How will the Yankees handle the 2009 Playoff roster come October? Well if i was asked that question i would answer it this way. First off, we have heard through the "Grape Vine" (Brian Cashman) that the Yanks will only carry 10 pitchers for the ALDS series. That series looks like it will be the longer of the ALDS's (8 days total) which will provide full rests for C.C Sabathia and A.J Burnett if they pitch games 1 and 2 for games 4 and 5. So carrying only 10 pitchers seems the logical choice here. That being said the 10 i believe will make it are: Sabathia, Burnett, Pettite, Rivera, Hughes, Coke, Chamberlain being the 7 almost definites, and these 3 as probables depending how they finish the last 9 games: Aceves, Marte and Robertson. This to me would be perfect because as i said earlier, you wont need to use a 4th starter with the longer series, so there really is not a need for another long reliever (Gaudin or Mitre) when you have Aceves and Joba who can fill that role.
The best thing about having only 10 pichers the 1st round maybe the fact that it allows for a deep bench for Joe Girardi and the Yanks. What used to be the model for Yankee World Series teams in the past? If you ask me deep benches and using that bench in the clutch time and time again. If you look back at some of those benches you might say, no way the Yanks will have a bench as deep as those from the late 90's. Well i am not going to disagree with that because there is no Tim "Rock" Raines, Ruben Sierra, Cecil Fielder, Luis Sojo, or Chili Davis. But there are some players that are going to make the roster that can do some big time damage in a different way of Yankee teams from the past. Now as a Yankee fan i know that players with top notch speed coming off the bench have killed us in the past. Such as Dave Roberts fpr the Red Sox in 2004, or Chone Figgins for the Angels in 2002. But when has a Yankee fan seen that speed really help them? Well since this Yankee team has been on its run which id say started in 1996, (probably ended last year, but Jeter, Rivera, Pettite, Posada are still on roster so we will say its still going), Never! Yeah you can say they have had guys steal bases come playoff time in the past years but nothing like this Postseason has the opportunity to do. Brett Gardener has been a burner on the bases all year long and has proven when he comes into the game late that he can steal a base or two with no problem. Also, there is talk up in the North East that the Yanks are thinking and are pretty set on carrying another speedster Freddy Guzman on the roster, so having the two of them will allow for small ball to be played big time come late innings of atleast the ALDS. So having the element of speed that has killed Yankee teams in the past might acutally be the key for them to win a playoff series for the first time since 2004.
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