Fifteen Questions Facing the New York Yankees in the 2007 Season

With the Yankees and Red Sox expected to again battle for the American League East title in 2007 - gee, what else is new? - here are 15 questions related to the Bombers as they prepare for the new season that begins on April 2 against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays:

1. Will a certain Jolly Roger named Clemens find his way back to the Bronx some time in June? Early in spring training, Clemens insisted there was an "80-20 chance" he was retiring, but I'm not sure anybody really believes that. Why should he retire if someone is willing to pay him $15 million for just over half aseason? Here's the issue, however: When Clemens was in Houston he was given preferential treatment as his contract stipulated that he did not have to go on road trips. Would the Yankees be willing to make such concessions? That is not what they have been about during the Joe Torre era when everyone has had to follow the same rules. If the Yankees give in to Clemens' demands, they may come off looking like hypocrites.

2. Will Torre call its quits at the end of the season? Many - including me - thought Torre was a goner after the Yankees collapsed against the Tigers in the playoffs last October. But the veteran players pleaded with Boss Steinbrenner not to fire their beloved leader and so Torre returns for the final year of his contract. Remarkably, it will be his 12th season in pinstripes. If Torre elects to retire, it will bring down the curtain on one of the most successful runs in the history of baseball's most storied franchise. While with the Yankees, "Uncle Joe" has won four World Series titles, six American League pennants and 10 Eastern Division crowns, including the last nine. The only time the Yankees did not win the division under Torre's stewardship was in 1997, when they made the playoffs as the wild card.

3. Can Alex Rodriguez finally find happiness in New York or will he opt out of his contract at season's end? Early in spring training, A-Rod came clean and finally admitted his relationship with Derek Jeter isn't what it once was. This was seen as a catharsis for A-Rod, who for once said something that didn't seem staged or designed to protect his image. But is this going to make one bit of difference the first time A-Rod strikes out with the bases loaded and the boos start raining down? Personally, I think too much is made of the relationship or lack thereof between Rodriguez and Jeter. The way the media played it up early in spring training, you'd think the two were lovers. A-Rod will put up his usual solid numbers but the only way he is going to truly win over the fans is to produce in the playoffs, something he has not done the last two Octobers.

4. How much does Andy Pettitte have left in the tank? I think it's great, wonderful, fantastic that the man affectionately known as the "Big Donkey" is back in the Bronx. Steinbrenner never should have let Pettitte get away in the first place following the 2003 season. But Pettitte is three years older and clearly not the same pitcher he was in his prime. Then again, he will have a better offense behind him than he did in Houston. Pettitte figures to start the season as the Yankees' No. 3 three starter behind Chien-Ming Wang and Mike Mussina and I could see him winning 12-15 games.

5. Can Carl Pavano finally be a productive member of the Yankees and win back the onfidence and respect of his teammates? To be brutally honest, Pavano has been a joke,missing most of the last two seasons due to an assortment of injuries. The last straw seemed to come late last year when he was injured in a car accident and didn't bother to tell anyone. But the Yankees opted to give Pavano another chance. He did go18-8 with the Marlins in 2004 before signing with the Yankees, so the potential is there or maybe that season was just a fluke. Throw out 2004, and Pavano never has won more than 12 games in a season.

6. Is Wang ready to assume the role of a true ace? As part of an inconsistent rotation, Wang was the Yankees' best starter last season, winning 19 games and finishing second in the AL Cy Young race to Minnesota's Johan Santana. There were two things that keyed his success in 2006 - uncanny poise on the mound and arguably the best sinker in the game. Wang recorded most of his outs on groundballs as he struck out few batters. The question is, Can he again approach 20 wins without a true strikeout pitch? Wang had just 76 strikeouts in 218 innings last season. History suggests that it will be difficult for Wang to continue winning with such limited strikeout numbers.

7. Can Robinson Cano win a battling title? Some observers have said that the Yankees second baseman has the sweetest stroke in the game. Cano has even been compared to former Minnesota Twins Hall of Fame second baseman Rod Carew, which is heady praise indeed. Cano does seem destined to win a batting crown at some point in his career. He nearly pulled off the trick last year in his first full season in the majors despite
missing six weeks due to a hamstring injury. When he returned, Cano hardly missed a beat, smashing one line drive after another. He finished the season with a .342 average, which was third in the American League, behind the Twins' Joe Mauer (.349) and Jeter (.343).

8. How long can Mariano Rivera keep it up? Rivera remains one of the game's premier closers but it wouldn't be unfair to say he is not as dominant as he once was. Also, the man is not getting any younger and can't go on for ever. Believe it not, there will come a time when Rivera is not the Yankees' closer and that time may be sooner than later. Rivera, who has logged more than 70 innings in each of the last four seasons, turns 38 in November. It would behoove the Yankees to start grooming his successor, but pity the man who replaces the great Rivera.

9. Can Torre find enough at-bats for outfielder Melky Cabrera? The 22-year-old was a revelation last season after Hideki Matsui and Gary Sheffield went down with injuries, but he is still the team's fourth outfielder behind Matsui, Johnny Damon and Bobby Abreu. Torre is good at juggling the lineup but he is going to have to be a magician to get Cabrera significant playing time. I hope Cabrera doesn't get too impatient riding the bench because he appears to have a solid future with the Yankees.

10. Will Bernie Williams retire? Williams, the Yankees' elder statesman, turned downed the team's offer of a minor league contract and stuck to his guns, despite pleas by Torre and some of his teammates to come to spring training. Now Williams sits at home, his future in limbo. Even at 38, Williams could help another team but he has given no indication that he wants to play for anybody but the Yankees, the only organization he has been a part of.

11. Will Jorge Posada begin to wear down? The veteran backstop is coming off another solid season in which he batted .277 with 23 homers and a career-high 93 RBI. Posada has been one of the game's most productive catchers for a number of seasons but he is also 35 years old, as hard as that may be to believe. A four-time All-Star, Posada has caught an awful lot of games and you would think that at some point, the wear and tear would take a toll. But he is entering the final year of his contract, which means he could be extra motivated.

12. Can the Yankees lessen Scott Proctor's workload? Proctor (6-4 with a 3.52 ERA) emerged as a valuable member of the Yankees' bullpen last season as a set-up man to Mariano Rivera. But he struggled at times when he was overworked. At times, it seemed he pitched in every game because the Yankees couldn't get enough innings from their starters. While that wasn't quite the case, Proctor did appear in an American League-high 83 games. Ideally, the Yankees would like to get that number down to around 70.

13. What can the Yankees expect from Japanese import Kei Igawa? The Yankees' last pitching import from the Land of the Rising Sun didn't fare so well. Remember Hideki Irabu, whom Steinbrenner once called a "fat pussy toad."? The Yankees have lower expectations for Igawa than the Red Sox have for countryman Daisuke Matsuzaka, who by all accounts is a more accomplished pitcher. Still, there is no way of knowing how Igawa, who has been pegged as the Yankees' fifth starter, will handle New York until he experiences it first hand. Igawa went 14-9 with a 2.97 ERA last season for the Hanshin Tigers. He tied for first in the Japanese Central League with 194 strikeouts and ranked second in wins and complete games with eight.

14. Will Phillip Hughes make it up to the big club this season? The 20-year-old Hughes, who has been touted as the top prospect in the Yankees' system and one of the best in all of baseball, had somewhat of a disappointing spring and will begin 2007 in Class AAA. But he may need another year of seasoning in the minor leagues anyway. Hughes is still young and the Yankees shouldn't feel a need to rush him along. My guess is Hughes won't be seen in the Bronx until the rosters expand in September.

15. Who will be Derek Jeter's new girlfriend? We had to throw this one in just for laughs. Currently, New York's most eligible bachelor (sorry, David Wright) is dating actress Jessica Biel. Some of Jeter's ex's include singer Mariah Carey, actress Jordana Brewster, MTV's Vanessa Minnillo and former Miss Universe Lara Dutta. Jeter has such a tough life, but at least he hasn't knocked up one of his ex's like New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, who has been a very naughty boy.

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