It's just two weeks until pitchers and catchers, so it's looking more and more likely that Andy Pettitte will retire. Ever since the whole Cliff Lee thing went down in December, I've been stressing about what the Yankees' rotation without both Pettitte and Lee would look like. The possibility of Sergio Mitre and Ivan Nova filling those final two spots in the rotation was definitely scary, but the Yankees have made a couple of moves in the past few days that makes the likelihood of Pettitte retiring a little easier to deal with. With that, it's time to break down what the 2011 Yankees roster might look like as we head into Spring Training:
Starters-We already knew that regardless of who the other two guys were, CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Phil Hughes are the Yankees' top three starters. CC's a stud and finished third in Cy Young voting last season, while Hughes made the All-Star team. Burnett was a disaster from July on, but the amount of money that he makes and the lack of viable alternatives make it pretty obvious that he'll be back in the rotation in 2011. And let's be honest, when Burnett's on, he's pretty damn good.
Now, if Pettitte and Lee were the other two starters, this rotation would be pretty sick (like the rotation Lee is joining in Philadelphia). Not so much with Sergio Mitre and Ivan Nova. Everyone knows that, including (amazingly) Brian Cashman. So, Cashman went to work and signed established major league starters Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia to minor league contracts. Both are former All-Stars, and both have had flashes of brilliance against the Yankees at the old Stadium. I like both signings. They're exactly what the Yankees needed.
Relievers-For the sake of argument, I'm going to assume they go with 12 pitchers. That means six relievers, plus Mariano. They signed former Met Pedro Feliciano as a second lefty to go with Boone Logan. Damaso Marte is still technically on the roster, but only two leftys will be there against the Tigers on Opening Day. I wouldn't be surprised if one of the three starts the year on the DL, though.
The decision on the four remaining right-handers should be pretty easy. Former Rays closer Rafael Soriano was signed to be the eighth-inning guy and Mariano's heir apparent. He could've signed anywhere else as a closer, but decided he wanted to be the Yankees' set-up man. He's got lights-out stuff, but he also has the potential to turn into Kyle Farnsworth (although I do need this year's Nick Johnson). Joba's staying in the bullpen and isn't going to be the regular set-up guy this season. He did well in that role after they signed Kerry Wood last season, and there's less pressure in the seventh inning. David Robertson is the utility guy of the pitching staff, and I hope last season's success continues. I'm assuming they're going with 12 pitchers because Mark Prior is currently on the roster. Prior and Wood were a dynamic tandem in the early 2000s before the Cubs made both of their right arms fall off. Prior hasn't pitched in the Majors since 2006, but has such ridiculous stuff I can't see him not making the team.
Catchers-Jorge Posada is going to be the DH this season. Everyone pretty much just assumed that meant Jesus Montero would be the starting catcher, but then they went out and signed Russell Martin, who was one of the top catchers in the National League for a little while with the Dodgers. Martin's presence means Montero will spend another season in Scranton. They've signed another of the Catching Molinas (Gustavo) as a non-roster invitee, but Francisco Cervelli is the backup. Everyone knows that. He'll never be a Major League starter, but he's the perfect backup for this team.
Everybody Else-The seven starters are easy. Teixeira at first. Cano at second. Jeter at short. A-Rod at third. Gardner, Granderson and Swisher in the outfield. Ramiro Pena's been the backup infielder for two years and plays good defense at three different positions. His place on the team is secure. The other two spots are totally up for grabs, though. One will obviously be an outfielder, and the other will probably be a utility guy. Marcus Thames is gone. With him goes any power options coming off the bench. Instead, it looks like two of the young guys who came up at various points last year wil make the team. Figuring out which two it'll be is the hard part. Do you take Eduardo Nunez, who can play multiple positions, or give him regular at-bats every day at Scranton? Greg Golson? I think he makes the team as the fourth outfielder.
That leaves one spot. Since Martin can also play third and Swisher can also play first, I think Pena will be the only reserve infielder. As a result, Nunez and Brandon Laird both start the season in Scranton. In my opinion, two guys are in the mix for that last spot: Colin Curtis and Kevin Russo. Curtis is a left-handed batter and has a little more pop, but Russo might have a shot since he can play five different positions. If I could only choose one of the two, I'm taking Curtis.
i think their battery will be better than people think - IF (and that's a Mars sized IF) AJ Burnett can get to 200 innings. The four times he's gotten to 200 IP, he's had 12, 12, 18, and 13 wins. That's 55 wins (half his career total) in four seasons (25% of his career). Pretty astounding.
ReplyDeleteI mean let's face it, he's 110-100 in his career. He has dominant stuff, but he hasn't put it together. This year is as good a time as any for a breakout season.