Well now that the Yankees have virtually acquired the Unit we can sit back and analyze both teams starting rotations. Both CAN be good and have players that have had very legit seasons.
To me almost everyone on both teams is a maybe.
The Yankees....
1. Randy Johnsons DOES have no cartiledge in his knee. IS 41. But he still seems to have his stuff. I'm pretty pumped as both a Yankees fan and a Johnson fan. I think it helps NY and I think it is good for Randy to get a better stage to show his talents.
2. Mussina. I like Mike. I honestly don't know how you couldn't like the guy. He's a classic example of almost winning 20 games. Almost throwing a no hitter. Never really pulling it off. He WAS a good number one, but probably not anymore. He's also older and has had injury issues.
3. Pavano. All the hype about a guy whose had 1 solid season. Like Clement he's unproven and I don't know if I feel comfortable with a 4 year, 10 mil a year contract for a career pitcher whose only got a .500 winning percentage. In my mind if you wanted a younger power pitcher whose trying to have a break out year why not go out of your way to keep the 28 year old pitcher you had.....Vasquez.
4. Wright. As we look at younger players Jaret really amazes me. All these guys that are 27-28 just starting to get it under control. Wright's 27 or 28 now and pitched in the 97 playoffs for the Indians...... I liked him then, but he's had a lot of arm injuries. For the money I'd have optioned Lieber who was coming off Tommy John rather then the guy whose had shoulder issues. Tommy John guys generally pitch VERY well after surgery (IE Tommy John) Should surgery guys may not.
5. Kevin Brown. I LOVED when NY picked him up. Sure he's old. Yes he has back problems. OK, maybe his fastball has lost 7 MPH. And, every once in a while he'll punch a wall. I'm pulling for him this year. I followed him with LA as my dad was a Dodgers fan and I like the guy. The media hates him since he won't talk with them. I probably wouldn't either. I hope he has a solid year.
Boston.... (Not really sure on what their order is actually gonna be...)
1. Schilling. He had a great season last year. But he's also getting on in his career. AND he did have his ankle injury. And the 03 season was not one of Schil's better ones. I'ts already looking like his start of the season is gone. Sox fans better hope thats all he misses.
2. Wells. I find David Wells amusing. I watched him pitch his perfect game. I've read his book. I hope he does well. He too like a lot of these other guys is old. (42 in May) And like Brown and Mussina has a history of back issues. But unlike them, he's NEVER in shape. He's the best arguement there is that you don't need to be an athlete to play baseball.
3. Clement. I'm not overly familiar with him. Haven't seen enough of him to really judge. Seems to be good when he's on, and bad when he's not. But he's not consistent and doesn't have a winning record for his career. I'd much rather have Pedro and Lowe then Clement and Wells.
4. Bronson. I hate the cornrows. I think this kid could be good though. I'm impressed with him. I think he's got solid stuff and could develope into a very good pitcher. Maybe even be Boston's number 1 in years to come.
5. Wade Miller. This is Boston's BEST move outside of getting Tek back IMO. When the Stros got Pettitte everyone was talking about them having a legit ace now. And I was screaming at sportwriters on TV asking "What about Oswalt and Miller??" Wade Miller was injured last season, but I certainly expect big things from him.
6. Wakefield. Having 6 starters is a problem any team would love to have. I can see Wake becoming a long reliever if Miller isn't used in that role. It will probably depend on how Miller pitchers in Spring Training. He'd be a very solid guy to have out of the pen.
And losing Pedro and Lowe. Here's my take on Pedro. I hated him. I hated his whining. I hated his arrogance. And mostly I hated having to watch my team play against him. He's good. Damn good. You look at his career ERA numbers and can't oompare them with anyone playing today. You need to go back 50+ years into the pitchers era to find other guys with comparable numbers and they're still few and far between. He had an off year last year. FOR PEDRO. No one seems to get that. His off year was good enough for 4th in the Cy Young voting. His off year was better then any starting pitcher on the Yankees. Or most teams for that matter. Who was better? Santana? Schilling? Clemens? Oswalt? Johnson? If you can only name 10 players in the league that did better then him on his "off" year how bad was it really? He was the BEST free agent pitcher. And if Boston was willing to give another guy who was older , Schilling, and had come off a bad season, (Far worse then Pedros), why not give their own guy the benefit of the doubt? Hell, he's 5 years younger then Schill.
Lowe. This bothers me more then Pedro. As a Yankees fan I get his value. Just like I got Pettitte's. A mediocre pitcher all year long that becomes unhittable in the playoffs. You need guys like that to step it up. NEED them. If your guys can't perform in the post season they're useless. There's reasons guys like Pettitte are so valuable. Lowes the same. He was given the win in the deciding game in each series in the playoffs. 3 times. No pitcher had ever done that before. I have no idea why they got rid of Lowe. I've heard they wanted someone younger and that's why they got rid of Lowe and Pedro. And then picked up Wells?
I've heard that they had a problem with Lowe and alcohol issues. And then they picked up Wells??? I also heard that Epstein made a pass at him and Lowe turned him down. I really don't even know what I can say about that.
