Yankees' demise greatly exaggerated

Despite a few personnel setbacks, the Yankees are still very much a team to be reckoned with.

Updated: January 28, 2004, 9:45 AM ET
By Jim Baker | MLB Insider
Memo to all those who believe the little speed bumps the Yankees have encountered this offseason are signs that the apocalypse is upon them: it's going to take more than that to tumble this franchise.

The simple fact of the matter is that the Yankees have brought in more talent than they have lost. While it may have been psychologically devastating for Yankee fans to see some of their favorite players sail off into the National League sunset, the fact remains that this is still very much a team to be reckoned with. Those outside of Yankeeland who find themselves rubbing their hands with anticipatory glee are going to have their hearts broken if they invest too much emotional coin in believing a few personnel setbacks are going to be the undoing of this franchise.

The Weep: The Yankees lost 75 percent of their 2003 starts. The departures of Roger Clemens, David Wells, Andy Pettitte and Jeff Weaver means that the pitchers who started 120 of New York's 162 games will be in the other league this year. In fact, the only pitchers left on their roster who started a game for them last year are Mike Mussina, Jose Contreras and Jorge DePaula. (The other two starters -- Sterling Hitchcock and Brandon Claussen at one game each -- were shipped out in mid-season.)


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Jim Baker is an author at Baseball Prospectus and a frequent contributor to Page 2. You can e-mail Jim at bottlebat@gmail.com.

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