I'm furiously knocking on wood right now, but I think we are allowed to at least consider the prospect that the Yanks will be playing in October. As such, I think they have some difficult decisions to make regarding the makeup of the roster.
Here is what I could see them doing:
Rotation: Wang, Pettitte, Clemens, Moose
Lineup: Damon (LF), Jeter (SS), Abreu (RF), ARod (3B), Matsui (DH), Posada (C), Giambi (1B), Cano (2B), Melky (CF)
Bench: Duncan, Mientciewicz, Molina, Betemit
That leaves 8 spots for the bullpen: (1) Mo, (2) Joba, (3) Farnsworth, (4) Vizcaino should all be set in stone.
Four spots remaining: (1) Ramirez, (2) Hughes, (3) Kennedy, (4) Henn/Villone/Bruney/Britton
At a minimum, one of either Hughes or Kennedy has to be on the roster as a long man. But do you take both considering neither of them has probably ever pitched in relief? Are you better off with someone like Henn, Villone, or Britton in this spot? Or even Ohlendorf? You could also leave Duncan off the roster to take another pitcher since they already have four outfielders, and its not like you would use Duncan to pinch hit for anyone in the starting lineup (and he's no Dave Roberts on the basepaths).
Now if it was up to me I'd consider starting one of the kids over Moose, but I doubt they'll do that. So if that's the case, should they consider moving one or both of them to the bullpen for the last week of the season to get them prepared for that role? Hughes has a ridiculously high ERA the first time through the order, so it seems as though he wouldn't be the best candidate. Moose on the other hand has proven that he can come out of the bullpen and throw well.
In case you want to get creative, here is the rest of the 40-Man Roster:
Pitchers: Clippard, DeSalvo, Igawa, Karstens, Veras (I like him better than Bruney), Wright Hitters: Gonzalez (SS), Sardinha (OF).
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5 comments:
I'd start Ian Kennedy as the fourth starter and put Moose in the pen.
I also put Hughes into the pen now.
I'd put Moose out to pasture and hope he doesn't find his way home.
Ditto w Clemens. I don't trust him r Moose start to start. Let's see Kennedy in a day or two and move from there.
Assuming we start on the road I'd set the rotation with Wang in game 1, Kennedy in game 2, Pettitte in game 3, Clemens in game 4 and back to Wang for a game 5.
Mienchaipghsdrghzx should start at first, with an outfield of Matsui, Melky and Abreu and Damon as the DH. Giambi is then our big bat off the bench in case we need a home run late.
Defense, pitching and timely hitting - that's how we won it all those so many years ago...
Oh, and Igawa in the pen. Just look at his first inning numbers this year. Hitters figure him out the second time through the order, so an inning of relief is perfect for him.
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