CC and Andy Go Down...Are the Yanks Out?

Within a matter of hours, the Bombers lost both their lefty ace (Sabathia) and their other lefty ace (Pettitte) to injuries.  Are the pinstripes' division-title dreams now in jeopardy?

Just when fans thought that everything was hunky-dory in Yankee Universe, just as they were cranking back the levers on their La-Z-Boys and putting their feet up on their coffee tables, the Baseball Gods administered a sudden and painful shock to the team's starting staff.   Two key southpaws gone within a matter of hours.  When did Wednesdays become so cruel?

Let's travel back to around 11 a.m. Wednesday morning and take a look at the mid-season forecast.  At that point, it was clear skies and smooth sailing for the Yankees' clipper (if you'll allow) on the gentle waves of the 2012 season.  New York owned a 45-28 record, good for a 4-game lead in the AL East.  They were winners in 14 of their last 17 contests, and had put up an MLB-best 24-7 spot since May 22nd (thanks ESPN Research Department for that one).  It was gravy baby, all gravy.

Hours after southpaw ace C.C. Sabathia was placed
on the 15-day DL, Andy Pettitte left Wednesday's game
after a ground ball fractured his left fibula.

Then at about 11:30 a.m., some storm clouds materialized on the doppler radar (yes I am going to continue with this metaphor), as word broke that C.C. Sabathia and his tender groin (...phrasing?) were heading to the 15-day DL.  Certainly not great news, but not devastating injury and therefore not a devastating blow to the franchise.  The seas had roughened but the ship veered little from the course.

Fast-forward to 2:20 p.m.  In the middle of the Yankee Stadium diamond, Andy Pettitte took a sign, kicked, fired, and received a hard ground ball off the left ankle in return.  It was painful to watch.  Andy left the game on the next pitch and, sure enough, x-rays would later reveal a broken fibula.  The Dandy One is placed on the 60-day DL, meaning two months without his dandy antics or his dandy cutter.

Cue the scattered clouds becoming a full on maelstrom and the vessel buckling in the rocky tide.  Cue the feet flying off the coffee and the bodies bolting upright in alarm from their recliners.  Cue the first disturbing twinges of that feeling reporters and analysts love to toss around carelessly in the sports media world: PANIC.

But what if we resisted that convenient urge to panic for say, five minutes?  What if instead we step back, take a deep breath, and share an honest glance at this together before we let ourselves into a state of apoplexy, deal?

Adam Warren will make his major-league
debut for the pinstripes on Friday, replacing
the injured C.C. Sabathia.

For starters, the timing of the injuries is a big positive, especially in Sabathia's case.  Thanks to the upcoming All-Star break, it's likely CC will only miss 2 or 3 starts, assuming there's no setbacks.  My guess is that it's a very light injury, one that management is treating with excessive caution because the timing allows them the luxury of doing so.  Or maybe that's just wishful thinking.  Unfortunately, Andy is going to miss several starts, even with the All-Star weekend. No getting around that.

Recall however that Yankees have one of the better--if not best--bullpens in the business. Actually, it's the strongest aspect of their team. If starters Ivan Nova, Phil Hughes, and Hideki Kuroda can "step up" (in the words of manager Joe Girardi) and provide innings over the next few weeks, it will keep the relievers fresh. That reserve of energy could prove big in moments where the pen may need to help out old man Freddie Garcia and/or any minor-league fill-ins, such as Friday's probable Adam Warren.

Speaking of Warren, who is this dude and what has he done to earn the tryout? A quick scroll through his milb.com stats tells us that he has an 11-13 record and a 3.70 ERA in 42 starts with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre...which is to say they tells us nothing. One anonymous talent evaluator claims that Warren "will not overpower hitters with a fastball that rarely strays out of the mid-90s" (thanks nj.com), and a scouting report from 2010 had him throwing a four-seamer, two-seamer, cutter, change, and slider, with a nasty pick-off move to go with it (courtesy riveraveblues.com for that one). Good to see he has variety of movement on the hard stuff, but can he locate? We'll know soon enough.

Any other farm options for the Yankees?  Ramon Ortiz (having the best season) is aging, Delin Betances (having the worst season) has allowed almost a walk per inning, David Phelps (latest victim: see here) is rehabbing his wing, and Manny Banuelos (remember him?) is on the DL and has hardly pitched at all this year.

Personally, I'd rather see them give both Warren and fellow Scrantoner D.J. Mitchell a shot than watch them run old man Freddie out there again (even despite Mitchell's discouraging numbers). Hell, let Boone Logan have a crack at it and see if he can't get through five, like they did in the past with Phil Coke.

But no, they won't do that. They'll live and die with Garcia and when Warren fails to throw a perfect game in his first couple major-league outings, they'll make an early-August play for Francisco Liriano or Brandon McCarthy or the like. The Yankee farm system is currently so thin at pitcher one can hardly blame the front office for seeking outside help.

In the meantime, New York's offensive fixation with the longball will win them some games, even some series, and may mitigate this horrible Wednesday hangover. Be warned though: when all you do as a team is swing for the fences, you're bound to run into some vicious team slumps. We've seen it already in 2012 and we'll see it again. That's when they'll need to rely on the rotation and the bullpen to plug the leak in the vessel. The clipper is going to take on water; the key is to shovel it out as fast or faster than it funnels in (aka stay at or over .500 baseball...for those of you who've lost interest in the metaphor which I suspect is everybody).

The forecast has indeed become stormy, but it's nothing that isn't normal this time of year.  No need to call in the coast guard just yet.  But keep a watchful eye on the horizon Yankee Universe.  It's a long way to that postseason shoreline.