Rookies Will Save Ca$hman's Hide

There's a reason Ca$hman hasn't gone the veteran route with all his pitching woes. First off, who's available? Brian Lawrence? Chan Ho Park? Joe Mays? If you can get someone decent, fine. But the Scott Ericksons of the world are never any good, unless you have a Dave Duncan or Leo Mazzone (perhaps Rick Peterson) who can turn these guys around a la Jeff Weaver, but the Junkees went the PR route in hiring Ron Guidry, who like Mel Stottlemye, never made a decent pitcher good, so getting journeymen arms is a waste.

But the bigger reason is that by using rookies, Ca$hman has given himself the perfect out. "We're building for the future, we didn't want to deviate from the plan, so even though we missed the playoffs in '07, we're in better shape for '08."

If he gets some stinker 35 year old, what can he say then? He looks bad. He got lousy players. If his AAA guys mess up, what can you expect? It's a learning process!

So let's suppose this happens. These guys better turn out decent! I know Sterling and Waldman fawn over every single one of them, but if they all turn out to be busts -- which is a very strong possibility -- then Ca$hman is out of excuses.

But that's what this supposed youth movement is about. Ca$hman covering his fanny. Make no mistake about it.

Rocket a Yankee? Not Surprising

I'm pissed about Clemens coming back to New York. Pissed, but not surprised.

You knew Houston wasn't going to happen. That team doesn't have what it takes to contend, especially if Milwaukee and the Cubs stay hot. Besides, the Astros weren't gonna pay nearly as much as the AL East teams.

And Boston, too, had no reason to shell out $28 million. They're already on the hook for Dice-K (posting fee and salary), and with Beckett, Schilling, and Wakefield doing well, they don't have a need for Clemens. And Jon Lester should be back at Fenway soon.

Throw in the Pettitte factor, and you had to figure Clemens would be back. So much for Ca$hman's youth movement.

What I'm afraid of is that this move will have the same impact as the Abreu move; a move that can galvanize the team and get them to go on a tear. And unfortunately, it wouldn't surprise me if that were the case. If Clemens can still get the job done, and Mussina, Pettitte, and Wang can keep pitching well, the Yankees rotation suddenly looks like one of the best in the league. And if Hughes comes back and pitches like he did against Texas? Not good.

The big x-factor in Clemens' case? He hasn't pitched in the AL since '03. And every team in the East can hit. I don't think it'll be a disaster as it was with, say, Javier Vazquez, but his ERA will probably go up at least a run.

One more thing to keep in mind: in the '05 WS, his hamstring acted up, and helped ruin the Astros' chances. I know he's famous for his crazy workout routines, but the guy is 45. There's no guarantee that the Yankees can call on him when they'll need him most.