Yankees New Rotation Comes With Big Expectations
Auston Sumitro
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Expect a new look for the Yankees this season. And it's not just all the new faces (which include C.C Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, and Mark Teixeira) that make this squad different. The high scoring offense of the Yankees we are all used to could be replaced with a dominant pitching staff that New York fans haven't seen in years. One through five, this rotation is nearly flawless.
Sabathia signed a seven year, $167 million deal this off season and is expected to start both Opening Day and the home opener at the new Yankee Stadium. After a Cy Young Award winning season in 2007, Sabathia showed his worth in Milwaukee by bringing the Brewers to the postseason for the first time in 26 years. He is known to be a work horse, and with a big paycheck comes equally big expectations. If Sabathia doesn't have early success, the fans are sure to let him hear about it.
A.J Burnett could be the most underrated pick-up for the Yankees. His impressive career in Toronto would have been more noticeable had he not pitched behind former Cy Young winner Roy Halladay. Burnett led the American League in strikeouts last season and compiled 18 wins for the Blue Jays. He is also known as an AL East killer, with a 26-8 record when facing the division. Even more appealing to the Yanks, A.J. is 5-0 against the Boston Red Sox. If his performance in the Grapefruit League (5-0 as of last week) is any hint to how his season will go, the Yankees have added another 15-20 game winner to their starting rotation.
Chien-Mien Wang had success last season-that is until he was bitten by the injury bug. In 15 starts he went 8-2 with a 4.07 ERA. In both 2006 and 2007, Wang won 19 games. He looks poised to reach that mark again barring another injury, because with the other big names in the rotation, he doesn't have that much pressure to perform.
Having a healthy Andy Pettitte in the number four slot of the rotation just goes to show the potential dominance of this pitching staff. He will most likely be in this position so that the lefties on the team (the other being Sabathia) aren't pitching back to back. Pettite is poised to make a huge comeback this season after a nagging shoulder injury kept him out for most of last year. While he hasn't shown much in his minor league starts, a healthy Pettitte is always a threat.
After what seemed like an endless fight to get a starting job last season, Joba Chamberlain looks to take over the fifth spot in the rotation. After showing some promise in his starts last season, like seemingly every other Yankees pitcher, he got hurt. A fully recovered Chamberlain can easily put up the numbers of a two or three pitcher, and this bodes well for New York. He has shown resilience in the preseason, putting away the World Champion Phillies after two first inning homers in his last start.
From what this rotation looks like on paper, Yankee fans can't wait for the regular season to start. And as long as they stay injury free, the New York Yankees can almost guarantee their rise back to the top of the AL East as well as the majors.
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