Yankees Have the Pitching to Compete

Photo Credit: USA Today

With the addition of Aroldis Chapman, the New York Yankees may have the strongest back end of the bullpen in all of baseball.

The duo of closer Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances were able to close the gates if the Yankees walked into the eighth inning with a lead. Miller saved 36 of 38 attempts in 2015 and had an ERA of 2.04 with 100 strikeouts, while Betances finished with an ERA of 1.50 and 131 strikeouts in 84 innings.

Add Chapman – who struck out 106 in 54 innings with an ERA of 1.63 – to that bullpen and no one will want to go to the seventh inning trailing the Yankees.

More and more teams are following the lead of the Kansas City Royals, who rode a strong back end of the bullpen to two World Series in a row over the last two years.

The Yankees have seemed to be aging forever and this year’s version is no exception. Aside from the middle infield with Didi Gregorius and Starlin Castro, both 25, all the position players are over 30, including Beltran at 38. Don’t forget designated hitter Alex Rodriguez, who is now 40.

Their starting rotation will likely consist of Masahiro Tanaka, Michael Pineda, Nathan Eovaldi, Ivan Nova, and Luis Severino. If C.C. Sabathia continues to address his problems and overcomes his inner demons, he may very well find himself with a spot in the rotation as well.

This rotation is more than adequate, as the Yankees only need six strong innings day-in and day-out. With arguably the best 7-8-9 punch in the majors, the Yankees should not be taken lightly.

Like most teams, pitching is the key to the Yankees season. The potential is there, and I won’t be surprised if Joe Girardi works his special magic with them and makes a run at the American League East. With the young, talented Red Sox team poised to realize their potential, this could be a classic Yankee/Red Sox pennant race.