Brian Cashman, Joe Girardi and every Yankee fan from here to Taiwan can try and convince themselves that the Yanks aren't really gonna need a pitcher, but that is just staring at the glass, trying to force it to be half full. The truth is, this rotation is hanging by a limb right now.
Mike Mussina has 10 wins and has been, by far, the Yankees most consistent pitcher. Besides the pitch to Manny, Mussina has been terrific. He might not be able to go 8 innings any more, but you really wouldn't want him to at this point. He's a geriatric at this point and the more rest you can give him, the better.
But how much can you expect from him for the rest of the season? Can he continue to pitch this well? What if he comes back down to earth even just a little bit? How about Darrell Rasner? I truly believe Rasner can be a fourth or fifth starter in this league year in and year out. He has the makeup to be successful in this day in age in MLB. He is fearless, he is consistent, he has good control and good offspeed stuff. That's all you really need to be a good baseball pitcher today. But, you can't expect Rasner to continue to go out there and pitcher to a 3 ERA all year. He is gonna get hit. It doesn't make him bad, it makes him human.
Joba? Still learning. Pettite? The only given in the rotation right now. Your fifth starter? Kei Igawa? Excuse me while I hit up the bathroom for a minute and vomit until my eyes pop out of my head. Jeff Karstens? Poor man's Darrell Rasner. Ian Kennedy? Overmatched. Phil Hughes? Let's face it, Hughes is looking more and more like he might have Mark Prior-itis (the Yanks need to SERIOUSLY consider what is best for Hughes when he comes back. Making the transition to a dominate relief pitcher might be what's best for him if injuries are going to continue to plague him). Convert Ross Olendorff back into a starter? Umm, no. Other minor leaguers? Too risky.
That means a trade is in the Yanks future if they want to compete. So let's look at the list of pitchers the Yanks could go after, starting with the big names and working down.
The top tier:
C.C. Sabathia - I haven't really gotten these rumors at all. First, the Indians are not even remotely close to being out of this pennant race and wild card run. Are the Indians really gonna trade their best pitcher when they still have a chance to win? I doubt it
Besides, whether Cleveland is "open" to a trade or not, they certainly aren't desperate to do anything. It would take an absolute king's ransom to even get in the door for the guy.
If Cleveland was listening, should the Yankees talk? Absolutely. The Yanks have the prospects to trade for Sabathia and the resources to sign him. He is a power pitching lefty who is still a few years away from turning 30. Oh, and he is the reigning Cy Young Award winner.
If Cleveland is talking, the Yanks better be interested. However, I DOUBT that the Indians will ever be truly intent on trading him, unless they fall off the face of the earth.
Erik Bedard - THANK YOU SEATTLE, WE LOVE YOU!!!!!!!!!!!
Bedard was the BIG MOVE for the Mariners this offseason when Seattle (along with the rest of the world) believed they were a legit shot for division champs and even contenders in the playoffs. Now, more than 20 games out, the Mariners have canned their general manager and asked their manager to kindly let the door hit him in the ass on the way out the door.
So what does that mean? It means that Bedard may all of a sudden become available as the Mariners look to the future, one that probably won't include a lot of veterans, veterans that, for the most part, have helped in the team's demise over the last year.
This is my personal favorite for the Yankees. The positives for him are very simple. He's a power throwing lefty. He has pitched in the AL East before, pitched in a bandbox of a stadium in Camden Yards and excelled, he is still only 29 year's old (turned this year), he has never had any kind of arm problems, he is a gamer, he is a second half pitcher, and he seems to thrive in big situations. The negatives? Really, there is only one negative: how much will it cost to get this guy?
Bedard is a lefty under 30, which makes him an expensive commodity. Think, used Ferrari. No matter how old, no matter how beat up, you put that Ferrari name on there and the price JUMPS. It is the same thing with lefties under 30. They are a hot commodity. Also, Bedard isn't eligible to go free agent until after next year, meaning that the Mariners don't HAVE to trade him. Unlike the Indians, who would be staring a big fat ZERO in the face if they hung onto Sabathia for the rest of the year and he walked (they would get the draft pick of the team who signed him), the Mariners could easily play hard ball for Bedard, not caring if they scared teams off.
Lastly, the trade power of the Yankees seems to have been diminished in the last year. Ian Kennedy is certainly not as valuable as he was, say, this time last year and even if a team held the righty in high regard, they would certainly try and get MORE from the Yanks than just IPK by playing up his dreadful start to his major league career. By the same token, Phil Hughes isn't the chip he once was. His stuff seems more limited than anyone first thought and he has shown an alarming knack for getting injured. The rest of the minors? Jose Tabata seems to be a head case who can't conquer the Eastern League right now and, after that, there doesn't seem to be much in the way of "star" power besides Austin Jackson, who the Yanks have basically made untouchable, believing that he may be ready for the bigs in another year.
If the Yanks can figure out a way to make this happen, they need to do it. Bedard isn't just a great pick up for this year, he is an essential piece for the years to come.
Rich Harden - The most interesting guy simply because he is the epitome of the risk/reward equation. Whenever Harden pitches, WHENEVER he does, he dominates. There isn't any way around that. His stuff is absolutely electric. He is an ace in the truest sense. He has days when it appears divine intervention would be the only way the other team could hit him.
On the other hand, he is always, always, always, always, always, always hurt. He has been his entire career. He was already this year. The only person on the DL more than Harden is Carl Pavano, and that is only because Pavano just never comes off the DL.
I have, for a while now, believes that Harden's ultimate role might be in the bullpen. Look at what Kerry Woods is doing for the Cubs as a closer right now. It was a move Woods and the Cubbies should have made a few years ago. Some guys just don't have the arms to go out there every 5 days and throw 100 pitches and stay healthy. But those same guys can usually step into a 80 innings per year role where they only have to pitch one or maybe two innings every other day, and be successful.
My point?
If the A's, come July 31, are out of it and looking to deal, and they aren't asking for the world for Harden, the Yanks might be smart to pick him up. One of two things will happen: he either proves that his injury days are behind him and he becomes your bonafide ace for the next 7 years or, he goes back on the DL and, when he comes off, the Yanks make the smart move, put him in the pen and groom him for a closer role.
That's only if you can get him at a reasonable price.
Roy Oswalt - The guy is having just a terrible year for some reason, which means that the Astros, only a year removed from signing him to a multi-year deal, may be inclined to move him. Is the bad year a blip on the screen? It would seem that way. Oswalt's velocity remains the same, it just seems that, in an attempt to save his arm, cut down on innings, and perhaps lengthen his career, the Astros have tried to make him less of a power pitcher and more of a control pitcher.
It is amazing how stupid smart people can be sometimes.
Oswalt is a power pitcher that attacks the zone and strikes people out. His arm seems healthy and fine and baseball has had PLENTY of guys who have pitcher with power, and pitcher a lot of innings over their years, and didn't burn out fast. Oswalt seems to be somewhat of that type of throwback guy where his arm is ready for anything.
It isn't clear if the Stros would be looking to sell on Oswalt just yet. They do play in the worst division in baseball (The NL Central) so a run at the division, even an outside run at the wild card in the NL, isn't out of the question. Also, just like with the Mariners, the Stros control Oswalt, so they would be inclined to ask for the moon and, if they didn't get it from him, simply keep him throwing in Houston.
I honestly don't believe that Stros will end up trading him but, if they were inclined to listen, the Yankees should definitely talk.
AJ Burnett - Okay, I know this is nutty, I really do. This is IN the division. When is the last time that happened? Why would the Blue Jays HAND the Yanks a good arm like Burnett?
The answer, they probably wouldn't.
However, the Blue Jays are in absolute disarray. They just fired their manager (John Gibbons) and brought back the ageless (or is that ancient, not sure) Cito Gaston to be manager. This is about the fifth straight year they have under performed.
Think of their season right now: they finally end up with the pitching that could not only compete, but give them an upper hand in most games they enter and their offense decides this is they year they are going to go in the tank. And that offensive break has a great deal to do with Vernon Wells, who has become the tin man since signing his huge contract, and Frank Thomas, who was let go after questioning manager John Gibbons decision to bench him after a slow start, a decision that may have had to do with money (Thomas got more money the more at bats he racked up). Gibbons, now, is packing his own bags.
Pitching isn't a problem for the Jays. They can afford to give up Burnett. But they need position player help. Could the Yanks clean out some of their position player prospects and entice the Jays for Burnett, who seems to have found a groove this year and has stayed healthy?
Ummm..................my guess woud be no, but an interesting idea none the less.
Second Tier:
Joe Blanton - If the Yanks are gonna pass on the Bedards and Sabathias of the world, then, to me, the best of the rest would have to be Joe Blanton. He is consistent. He has always pitched well against the Yanks, he is under 30, and he is really the eptiome of the number 3 pitcher.
Of all the guys out there, I would have the most confidence in him to pitch a big game.
Why the A's would ever trade him is beyond me (he isn't costing them much at all and he is as productive as they come) but his name has been out there for so long, there must be some truth to it. Short of Sabathia and Bedard (and a cheap flyer on Harden), Blanton would be my choice.
Bronson Arryo - The only guy creaming over Arryo in town seems to be Mike Francesa, and why I have no idea. Because he pitched well, 4 years ago, against the Yanks when he was with the Sox? Wow, so what? Keith Foulke was BRILLIANT that year as well, should we pull his ass out of sweet retirement and start throwing him in the eighth?
I will take a pass on Bronson Arryo.
Paul Byrd - I'll take an even bigger pass on Byrd.
First, he is a steroid cheating bastard who came up with, to this point, the lamest (and funniest) excuse for being caught with a garage full of HGH. He got it from a dentist over the Internet. OF COURSE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! How freakin stupid we all were. When I get a tooth ache, the first thing I do is Google all the Mexican dentists I can find, then try and find the best price for a box of HGH possible.
It is hard enough accepting the Giambino, but his overall good humor, his willingness to at least apologize for his actions, and his recent good play makes that a whole lot easier. Byrd? I can't imagine him making it that easy.
Plus the fact, he isn't that good. You're honestly telling me that Darrell Rasner can't give you essentially the same thing as Paul Bryd for the rest of the year? Please. Rasner is MADE to be a Paul Bryd type. A back end of the rotation kinds guy who pitches a good amount of innings and bounces around the league, catching on in different places when one teams decides to go younger and better and another team wants that constant, consistent veteran pitcher to stabalize the back of the rotation. Darrell Rasner = Paul Bryd, minus the money you save.
Randy Wolf - Did anyone watch Wolf against the Yanks the other day? Enough said. I'll take a pass.
The point is, aside from Blanton, if I were the Uanks I would simply shoot for the big fish and let all the other ones go.
I would go all out for Bedard, keep my toes in the Sabathia pool and not let him get away if I can feasibly do it, consider Harden at a decent price, and nothing else. Nothing at all.
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