While I've been sitting here chewing my nails off the last couple weeks watching all the productive Yankee bench players from last year get scooped up by other teams with no moves being made to replace them, Joseph Pawlikowski has probably been kicking back, sippin' on gin and juice, and waiting to place his order for 2010 World Series memorabilia. His post today at River Ave. Blues on how the Yankee bench is just fine heading into this season not only put me at ease about the supporting cast, but also made me feel a little bit dumb for being concerned in the first place.
Cervelli has shown me enough both behind and at the plate to have me not concerned about being the full-time backup catcher so that was never a concern. I wasn't too keen on the idea of Ramiro Pena being the Swiss Army Knife infield-outfield guy, but as Joe brilliantly pointed out, Jeter and Bobinson don't take many days off and with A-Rod coming into this season at 100% healthwise, there aren't going to be as many situations where Pena is going to have to step in and contribute.
Outfield depth might be a bit of a concern, but as Joe expertly noted (again), the Yanks picked up Hairston and Hinske last season for what was the baseball equivalent of the 1$ box on the last day of a yard sale, so if needed, there should be no doubt that they can do it again.
With a lineup, rotation, and bullpen that are all among the top-5 in baseball respectively, the bench shouldn't even be a concern and I'm ashamed to say I let myself get that fired up about it. The Yankees are dealing with cracks in the tile and smudges on the mirror here, not gaping holes in the wall. And cracks and smudges are easy to fix. Thank you, Joe Pawlikowski, for showing me the light. If you ever make it out to New Berlin, WI, I owe you a beer.
In case you were too lazy to click on the first link, the complete post can be found here:
http://riveraveblues.com/2010/01/yanks-bench-not-a-worry-heading-into-2010-22616/
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