THE YANKEES BIG 3 - CAN THEY LAST?

Looking back on the first three weeks of the season, the front three of the Yankees starting rotation is looking fierce, and it is a welcome relief to all the gloom and doom coming out of spring training. CC Sabathia, Andy Pettitte, and Hiroki Kuroda have a lot of weight on their shoulders, with some of the Yankees biggest stars on the disabled list. With a good rotation and a solid bullpen, you always have a chance to win, and this year more so than in previous years, the Yankees will be counting on the Big Three to carry them through at least the first two months of the season. The question is, can they hold up?

CC Sabathia is entering his fifth year as the anchor for the staff, and he is off to a great start. He has a 3-2 record with a 3.34 ERA against some very high-octane offenses - including Boston, Baltimore, Detroit, and Tampa. He has shown some trouble in the first inning lately, giving up runs in each of his last two starts, but has looked sharp otherwise. His history tells us that he is going to give us 30+ starts with an ERA in the low 3's (he has not had an ERA over 3.40 since joining the Yankees). The Yankees will need his consistency and dominance, and despite his latest start, there is no reason to think they will get anything less this season.

Andy Pettitte is in his 18th season in the majors, and there are no real surprises with him. He is a standard control pitcher with a long history of success. In three starts this season, he's 3-0 with a 2.01 ERA. All three starts were quality starts, with Pettitte having completed at least 7 innings in each start. With this kind of performance, the Yankees will win a lot of games with Andy on the mound. The problem is his age and durability. In about a month and a half, Pettitte will turn 41. Buried in between his three excellent starts is a missed start because of back spasms. That raises some serious questions, like can he endure a long summer? He's known for having an excellent physical regimen, so that's something on which we can draw some confidence. But, as they say, these guys can't pitch forever. At some point, he's going to have to stop. Let's hope it's not before the end of 2013.

Hiroki Kuroda was a surprisingly good pickup prior to the 2012 season, and his success this year continues. He is sporting a 3-1 record with 2.35 ERA. The one loss was due to an injury when he got hit on the hand by a comebacker and had to be pulled in the second inning. It seems miraculous, given the Yankees luck with injuries this year so far, that he seems to have bounced right back and that there are no lingering effects. Watching him pitch, he looks very strong. He's got a lot of movement on his pitches, he varies his velocity well, and generally has hitters off-balance for the duration of his starts. However, like Pettitte, his age may be the determining factor. Being 38 years old, injury and physical breakdown is always a risk. The good news here is that he's not known for breaking down. For the last 3 consecutive years, he's put in 30 or more starts each year, each year posting an ERA under 3.40. This should give us hope, and he could be a huge factor in the team's success this year.

Usually when you have three starters with ERA's below 3.40 throwing 7+ innings per start, you have the makings of a very dominant starting rotation and a very successful team. So the potential is there for a really big season. But it assumes that they go every 5th day for 162 games. This might be assuming a lot. The hope here is that the trainers and coaches have the wisdom to keep a watchful eye on these guys, making sure they're kept in good shape, and that they get the rest they need when they need it.

Call me an optimist, but aside from the occasional bump in the road, I think these guys are going to deliver big time for the Yankees.

--Ike Dimitriadis, BYB Writer
Twitter: @KingAgamemnon
My blog is: Shots from Murderer's Row

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