Jason Hammel

The saying in baseball goes, "It, the season, is a marathon, not a sprint."

It's nearly impossible to predict what will happen over the course of a major league season. Teams slump, players get injured, and the improbable and impossible are always right around the corner.

With that said, it's fun to look into the future, especially when it's the future of a team with as much potential as the New York Yankees. So, with that said, here are three bold predictions for the remainder of the Bronx Bombers' season. 

According to this tweet by Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish, five major league teams are reportedly interested in free-agent starting pitcher Jason Hammel:

The main focus of the MLB offseason will soon turn to Japanese star Masahiro Tanaka, who will be posted by the Rakuten Golden Eagles, and free-agent starters Matt Garza, Ubaldo Jimenez and Ervin Santana, who are all still on the board.

Of the free-agent signings thus far, there are certainly a couple that could turn out to be bargains. If Josh Johnson (San Diego Padres) and Chris Young (New York Mets) return to form, they'll be well worth the one-year deals at the cost of $8 million and $7.25 million, respectively.

Same for David Murphy, who signed a two-year, $12 million deal with the Cleveland Indians, and LaTroy Hawkins, who will cost the Colorado Rockies no more than $2.5 million to at least start the season as their closer.

The starting rotation war between pitchers for the Baltimore Orioles will be one of the most intriguing storylines to watch come spring training.  

In this dynamic arms race, no lead will be safe.

It will feature possibly 13 pitchers who will fight for the right to take to the hill for the Birds every five days this summer.

Yes. I said it. 13.

No, I didn’t misspell Cole Hamels' name. Although, if you only looked at their numbers, it would be hard to tell them apart.

Hamels is 3-1 with a 2.73 ERA, a 1.03 WHIP and 30 strikeouts in 26 1/3 innings. Baltimore’s Jason Hammel is 3-0 with a 1.73 ERA, a 1.00 WHIP and 25 Ks in 26 innings.

Not bad for a 29-year-old journeyman with a career ERA of 4.88 and a WHIP of 1.45.