignment if the team needs to add someone else.