The Roster Right Now & The Roster In Two Weeks

The New York Yankees 25 man roster as it stands today is not what they started the season with. There have been injuries, some call-ups and bullpen shake-ups. Here is a look at what the Yankees have during games right now :

Rotation
1. CC Sabthia
2. Chien-Ming Wang
3. Joba Chamberlain
4. AJ Burnett
5. Andy Pettite

Bullpen (*LR=Long Relief, *MR=Middle Relief, *SU-Setup, *CL=Closer)
LR- Brett Tomko
LR- Alfredo Aceves
LR- Phil Hughes
MR- Jose Veras
MR- David Robertson
SU- Phil Coke
CL- Mariano Rivera

Catchers
Francisco Cervelli
Jorge Posada

Infielders
1B- Mark Teixeira
2B- Robinson Cano
2B/3B/SS- Angel Berroa
2B/3B/SS- Ramiro Pena
SS- Derek Jeter
3B- Alex Rodriguez

Outfielders
LF- Johnny Damon
CF- Melky Cabrera
CF- Brett Gardner
RF- Nick Swisher

Designated Hitter
Hideki Matsui

So, that is what the Yankees have every game. Of course, like all teams, the Yankees have some injuries. But these injuries are to some of the most important pieces of the Yankees team. Let’s take a look, shall we?

Setup Man Brian Bruney replaces Jose Veras – Veras gets DFA’d and Bruney returns to dominant form.
Setup Man Damaso Marte replaces Phil Hughes – Marte Returns as a Lefty Specialist, and Hughes goes back to the Minors to start.

Catcher Jose Molina replaces Francisco Cervelli – Cervelli returns to the minors to work on his bright future, and Molina returns to his reputation of pitchers loving him.
Xavier Nady replaces Angel Berroa – Berroa gets DFA’d as he should, and Nady becomes a LF/RF/DH platoon player as well as a power bat.

As we can see, with Bruney and Marte replacing Jose Veras and with Phil Hughes going back to the minors to work on his pitching, the Yankees bullpen instantly gets stronger. Bruney, Coke and Marte will make for an exceptional 7th and 8th inning bridge to Mariano Rivera. Gone will be the days of Jose Veras, David Robertson, and Jon Albaladejo pitching the 8th. It will also allow Alfredo Aceves to go back to the role of the Long Reliever or (and im just speculating here) possible replacing Chien-Ming Wang in the rotation. If you remember last year, Aceves did fairly well in 3 starts with the Bronx Bombers. He knows how to pitch, has good command and will keep the team in games.

With Jose Molina replacing Francisco Cervelli as the backup to Jorge Posada, Cervelli gets the chance to go back to AA-Trenton or AAA-Scranton/Willks-Barre and work on his hitting technique. The pitchers loved Cervelli in New York. CC Sabathia even went on to say that Cervelli called one of the best games he has ever pitched. But if Cervelli can learn to hit half as well as Jorge Posada, the Yankees will have their catcher of the future. And when Xavier “X Man” Nady comes back, he will replace Angel Berroa as the power bat off the bench. Berroa will be DFA’d more than likely to allow Ramiro Pena to perform all of the Utility Man duties. Nady can also spell Nick Swisher in Right Field and Matsui at the DH position.

Of course, this is a dream scenario for the Yankees, as all of the Disabled List guys are atleast a week or two away from returning. Back with more in a little bit.

Return of the Blog…And the Yankees’ Woes

Well, it’s been a while since we have last talked. I want to personally apologize. The Blog got put on the back burner while studying and working took over my life. But enough about that. This is a blog about the New York Yankees, and since our last post, the Yankees had some ups and downs.

The Yankees strolled through the last half of May, reeling off win after win. The pitching looked great, and Alex Rodriguez came back to the line-up. Not only did it energize the team, but Mark Teixeira benefited as well. The emergence of Rodriguez helped Teixeira get going. Since Rodriguez came back, Teixeira is batting .378 and leading the team in HR’s, RBI’s, and OPS.

Then came the beginning of June. The pitching became mediocre and the Yankees started to play the division rivals. Luckily, the Yankees took two out of three games from the Tampa Rays. And of course, when the Yankees needed a pick me up series, along came the Boston Redsox. The Redsox had been 5-0 against the Yankees this year. And as tonight’s game ended, the Redsox became 8-0 against the Yankees.

Chien-Ming Wang also came back from his DL stint. While Wang’s velocity is up, his command is as poor as it has ever been. He continuously misses his spots and walks too many batters. Add that to allowing alot of hits, and you have the makings of a pitcher who simply forgot how to pitch. Alot of experts have said that the problem is with Wang’s delivery. And it is clear that he is afraid to push of that right foot, the one he had surgery on last year.

Hanging in the balance due to Wang’s arrival, is Phil Hughes. Hughes’ spot within this organization is being flip-flopped every week. With Wang out, Hughes put up solid starts every time through the rotation. Infact, the Yankees late may surge was with Hughes in the rotation. Now, “Phil Franchise” is a long man in the bullpen. He is 23 years old and still has #1/2 starter potential. So why not trot him out there every 5 days while Wang gets his command back? The Yankees can’t seem to answer that question either.

There are more posts to come tonight. Subjects including the Yankees roster, the recent MLB draft and a potential Minor League call-up!

Wang’s Woes Continue

After three straight starts of giving up 7+ Runs, the Yankees have decided to not start Wang for his next game against the Boston Red Sox. Wang, who has not gone more then 4 innings in his 3 starts, is off to the worst start in his young career. The Yankees have been looking at Wang and are watching how his “hands break, his leg kick, where his head is and if it’s on line, and the angle of his arm…” Girardi has said that they have found some physical things to work on with Wang. Chien Ming Wang himself beleives nothing is wrong with his mechanics. “I watch video, everything’s the same as last season,” Wang said. We’ll see what happens with Wang as the season continues but the Yanks are definitely going to need him to step up.

Not So Hot Start For CC

4.1 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 5 BB, 0 K,

That’s how the stat line read for CC Sabathia after the Yanks Opening Day loss to the Baltimore Orioles, as the Yanks lost 10-5.  I can hear all of the Yankee haters now, “Overrated”, “Waste of Money”, etc, etc.  Now while this was a bad start for CC, it’s only the first game of the season. Maybe it was just Opening Day nerves or maybe it was some bad communication with Catcher Jorge Posada. The two wild pitches that CC threw, did look like they were Posada’s fault.

While we’re talking about Posada, his arm didn’t look as bad as I thought it would. The O’s only stole base once but Posada’s throws seemed pretty good.  Well, that’s 1 game down 161 games to go. Yankee fans, we’re in this for the long haul.

Gardner Wins Starting CF Job

The New York Yankees have announced that Brett Gardner will be the starting Center Fielder.It was thought to have been a very close position battle between Gardner and Melky Cabrera but I guess the Yanks saw something in Brett that will make them better.  Gardner is hitting .364 in Spring Training with 6 RBIs and 5 SBs, while Melky Cabrera is batting .345 with 9 RBIs and 2 SBs.  I know Brett Gardner has the speed but I think Melky is the better fielder.  I know Melky is not the best hitter but he has a great arm in the field.  That arm will be missed.