MD: The number one reason why the Yankees will reclaim baseball superiority this season is the fact that we actually have real starting pitching now, with the additions of Randy Johnson, Carl Pavano, and Jaret Wright. Combined with an incredible offense and an upgraded bullpen, great things can happen.
ZW: The offense is solid in the Big Apple, but the Red Sox outscored their All-Star team by nearly 50 runs. Not only that, but the Yanks hit just .268 last season, versus .282 in Beantown. Boston led the AL in average, doubles, and hits last year, while New York led in homers and walks. You cannot discount that difference. David “Big Papi” Ortiz ate Yankee pitching for lunch during the ALCS, and there’s no reason why this shouldn’t continue with that geriatric staff. Furthermore, the Red Sox return seven of eight everyday players from last season, and the one new one is an upgrade at short. Edgar Renteria may be the AL’s best all-around shortstop not named Miguel Tejada or Michael Young.
MD: The Yankees return seven of their eight starters as well, with Tony Womack upgrading Miguel Cairo at second base. Plus Yankee hero Tino Martinez is back in pinstripes where he belongs. The bench is deep, including Ruben Sierra, a would-be starter on most other American League teams. The lineup underachieved last season, and it once again includes Alex Rodriguez, Jason Giambi, Gary Sheffield, Hideki Matsui, Bernie Williams, Jorge Posada, and clutch captain Derek Jeter- easily a better all-around shortstop than just about everyone but Tejada… plus he has four World Series rings.
ZW: I looked at the ages of the starting lineup, and all of them but A-Clod are 30 or up. Rodriguez is “only” 29. Furthermore, who knows which Giambi will show up, the steroid-engorged AL MVP of 2000, or the sickly version from last year. As for the staff, Carl Pavano does bring youth to the Yankee rotation, but he’s had just one good year, and it happened to be in the final season of his contract. That tends to inflate his value, so I can’t say whether he’s worth it. As for the Sox, Curt Schilling pitched well on a bloody ankle in the playoffs. Let’s see how he does with a clean one.
MD: Some players get better with age. Barry Bonds and Julio Franco are like 50 and they’re still going strong. As for the Sox lineup, it’s solid, but David Ortiz will one day become the next Mo Vaughn, and the Mueller and Millar duo is overrated. I have nothing but respect for Curt Schilling for what he’s done in his career- including last year- but the rest of the rotation is questionable at best. David Wells is an overweight former-Yankee who’s angry with George Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman for not signing him in the off season. Wells’best seasons are behind him, Matt Clement is slightly above average, and the rest of the rotation is nothing special.
ZW: Concerning Wells, he was overweight as a Yankee too. Having been a former member of the Yanks, he has a valuable role on the Sox. He probably knows the lineup’s tendencies at the plate. Brunson Arroyo was great down the stretch last year, and he was on the mound when Rodriguez chopped the ball loose. Mariano Rivera has suddenly become mortal. A few years ago, he wouldn’t have let Game 4 slip away like that. He’s not automatic anymore. The Sox have had his number since last year. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. The Sox pen is solid enough, led by Keith Foulke, who pitched like he was Rivera last year. Yes, they’re sometimes painful to watch, but they get the job done, and Tim Wakefield makes a fine swingman due to the knuckler.
MD: The Yankees know Wells pretty well too, and they shelled him on opening day. As for Rivera, he’ll return to form and have another stellar season, though he needs to start saving games against the Sox again. I’ll still take him over Foulke any day, but even if Rivera blows it, the Bronx Bombers have plenty of powerful clutch hitters.
ZW: The Sox have as much power in the lineup too. Plus the farm system is better. Kevin Youkilis, the Greek God of Walks, might be manning the hot corner by the end of the year, and Hanley Ramirez, though stuck behind Renteria at short, could replace Bellhorn at second in the near future. I can’t name anybody in the Yankees’ farm system, most likely because Steinbrenner dealt them all away for big stars. One of the few I have heard of, Brad Halsey, got dealt to the Diamondbacks with Javier Vazquez. Steinbrenner is so obsessed with having the big names he’s forgotten about the minors. The current nucleus came up together, but no one else of significance has stuck long-term with the Yanks since.
MD: The Yankees spend a lot of money, but so do the Sox, and the Yankees farm system isn’t as great as it was ten years ago, but we have plenty of potential stars, guys like Robinson Cano and Chien-Ming Wang. Our current stars and Hall-Of-Famers consist of several lifetime Yankees as well as a talented group of acquisitions that Joe Torre has molded into Yankees. In any case, this is the bottom line: With a solid all-around team offensively, defensively, and on the mound, the Yankees are primed to have one of the best seasons of all-time. The Yankees will end their long five-year drought this year and reclaim the World Series Championship in 2005!
ZW: The Red Sox may have baseball’s second-highest payroll, but if you look at it, it’s only concentrated in a few players: Ramirez, Schilling, Damon, Varitek, and Renteria. If you look at the rest the roster, they’ve found high-quality talent at Wal-Mart prices without hiring slave labor. That sort of financial policy is why the Twins have been winning, and why the Red Sox will repeat. Stars are nice, but a closely-knit squad, even if it consists of Idiots, is a good bet to win.