Much like last year, the start of this year's camp marks the absence of several familiar faces, as well as the presence of plenty of new ones. With long time fan favorite and World Series MVP Hideki Matsui in Tempe with the Angels, Johnny Damon in Lakeland with the Tigers, and Melky Cabrera in Orlando with the Braves there will certainly be a distinctly different feeling in a clubhouse now inhabited by the likes of Curtis Granderson and Randy Winn, as well as such familiar faces as Nick Johnson and Javier Vazquez, who bring along experience playing in the Bronx (as well as some not so fond memories in Javi's case). Joining them are less-notable acquisitions and non-roster invites such as Rule 5 pick Jamie Hoffman, Boone Logan, Royce Ring, Mike Rivera, Marcus Thames (another former Yankee best known fro hitting the first pitch he ever saw in the major leagues off of Randy Johnson over the left field wall at the "Old House," and who was traded the next year for Ruben Sierra), and David Winfree, among others. But with all the new faces remain the core group that brought home #27 last season. And there's no reason to believe that they can't do it again this year. Questions and concerns do exist however, and these are my top 5:
- Will they be able to replicate Johnny Damon's production out of left field?
- Will Javier Vazquez be able to give the Yankees the type of season he put up last year and avoid the catastrophe that was 2004?
being relied upon to anchor the staff atop the rotation, but rather eat up innings with quality outing out of the 4 spot. He'll also be pitching for Joe Girardi and not Joe Torre, whom he was rumored to have butted heads with during his first go-round with the Yankees. He put up very good numbers last year in Atlanta posting a 2.87 ERA and a 1.026 WHIP, but you could almost certainly expect those numbers to inflate in the AL East. The most appealing number on the back of his baseball card for last season is the 219.1 innings pitched. At the very least, that's what the Yankees are hoping he can duplicate this year. So assuming he can keep his head on straight mentally, there's no reason he can't be a more than suitable number 4 starter.- Will Nick Johnson stay healthy all year?
Former top prospect and first baseman of the future Nick Johnson is back after being dealt to the Expos prior to the '04 season for Vazquez. With a career .402 OBP (.849 OPS) he's always been productive getting on base. The only real knock on him is that he has always been injured, something the Yankees really can't afford with Johnson this year. He's being counted on to put his high on base numbers to use in the number 2 spot ahead of Teixeira and A-Rod. Despite his good glove, he isn't being relied upon to play first base except to occasionally spell Tex. The fact that he won't be playing the field greatly decreases the odds he'll endure an injury, but anything can happen. After all, it is Nick Johnson we're talking about.
- Who will be the #5 starter, and how will they do?
Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes, and to a lesser extent Chad Gaudin are all in the running to be fifth starter. I fully expect it to come down to Joba and Phil though, with Gaudin serving primarily as a long reliever/spot starter. Joe Girardi insists that the role will go to whoever performs best in spring training, leaving the other to serve as the primary setup man for Mariano "The Great," and based on Joba's history in that role and the job Hughes did last year I'm confident that either will do a fine job. As a starter though, Joba is intriguing because thi
s would be his first year with no innings limit where could go all-out in his starts. His competitive nature has forced him to grow frustrated with his short starts and innings limits in the past, possibly contributing to his mental inconsistency. As a starter, when Joba has been on he's shown signs of dominance, especially with the increasing development of his secondary pitches. It's when he loses his focus that he implodes and problems arise. Many people, including me, have long believed that Joba is better suited to be a reliever long-term and possibly succeed Mariano as the closer, but I think the possibility still exists for him to put it together as a starter. It would be a shame to put him through all those seasons with an innings limit then never give him the opportunity to start without a limit; Hughes on the other hand would be limited to 150 inning this year . The emergence of Hughes as a dominant reliever last June really saved the Yankees season, but he still projects to be a front of the rotation starter. With his horrendous 2008 far behind him, he's looking to go out and thrive in whatever role he's in this year. It's going to be interesting to see how this race plays out throughout the course of the spring.
s would be his first year with no innings limit where could go all-out in his starts. His competitive nature has forced him to grow frustrated with his short starts and innings limits in the past, possibly contributing to his mental inconsistency. As a starter, when Joba has been on he's shown signs of dominance, especially with the increasing development of his secondary pitches. It's when he loses his focus that he implodes and problems arise. Many people, including me, have long believed that Joba is better suited to be a reliever long-term and possibly succeed Mariano as the closer, but I think the possibility still exists for him to put it together as a starter. It would be a shame to put him through all those seasons with an innings limit then never give him the opportunity to start without a limit; Hughes on the other hand would be limited to 150 inning this year . The emergence of Hughes as a dominant reliever last June really saved the Yankees season, but he still projects to be a front of the rotation starter. With his horrendous 2008 far behind him, he's looking to go out and thrive in whatever role he's in this year. It's going to be interesting to see how this race plays out throughout the course of the spring.- Who will be the second lefty in the bullpen?
All in all though I think the Yankees are in pretty good shape going into camp. There seem to be more certainties than there are concerns. The top of the rotation is still strong, The lineup is still potent, and the team is still hungry.
