[Joshua Kaufman]

Ok, I know what you're all going to say: not another Yankee fan. I've been a Yankee fan since I was a kid - when they sucked. I remember the years of Dave LaPoint, Andy Hawkins, and Steve Farr. I remember when Mel Hall was the best hitter on the Yankees (poor Donnie was going through some back problems) and Melido Perez was the ace starter.

That being said - the Yankees are in decent shape this year. I use the word decent because anything short of a world series appearance is decent. They have the offense to slug it out with anyone, but I'm worried about the pitching. Cashman and Steinbrenner let the staff get too old. Randy Johnson is not a sure bet anymore and the recent signings of Pavano and Wright were nothing to write home about. Still, Mariano Rivera is the best in the business, so as long as the Bronx Bombers can get the ball into his hand late in the game, they will be fine!

[CityofBrotherlyShove]

How are Yankee fans reacting to the little effort put forth this offseason to fix a horribly mediocre pitching staff? As a Sox fan, I'm thrilled, to say the least.

How, exactly, has Cashman been spending his time?

[ThePundit]

I'm a Yankee fan. I go back to the Horace Clarke, Celerino Sanchez days. Then there was the great run of the late 70's, the disastrous early 90's and now I have been enjoying the last 10 years.

This year, the Yankees coaching staff probably makes more money than half the other teams entire payrolls( They;ve added Tony Pena, Larry Bowa,Lee Mazzilli and Joe Kerrigan as a BACKUP to Ron Guidry as pitching coach).

But seriously, the key to the Yankees pitching is Pavano. If he comes back fully recovered, the Yankees pitching will be fine. After a rough adjustement period to NY last year, Johnson will be Johnson. Sean Chacon pitched great after he got out of Colorado. Chien Mien Wong is pretty good. The guy I can live without is Mike Mussina. At 80 pitches he's done.

The Sox pitching staff is anything but a given. How healthy will Schilling be? And Josh Beckett is good but is also always injured. And is Foulke healthy?
Toronto has really improved so I have a feeling the BoSox might be on the outside looking in this year.

[BigBadBuc]

Hey Josh and Pundit,

Tell me about the Yankee farm system. It seems that the only way they acquire players is through free agency and trades.

BBB

[Vladman]

sup fellas,

Look, I went to Yankee stadium recently ( They beat the White Soxs 3-2 on Mussina's 300th victory, of course: Rivera the save.) And I respect their great history, and what their team has meant to baseball. But I think I can finally say: enough about the yanks.

There is not a single reason to like that team outside of Moose, DJ, and Posada. I'm all for big free agent signings, but you gotta understand Team chemistry, how it works, and how to piece it together. I took one look at the Yanks last year w/ Randy & Sheff & Matsui and I knew they wouldn't work.

I used to work in the Expos clubhouse when they were around ( got a lot of good stories too ... ) And I knew which teams have the combination of personalities that will click, and which wont. The Jay look VERY dangerous because they are assembling a team that can mesh, get pumped about their chances, and fight like lions for 162 games. That team has a lot of bite. Who is going to lead in the Yanks clubhouse this year ? The fires gone, and the sooner they rebuild the better !

[CityofBrotherlyShove]

"The Sox pitching staff is anything but a given. How healthy will Schilling be? And Josh Beckett is good but is also always injured. And is Foulke healthy?
Toronto has really improved so I have a feeling the BoSox might be on the outside looking in this year."

I never said the Sox pitching staff was a given. But this is the Yankees thread, so what I said was that even though pitching was obviously a big weakness for the Yanks last year, they did not do a single thing to fix it this year.

If you want to talk about the Sox - yes, there's a good chance Schilling never recovers from the damage he did in 2004.

But when you say the Sox may be on the outside looking in - I actually think the Sox AND the Yanks will be in that position. I think the Blue Jays are very much the team to beat, and I don't see the Sox or Yanks doing it in 2006.

[ThePundit]

BBB: The only time their farm system was any good in the last 20 years was when Steinbrenner was suspended. So Gene Michael let their talent develop. And thank god he did. You might have heard of a few of these guys: Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, Jorge Posada, Andy Petitte and a guy named Mariano Rivera.

If Steinbrenner had been around the team then, who knows if any of these guys would have stayed. Then once they started winning championships, they traded a lot of their young talent to bring in added stars such as Chuck Knoblauch, Raul Mondesi (ouch) and mediocre relievers.

But to be fair: 2 guys who were called up last year: Robinson Cano and Chien Mien Wong can be the next Andy Petitte and Bernie Williams. These 2 guys are pretty much untouchable because they came up through the system.

[Joshua Kaufman]

BBB,

In recent years - yes - the Yankees have resorted to trading away their prospects for veterans or have gone onto the free agent market. The early 90's built the yankees for their 4 world championships. They produced a variety of excellent players - in fact, the Yankee teams that reeled off 4 championships and almost a 5th against Arizona, were composed of a core of players directly from the farm.

Bernie Williams
Derek Jeter
Mariano Rivera
Jorge Posada
Alfonso Soriano
Ramiero Mendoza
Andy Pettite
Bob Wickman
Jim Leyritz

While a few of them were bit players and not part of the core, each contributed to the team. Remember, Leyritz turned around the first win against the Braves. If you compare teams during that time with the Yankees, you will find that the Yankees had a core of farm players that was larger than nearly every other successful team. I mean, look at other teams that have recently won the series. Did the Red Sox have a lengthy list of farm players the year they won? No

Unfortunately, the Yankees held on to this core a bit too long, and tried to fill the gaps with poor free agent signings. I am hoping that the emergence of Robinson Cano has taught them to once again go with their scouts.

As far as pitching, yes, they need some help. Shawn Chacon is a fairly young pitcher with some upside as is Chen Mein Wang (did I get the name right) who hurls fastballs in the mid 90s. Again, I was not in favor of signing Pavano and Wright. I don't usually like National league pitchers that come over to the AL. It's a different ball game. The offense is greater and the pressure on the pitcher is as well. As far as Chacon, he was pitching in the worst ball park ever. He used to be good there, and now he's going to be good in the Bronx.

[BigBadBuc]

Thanks Guys! The reason that I asked the question is because the Yanks seemed to having difficulty making trades with any meaningful prospects. I wondered how they depleted their organization of all their young talent. The guys that came from their system are a core of very good players.

I have a theory about that. I like when you build from within because these players come through the ranks together and when they move to the big club they are great teammates. Free agents have to fit in and sometimes the unity isn't there.

BBB

[Vladman]

I agree with Josh and Pundit, Yanks have always done their homework, and the results are clearly there. However, they have strayed from their farm-focus somewhat, and done exactly what BBB said NOT to do, which is mess with chemistry, and sign free-agents left and right! There is something so foul about seeing Damon in pinstripes. Am I wrong ?

[BigBadBuc]

Vlad,

You are not wrong. You sound like a baseball purist. I have had difficulty adjusting over the years to players moving around with different teams. Players used to be clearly identified by one team. Mantle was a Yankee forever. Clemente was a Bucco forever. Clemens? Damon? They belong to the next highest bidder. Economics have changed the game for sure. Some of it is good and some of it is not so good. I can't say that I blame a player for going after the money. It just removed a lot of the innocence that was once such a beautiful part of the game.

BBB

[Joshua Kaufman]

Well, I would have rather them saved the cash and traded for Mr. Cereal - Coco Crisp - but this is Damon's 4th team - so he does get around. As a Yankee fan I'm thrilled with the signing. Damon will get on base and will be the ultimate table-setter for the big thumpers behind him.

Here's the lineup as I see it
1. Damon
2. Jeter
3. Rodriguez
4. Matsui
5. Sheffield
6. Giambi
7. Posada
8. DH (Williams & ?) platoon
9. Cano

WOW. When you can bat your DH 8th, you're in good shape.