Do the Yankees have enough pitching to contend this season?

Was getting rid of Burnett the RIGHT move?

The Yankees have been one of the best teams, if not the best, over the last few decades. Every year, their GM, who is currently Brian Cashman, brings in incredible talent either by trade or free agent signing. New York's offense has been unstoppable over the last few years, despite the fact that most of their players are out of their prime. The pitching, however, has been a huge concern and some wonder whether it will be enough to make a serious push in the post-season.

Starting off with the rotation, let's mention that the Michael Pineda trade has been a disaster so far. Cashman sent prized prospect Jesus Montero to Seattle in exchange for Pineda, and the trade has been lopsided so far. Montero has hit pretty well with the Mariners, and Pineda hasn't thrown a single MLB pitch with the Yankees. He showed up to Spring Training completely overweight, and underwent season ending shoulder surgery before the 2012 campaign even started. Now, I'm not going to say that the trade was a complete bust for New York because, keep in mind, Pineda is still in his early 20's, and has incredible upside. Anyway, now I will start with some of the players on the active roster. We'll kick off with C.C. Sabathia, who has had some injury issues this season. Nonetheless, he has put up good numbers when on the field, and I am certain that he will perform well in the post-season, if the Yankees make it that far. Next is Hiroki Kuroda, who has been a nice surprise for New York this year. I'll be honest, when they signed him, I thought he was going to be a disaster. He was coming from the Dodgers, and their pitcher-friendly ballpark, to Yankee stadium, where pitchers sometimes go to die. However, like I said before, Kuroda has been good this year, and I am not worried about him down the stretch. Here comes the trouble. Phil Hughes has been one of the most inconsistent starters in the game this year, and is not deserving of a rotation spot. Well, perhaps, on the other hand, he should stay in the rotation because the Yankees do not have any other options (I'll get into that after.) Anyway, if Hughes was my number #4 or #5 starter, I wouldn't have a problem with him being on my team. However, due to the lack of pitching depth, New York has used him in a pretty important role, where he has had mixed results.

I hate to say it but it only gets worse from here on. Next is Freddy Garcia, who wasn't even in the rotation when the season began. Garcia is a veteran pitcher, but doesn't have enough talent to make himself a reliable pitcher in the post-season. His verdict is somewhat similar to Phil Hughes'. Finally, we have David Phelps, who has been good this year, as a relief pitcher. Phelps doesn't have any experience pitching in the post-season, and I would be worried about handing him the ball every fifth day down the stretch. Nevertheless, the Yankees seem like they are sticking with him in order to see what he can do.

Now, onto the pitching depth. Every team needs starting pitching depth, and with a somewhat weak rotation like the Yankees', depth could be the key to making it in the post-season. Ivan Nova has had a horrible year, and is definitely unreliable. He is also on the disabled list, and is a somewhat injury-prone player. Andy Pettitte has had a decent year, and is on the disabled list with a foot injury. His injury was sort of a freak accident, so I expect that he'll come back and pitch the same. Pettitte is one of the greatest pitchers when it comes to pitching in the post-season, so I'm definitely not worried about him. Finally, the Yankees have Derek Lowe, who they signed to a minor league deal in July. Lowe has had an up and down season, and is a veteran with post-season experience, as a closer. I wouldn't love the idea of giving Lowe the ball if I desperately needed to, but I'd expect him to battle and give me at least 5 solid innings. Therefore, he isn't an AWFUL option.

As you can see, the Yankees' pitchers will be the key to making the post-season. Pitching in the American League is extremely hard, but specifically pitching in the AL East all of the time is even worse. I'm surprised that Brian Cashman didn't make any moves to bulk up his rotation depth, and it will be interesting to see how the remainder of the 2012 season plays out for the Yankees.