Despite an offseason full of free agent splashes, the Yankees could be in for another April belly flop.
Sure, the additions of Mark Teixeira, CC Sabathia, and A.J. Burnett automatically make the Yankees an improved team, but there are substantial questions as the calendar flips.
A distracted Alex Rodriguez is one thing, but putting him on the shelf for the season’s first six to nine weeks is quite another. General manager Brian Cashman is sticking with farmhand Cody Ransom for, if nothing else, the lack of available free agent third basemen.
Jorge Posada, who had offseason surgery of his own, is projected to fill the void at cleanup in the batting order where Rodriguez would have hit. Posada has hit the ball hard so far this spring, but for a catcher coming off shoulder surgery, who knows if he is ready for the wear and tear of major league catching duties?
Just ask Jason Giambi and Tino Martinez how hard it is to transition to being the starting first baseman for the Yankees. Both players were respectively showered with boos due to a lack of production in their first months in pinstripes. For a historically slow starter, Teixeira may want to find a way to come out swinging (and hitting) or invest in a pair of earplugs.
Robinson Cano has shown he can be one of the best hitters in the league. After all, he is only two seasons removed from hitting .342 and driving in 78 runs. Cano turned heads in 2008 as well, but not in a good way. Coming off his worst of four seasons in the big leagues, Cano will have to find his game again.
The infielders aren’t the only position players with question marks. The Yankees, whose outfielders have historically been the bread and butter of the lineup, may be fielding one of the weakest units in the league.
Xavier Nady fit the team well last year after coming over from the Pirates, and it seemed as though he would take over for the departing free agent Bobby Abreu. The addition of Nick Swisher has put some heat on Nady as the two have battled thus far in the spring for the starting job.
If Posada is used as a designated hitter instead of the everyday catcher, left fielder Hideki Matsui may be reduced to a pinch-hitting role. Though still a big bat in the lineup, Matsui’s failing knees give him decreased mobility for one of the more difficult left fields in baseball.
Johnny Damon’s arm was never an attribute in his game. With his arm weaker than ever, he can no longer play an everyday center field.
The speedy Brett Gardner has shown great range and hustle in the field and the ability to steal a base at will. The only problem for Gardner is getting on base. In the past Gardner has not been able to hit at a major league level. So far in the spring, however, Gardner is hitting over .380 and has even shown bursts of power. But is he capable of carrying over his success in spring training to the regular season and start in center field?
Maybe it’s time for Gardner to get his shot and reduce Melky Cabrera to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Then of course, there is the pitching staff. If ever there was a year for the Bombers to have a power outage on offense to let their starting pitching carry them along, it’s this season. The team leader in wins (Mike Mussina) decided to retire after the only 20-win season of his career, but Yankees have surely gained more than they have lost since last year.
Remember Chien-Ming Wang? The constant in the rotation that was lost to a freak injury while running the bases during interleague play versus Houston? Welcome back Chien-Ming, but you’ve been reduced to the second starter.
Sabathia and Burnett came to the Yankees via free agency, but as history serves, touted arms in New York are often demoralized by the pressure.
Sabathia has shown that he can carry a team on his hefty back, and the guidance of Roy Halladay seemed to help Burnett improve. The ever-accurate Wang will still be old reliable, and even a declining Andy Pettitte is one heck of a fourth or fifth starter.
The biggest mistake the Yankees are making is dropping Joba Chamberlain into a starting role.
Lightning isn’t supposed to strike twice, and apparently the Yankees have no intentions of finding out if it will. The potential one-two punch of Chamberlain and Mariano Rivera to shut the door on games is reminiscent of the Rivera-John Wetteland combo of 1996. Instead, Chamberlain is inked in as a starter, where he has previously shown only limited success.
Pitching, not hitting, may have to be the Yankees' saving grace this whole season, not just April.
In the past three Aprils, the Yankees have posted a dismal 26-39 record, only finishing the month above .500 in 2006. With many unanswered questions and a gaping hole the size of A-Rod’s contract left in the middle of the lineup, this trend shows no sign of halting.
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