Yanks clinch....Do they have the pitching?

After a one-year absence, the New York Yankees are back in the playoffs!



After defeating the L.A Angels of Anaheim last night, the Bombers (96-56) have reached the postseason for the 14th time in the last 15 years...



With an offense that has 7 players with 20 or more HR's and comeback wins coming out of the wazoo...the Yanks are looking to get out of the first round for the first time since 2004...but do they have the starting pitching to do so?



Let's take a look at the staff...



1st off, you've got the ace of the staff in C.C Sabathia...His 18 wins lead the American League and since August 2nd he's 8-0 with an e.r.a of 2.44, including 77k's in 66 1/3 innings pitched...dirty...What's not dirty is his career numbers in the postseason, which is 2-3 with an e.r.a of 7.92...Even as unstoppable as he looked last year with the Brewers, the Phils found a way to shut him down in last year's NLDS....will this year be another example of C.C's inability to pitch in the postseason?...



Next up, we have A.J Burnett...a man that SHOULD be the # 2, but hasn't really proven that to me just yet...While he is quite good at creating a shaving cream pie, he has not been very good at being consistent...take a look at his last 6 starts...
Sept 18th @ Seattle......1 ER.. 7 H... 7.0 IP...........ND
Sept 12th vs. Orioles....6ER.. 7 H... 7.0 IP.............LOSS
Sept 7th vs. Rays..........1 ER.. 4 H... 8K ...6.0 IP..WIN
Sept 1st @ Orioles........6 ER.. 11 H... 5 1/3IP.......ND
Aug 27th vs. Rangers...3 ER.. 2 H... 12K ...6IP.....LOSS
Aug 22nd @ Red Sox...9 ER.. 9 H... 5.0 IP............LOSS

Seems pretty hit or miss to me...and did I mention he's NEVER pitched in the playoffs??



You could not have asked Andy Pettite to do any better this season, but at age 37, the status of his tired shoulder is starting to come into question..Although he came back nicely after missing his turn in the rotation..a tired arm isn't something to be ignored..just ask John Maine...



And then there's Joba...



In his last 5 starts, Joba hasn't thrown over 4 Innings or 70 pitches thrown! These Joba Rules are flat out ludacris and they should seriously just let the guy pitch...If his arm can't handle it, Joba shouldn't be considered any kind of prospect..It's to the point that his entire throwing routine is all out of wack...In his last start, Joba gave up 7 runs in 3 IP...How can this guy be relied on for the postseason? Did Bob Gibson and Tom Seaver have pitch counts? Worked out well for them...



Even if the Yanks break out the hit parade in the postseason, how far is it going to go without reliable starting pitching? About as far as a first-round exit.....