Joel Sherman
Blog: Hardball
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Michael Pineda played catch with Yankees pitching coach Larry Rothschild in shallow left field yesterday inside Tropicana Field, slowly working his precious right shoulder back into shape.
Earlier in the day, Andy Pettitte was informed by Rothschild he would throw two innings Monday in a Class-A game, slowly working his left arm back into shape.
The Yankees’ season opens today without Pineda or Pettitte and it is very likely the whole first month will be played without them. But out of sight should not be equated with out of plans.
Paul J. Bereswill for The New Yo
Phil Hughes
A rebirth of pitching dominance has been building in recent years and last season the impact was seismic: Homers were at a 14-year low: OPS and runs were at a 19-year low.
The very early returns in 2012 suggest more of the same. Oakland and Seattle, two bad offensive clubs, went to Japan and scored nine runs combined in two games. In the domestic opener Wednesday, Kyle Lohse held Miami hitless for six innings. And on the first significant day of play yesterday, there were just 25 total runs scored in six afternoon games, including a pair of 1-0 outcomes. In the first nine games of this season, only one winning team exceeded four runs and only one losing team managed more than two runs. That happened in the Blue Jays’ 7-4 win over the Indians and it took those teams 16 innings to do it.
Cynics would suggest this is all about illegal performance enhancers dropping in use within the game. But talk to hitters, hitting coaches and scouts and you will hear something different; that they have never seen so many good arms in such volume before.
Heck, the Yankees need only look across the field today where the Rays, despite the AL’s third-lowest payroll, are viewed as a World Series contender. That is because they have five starters so good — none worse than a No. 3 — that Wade Davis was moved to the bullpen.
So when it comes to the starting rotation, quality and depth is going to matter, especially in the top-heavy AL, particularly in a ferocious East Division. Which is why the work of Pineda and Pettitte is vital, even if it mostly remains unseen.
Look, last year, the Yankees produced a 4.02 rotation ERA, which was fifth best in the AL. Rothschild used the word “overachieve” to diplomatically describe the effort. But when I suggested a bit of baseball good fortune — particularly in the relatively good health of Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia and the 16-4 emergence of Ivan Nova — general manager Brian Cashman did not disagree. The Yankees were thin and dubious, yet pitched much better than expectations from the rotation.
But to expect that two straight years would be folly. Which explains the Yankees’ behavior this winter. They made keeping CC Sabathia from opting out of his contract their offseason priority and since he is starting Opening Day, you know how that worked out. Cashman convinced owner Hal Steinbrenner to expand the payroll to sign Hiroki Kuroda, who starts tomorrow. And the payroll was expanded yet again to reunite with Pettitte.
In addition, the Yankees finally used the chip that was Jesus Montero to obtain Pineda. He did not have his good fastball in spring training. But Rothschild reasons now that a combination of shoulder weakness and deviation from a streamlined delivery were making the ball cut and robbing life from his velocity. He expects to see 98 mph when Pineda returns to the majors.
And the Yankees expect Pettitte to return, as well. Manager Joe Girardi admitted he has never been more interested in a player not currently on his 25-man roster than he is in his former teammate.
All of this sets up an intriguing story within the season for the Yankees: A rotation derby as they try to determine when to use who and how. Nova, who had a shaky spring, is instantly vulnerable. So is Garcia, whose $4 million contract and one-year commitment mean the Yankees do not have a significant financial or emotional investment with the righty.
“I feel good about the rotation and great about the depth,” Girardi said. “We are going to have tough decisions what to do.”
He should hope that is the case; that Pineda, Pettitte and, perhaps, even a few promising arms at Triple-A create difficult choices. Because, as the 2012 season begins, there is an arms race in full blossom and it is as clear now as any time in major league history that it is far better to have too many starting pitching options than too few.
joel.sherman@nypost.com
Andy Pettitte, Pettitte, Yankees, Michael Pineda online, Larry Rothschild, Rothschild, the Yankees, J. Bereswill, Pineda, Pineda, Fla.
ไม่มีความคิดเห็น:
แสดงความคิดเห็น