WHY THERE ARE SOLUTIONS TO THE BURNETT MESS

"We feel we need to get it down to a five-man rotation and go with it."

--Joe Girardi

We’ve been in worse situations but yes, the walls are closing in and AJ Burnett is clearly not good at handling pressure, but there is a solution. Look, AJ has a pattern of being lights out and then shitting the bed around the 5 or 6th inning correct? Well, in our world of pitch count and an extra pitchers in the pen, wouldn’t it make sense to just be ready early on those days? Or maybe we actually do what Girardi said the Yankees will do by the end of the weekend, trim the fat and make a 5 man rotation. Read about it HERE. Bleeding Yankee Blue has several ideas of our own and we posted them for your amusement. Remember, I don’t take preach this stuff because I think I'm a genius, I do it to make you think... and comment. Check these ideas out:

CHANGE ROTATION ORDER, MAKE AJ #3: To me, it gives us a better shot after CC. Yes, right now the rotations alittle screwy because of rain outs, days off and what not. That’s why Garcia followed CC, but as we get closer to a potential playoff spot, Girardi is going to want an order. I’d follow CC Sabathia with Bartolo Colon, who can grind it out better than many, then AJ Burnett, followed by Ivan Nova and Freddy Garcia, our anchor, last. If you make someone like Burnett our 3 guy and you assume he’s done by the 5^th inning, you can then bring in another pitcher to throw 1 inning to get us to the bridge of Rafael Soriano, David Robertson and Mariano Rivera.

AJ PITCHES 5 INNINGS ONLY, BE PREPARED: Now, you’re right, that’s not ideal idea either and you’re yelling at me right now: “Burnett get’s paid a lot of money Casey, it’s his job to pitch 7 strong every time.” You’re right, but this is the reality… he can’t. So, the only other solution is you take him out of the rotation, which I don't think the Yankees will do, OR they prepare for his outing and have guys like a Cory Wade or Phil Hughes on stand by in the pen to replace him. And I don’t mean replace him when he gets into trouble, I mean replace him in the 6^th inning without questions asked. Get to the bridge, get to the win, that’s the goal.

PUT IN HUGHES, TAKE OUT BURNETT: Doubtful that Burnett will be removed from the rotation, but at this point all of Yankeeland is rooting for it. The problem is, you’re replacing Burnett with another possible Burnett. We really haven’t battle tested Phil Hughes since he’s been back. 1 strong outing yes, but we need to see more. So yes, replacing Burnett with Hughes seems like an easy idea, but it’s complicated. It requires being sure, especially this time of year. Hughes' start Saturday will speak volumes as to what to do next.

MAKE NOVA OUR #2 GUY: Ivan Nova has 11 wins, people are just now starting to realize that he's valuable to this team. While he’s still a kid, he’s carried himself very well and has matured before our eyes. What if Nova was in Burnett’s spot, Colon followed, and AJ was the #4 guy and Freddy Garcia anchored our Yankees? It would be 1-CC, 2-Nova, 3-Colon, 4-Burnett, 5-Garcia and Hughes goes to the pen. Interesting idea and it’s the most appealing to me.

Bottom line, the Yankees have a big problem and it’s August. I'd say it’s getting urgent. Look, I’m no expert, I don’t claim to be, I’m no genius, I just write to make people think… are you thinking yet? Well… don’t hurt yourself, this is a tricky one, ain’t it?

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