The New York Yankees at Mid Season - Can the Yanks Really Regroup?

When the 2007 season began most prognosticators would have told you that it would be the same old thing in the American League East. Sure Toronto, Baltimore and even Tampa would try to make some noise, would hope to catch a wave, might cash in on some new rookie phenom but in the end it would come down to the traditional, and always heated, rivalry between Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees. For many spectators that rivalry has often resembled an in house fight between an older, talented brother ( the Yanks ) and a younger wanna be ( the Sox ) that can never quite get it all together. Few would have predicted the nearly disastrous first half turned in by the Yanks. Still a 7 game win streak in early June has reminded everyone of the potential of this much storied baseball colossus. Looking at the New York Yankees at Mid Season may be looking at a sleeping giant just about ready to come to.

How Old is Too Old. When evaluating the New York Yankees at the half year, you have to remember that not everything you read is what you get. That is to say that if you had looked at the pitching roster 10 years ago and you had seen that the Yankees had starters Clemens, Mussina, Petitte and Pavano as well as closer Mario Rivera ready to go, you would say they had a chance to take it all. But the fact of the matter is that 2007 is not ten years ago. The Yanks have these names under contract but it is far more difficult to guess what quality of pitching they will be able to turn out as the teams round the turn and head for October.

Clemens, a late acquisition, is pitched scant little and yet during his short stint in the minors as he prepared to join the Yankees he suffered a groin injury. Does this bode ill for the prospects of Clemens winning ten games during the second half? It's impossible to tell. Pavano has been a name constantly on the DL for the Yankees . At 31 Pavano should be filling a major role for the Sox but his physical problems seem to continually keep him out of th action. Rivera got off to an incredibly poor start for him. Mussina and Petiitte are gradually reappearing as the great pitchers they once were. But the thing with the Yankees is there are just too many question marks in their pitching situation. Even the reliables are not quite so reliable. On any given day it is hard to know which pitcher is going to show up, the pitcher you remember from 10 years ago, or the guy who has added those 10 years and is feeling every bit his age. There are no sure things in baseball, and perhaps the least sure this season is the New York Yankees pitching staff.

Let's Hear it for the Hitters. While the pitching is likely to be iffy from now through the end of the season, the reverse seems to be the case for the hitting. While the pitching was struggling early on the hitters seemed to be flexing their muscle all over the country. Among the batting leaders during the first half were the very consistent Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada and the truly explosive Alex Rodriguez who is on track to hit more than 50 home runs for the year. As the first half wore on other Yankee bats began to be heard from. Robinson Cano, Hideki Matsui and Bobby Abreu began coming to the plate with something to prove and they have been proving it.

Looking at the Yankees at the mid-season you might have thought you would see a team in disarray because the pitching has been so unstable. But the hitters are making it clear with their daily trips to the plate, that it is way too early to count the Yankees out of the battle. They still have an incredible lineup and can do a lot of damage even against the best pitching in the league. When games come down to who can put the most people across the plate in a nine inning game this collection of sluggers is right in the thick of the action.

Playing the Field - When it comes to providing defensive backup for the questionable Yankee pitching, the scorecard seems to indicate a reliable unit. Depleted somewhat by losing Jason Giambi at first and having only the limited use of Johnny Damon in center field, the Yankees seem able to plug the holes from the bench. It 's not unlikely that there will be a few more player acquisitions before the season really gets to crunch time.

In the infield, there are very few teams who would not welcome the talents of Rodriguez, Jeter and Cano. Matsui plays a very sold left and Abreue, despite what fans thought in Philly seems to have cover the ground effectively in right.. The Yanks will not finish the year with the best fielding per centage in baseball but when push comes to shove they will get it done in the field .

The Braintrust. When the Yankees stumbled mightily during the first two months of baseball there was a lot of discussion about how long George Steinbrenner would stay with manager Joe Torre. But apparently times have changed and patience has become the virtue of choice for Yankee management. Torre has weathered the storm. When the Yanks went on a seven game win streak it seemed that patience and fortitude had bee rewarded.

Joe Torre is seen by many as a sage in the baseball world. Not given to pronouncements, seemingly a caring figure in the dugout, Torre knows his team to a man and hasn't put together the portfolio of personal accomplishments which he has without knowing lots about baseball. If the Yankees can slowly continue to gain ground on the division leading Red Sox , Joe Torre is the man many New York fans want to have at the helm to lead the Yanks through the end days of the season. If you had to choose a manager for a pennant run, wouldn't it be Joe Torre?

The Yankees have survived abysmal starts before. They have shown determination and talent more than once in making a comeback . But there is something more. It's almost like Notre Dame football. No matter how difficult times get there is an inherent pride that comes with being a Yankee. This is a talent laden unit that is not about to run from a challenge. They certainly are considerably off the lead at the mid point. But if I had money to bet , I would surely put it on the Yankees to make a run at the Sox and more likely than not still be in the hunt in September. After all they are the New York Yankees.