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Zen653 · 05-06-2007, 04:14 PM

This is why I never count the Yankees out of anything. They always get off to a slow start and they always recover and re-take the division lead. I see no reason why this season will be any different. Unlike previous years, when the early difficulties were unexplained, it's pretty clear why the Yankees struggled out the gate - their two best pitchers were injured.

Come June, they're going to have the best rotation in baseball. Mussina looked great against Texas. Wang had a perfect game into the 8th yesterday against a Mariner team that had scored 15 runs the night before. Pettitte is a gamer who has a deceptively low record this year, mainly due to uncharacteristically bad performances by Mariano Rivera. Phil Hughes might be the best 20-22 yearold in all of baseball. And Roger Clemens is going to be a first ballot Hall of Famer and possibly a top 5 pitcher in the history of the game. He absolutely dominated in the NL the last three years.

Now maybe one or two of these guys will fail to pitch up to their potential but does it really matter? As long as the Yankees can rely on 3 of the 5, or even 2 of the 5, they'll be in excellent shape in any 5 or 7-game playoff series. Especially with an All-Star offense hitting behind them.

As much as I hate to say it, I think we're simply keeping first place warm until the Yankees get healthy enough to reclaim it. Realistically, Wakefield won't stay this effective the whole year and Matsuzaka will probably continue to pitch like a No. 5 starter. Our offense is also too inconsistent. We don't score nearly enough runs given our alleged level of talent. Julio Lugo has been a colossal disappointment. J.D Drew stopped hitting after a good first week. Manny is heating up a little bit but still hasn't been his usual self. Ortiz is leading the league in double plays. Pedroia is barely over .200. We could desperately use another bat, probably in CF. But with the Braves competitive in the NL East, I don't think Andruw Jones will be available. I also doubt that the Mariners would trade Ichiro who would be an ideal leadoff man. I think we might have a shot at Torii Hunter if the Twins fall out of contention. Hunter and Ortiz have a great relationship, although maybe not as close as Ramirez and Tavarez (get a room!)

05-06-2007, 04:14 PM	#26 (permalink)
Zen653 Hall of Famer Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 6,729	This is why I never count the Yankees out of anything. They always get off to a slow start and they always recover and re-take the division lead. I see no reason why this season will be any different. Unlike previous years, when the early difficulties were unexplained, it's pretty clear why the Yankees struggled out the gate - their two best pitchers were injured. Come June, they're going to have the best rotation in baseball. Mussina looked great against Texas. Wang had a perfect game into the 8th yesterday against a Mariner team that had scored 15 runs the night before. Pettitte is a gamer who has a deceptively low record this year, mainly due to uncharacteristically bad performances by Mariano Rivera. Phil Hughes might be the best 20-22 yearold in all of baseball. And Roger Clemens is going to be a first ballot Hall of Famer and possibly a top 5 pitcher in the history of the game. He absolutely dominated in the NL the last three years. Now maybe one or two of these guys will fail to pitch up to their potential but does it really matter? As long as the Yankees can rely on 3 of the 5, or even 2 of the 5, they'll be in excellent shape in any 5 or 7-game playoff series. Especially with an All-Star offense hitting behind them. As much as I hate to say it, I think we're simply keeping first place warm until the Yankees get healthy enough to reclaim it. Realistically, Wakefield won't stay this effective the whole year and Matsuzaka will probably continue to pitch like a No. 5 starter. Our offense is also too inconsistent. We don't score nearly enough runs given our alleged level of talent. Julio Lugo has been a colossal disappointment. J.D Drew stopped hitting after a good first week. Manny is heating up a little bit but still hasn't been his usual self. Ortiz is leading the league in double plays. Pedroia is barely over .200. We could desperately use another bat, probably in CF. But with the Braves competitive in the NL East, I don't think Andruw Jones will be available. I also doubt that the Mariners would trade Ichiro who would be an ideal leadoff man. I think we might have a shot at Torii Hunter if the Twins fall out of contention. Hunter and Ortiz have a great relationship, although maybe not as close as Ramirez and Tavarez (get a room!)