Even with the loss of Andy Pettitte the Yankees rotation will be fine. You have to figure that CC Sabathia will win 20 games again. Phil Hughes has made strides as a starter and figures to win 15 plus games. A.J. Burnett will bounce back I can’t see him losing 15 games again and expect him to win 13-16 games. Freddy Garcia is still a serviceable pitcher that is capable of 12-15 wins and the combination of Ivan Nova or Sergio Mitre can get 10-12 wins. Whatever they get out of Bartolo Colon is a bonus based on the fact he has not pitched in a big league game since 2009. Taking a flyer on Mark Prior was worth it despite not pitching since 2006 in the Majors he could still be a solid 5th starter or long man out of the bullpen if healthy.
The bullpen should be solid once again with Mariano Rivera, Joba Chamberlain, Rafael Soriano; David Robertson worked 61 innings in 2010. It will take the pressure off of the rotation as you would have to figure that if the Yankees have the lead after 6 or 7 innings they will have a good chance coming away with the win.
The offense will pick up the pitching as they ranked first in runs (859) a year ago and bring back all the starters from a year ago.
The Yankees are the Yankees, Brian Cashman is not afraid to go out and add pieces as the season moves along to help add depth. It might not be the addition of the biggest name on the market but with their payroll flexibility the Yankees can make moves without the financial constraints that hinder other clubs at times.
I expect the Yankees to be a playoff team once again in 2011, after making the postseason 15 out of the last 16 seasons I’m not going to bet against them. What happens once the playoffs start is a whole new ballgame.
