10 Questions for the 2008 Season

1. Where is Joba Chamberlain best suited to pitch?
The debate started as soon as last season ended; should Joba Chamberlain be a starter or reliever? After a shaky start today, those legends in their own minds, Mike and the Mad Dog, were already saying Joba wouldn't be a good starter. And they agreed with fans who said making Joba the heir apparent to Mariano Rivera was a no-brainer. Well, you're not using your brain if you think that's the case.

You can't judge Joba's worth based on the limited number of innings he threw at the major league level last season. This is a guy with a solid 4 pitch repertoire who could be a dominant No. 1 or 2 starter for years to come.

The Yankees say he'll split his time, pitching out of the pen to start the season and eventually move into the rotation. At whose expense? And will it be sooner than planned if injury or mediocrity forces the Yankees' hand?

2. Will the Starting Rotation be successful?
Chien-Ming Wang, Andy Pettitte, Phil Hughes, Mike Mussina, and Ian Kennedy will go north as the starting 5. Two of those three, Hughes and Kennedy, could be affected by innings limitations. Mussina says he's healthy, but hasn't looked good in the first two, albeit brief, outings this spring. He's shown significant deterioration in the past 2 seasons.

The Yankees are counting on Wang and Pettitte to give them 180-200 innings and 15-20 wins. Add 12-15 wins for Hughes, and you can see how much those 4th and 5th spots will mean. We feel Kennedy will be successful at the major league level, though it's difficult to gauge how smooth the transition will be. Jeff Karstens will probably be the first guy to make a spot start or fill in for a DL'ed starter.

3. Will the Bullpen spell R-E-L-I-E-F?
Mariano Rivera; that's the lone experienced reliever that you can totally count on. And of course, Mo isn't as dominating as he once was. Joba's inclusion in the pen is of course an immediate plus. The Yankees may be saying all the right things, but they know they can't rely on Kyle Farnsworth. It doesn't help that his balky back precludes him from pitching in back to back games or in more than 1 inning.

LaTroy Hawkins has never been anything special. People lauded his signing, but only for its economics. $1 is too much to pay if a guy isn't good enough. Whether Hawkins can do the job in NYC remains to be seen. The Yankees are also relying heavily on Jose Veras, who has appeared in just 21 big league games. Karstens pretty much has the long man job sewn up unless something drastic happens.

The Yankees may not go with a left-hander in the pen if one doesn't stand out in spring training. We've all seen what Sean Henn can and can't do. Billy Traber missed 2004-5 with injuries before appearing in 43 games with Washington over the next 2 seasons. The league hit over .300 against him in both those years. Heath Phillips was a starter in the White Sox organization before making 6 appearances as a reliever in the majors last year. Since he could make a spot start that could give him an advantage over the other two.

The biggest addition to this pen may not be Joba at all. It could be Ross Ohlendorf, who was acquired from Arizona in the Randy Johnson deal. The one-time starter showed promise as a reliever last year, and could have great success with his arsenal of hard pitches.

4. Who will make 1st Base all their own?
Jason Giambi reported to camp in better shape and seems to be moving much better as a result. He's gotten off to a good start with the bat and the Yankees are counting on him to play regularly at 1st Base rather than at DH. It's crucial for the Yankees since it will free up the DH spot for Hideki Matsui. Giambi has always performed better when he's playing in the field and a little healthy competition from Shelley Duncan, Morgan Ensberg, and Wilson Betemit, will probably help him too. And a productive, healthy Giambino solidifies the 1st Base quagmire.

Alex Rodriguez will be watching Giambi's progress closely. If Giambi can return to his early Yankees form, A-Rod will have great protection behind him in the lineup.

5. Can Jorge Posada continue to catch so many games?
The Yankees catcher put up career numbers last year with a .338 average and a .970 OPS. With a brand new contract in hand, Jorgie is hoping to put up similar numbers this season. Posada is in great shape and he needs to be. He's been behind the plate more than 130 times in each of the last 8 seasons. Posada may not like the fact that Joe Girardi would like to see him catch probably no more than 120 games, but in the long run it will pay off for Posada, who is starting to reach historic numbers for catchers.

6. Can Mariano Rivera still perform at a Hall of Fame level?
The greatest post-season closer in baseball history isn't too shabby in the regular season either. But the doomsday predictors were out in full force when Mo got off to a horrendous start in 2007. He bounced back, dominating in May, June, and July, and was good the last 2 months of the season.

Mo will be driven to prove he is still worth the 3-yr/$45 million contract he got before this season. There's no reason to believe he won't deliver.

7. Can Derek Jeter play 2nd fiddle?
The Captain is the ultimate professional. But will Derek Jeter be able to adapt to the Yankees becoming Alex Rodriguez's team? With A-Rod signed through 2017, he is the face of the team going forward. Jeter received criticism in October for the first time last year after suffering through a sub-par ALDS.

But Jeter is all about pride, playing it close to the vest, and being consistently good at the plate. And you can bet those pre-season reports naming him the worst fielding shortstop will drive him too. He worked hard this winter to strengthen his legs and hone his agility and speed.

There's no reason to think that Jeter won't put together another 200 hit season and be A-Rod's biggest on-field supporter.

8. Can Joe Girardi be a successful manager in New York?
Yea or Nay it won't be determined by a lack of preparation. There's a new Joe in town and this one is getting the Yankees into shape. There's already a clear distinction between the styles of Joe Torre and Joe Girardi. The Yankees are stressing physical fitness this season, one year removed from a rash of hamstring injuries. It helped that Yankees like Johnny Damon, Jason Giambi, and Bobby Abreu all reported in better shape too. Perhaps they knew spring training camp wouldn't be as easy as in years past.

Girardi received a lot of criticism for the way he handled things in Florida, and although some of it was probably deserved, look what he did with what he had to work with. Girardi now has one of the most dynamite offenses at his disposal. He's got a mix of veterans and kids that are among the best in the game and a front office that won't be afraid to add parts as needed.

Girardi's a knowledgable guy, on and off the field. He's a student of the game who will breathe new life into these Bombers. He may very well not make the playoffs this season in the highly competitive American League, but he's the right guy for the job now and going forward.

9. Will Phil Hughes blossom into the star he's expected to be?
Yankees fans got a glimpse of what Phil Hughes can do last year when he had a no-hitter going in May before blowing out his hamstring. But after missing a good chunk of the season, he shone brightly in the ALDS, giving fans something to look forward to in 2008.

The Yankees are counting on Hughes to have a big year and be a stabilizing force in the middle of the rotation. But will the innings limit that has or will be set limit his success?

We feel he will have a very solid season and win the 12-15 games the Yankees are counting on (we are predicting an ERA of around 4.50).


10. Will the Yankees defense be a hindrance to them?
A-Rod reached gold glove caliber at 3rd Base last season and his partner on the left side, Derek Jeter, is spectacularly solid (you know what we mean). Robinson Cano is getting better all the time at 2nd Base, but will the absence of Larry Bowa hurt his 'D', and A-Rod's for that matter?

We know what Jason Giambi can do (scoop the ball) and can't do (move, throw). It's worrisome that the Yankees don't have a Tino Martinez or Doug Mientkiewicz to throw in late in games.

Hideki Matsui's defense had begun to deteriorate in left field, so a move to DH is a good thing. Johnny Damon played well last year after moving over from center, but his arm is, simply put, horrid. Melky Cabrera gives the Yankees a gold glove defense in center, but Bobby Abreu is erratic in right. Abreu can't go back on a ball, has a strong, but inaccurate arm, and doesn't move very well laterally.

Jorge Posada and Jose Molina give the Yankees the best 1-2 at catcher since, well, we don't remember (Posada's 'D' was not up to snuff when he was backing up Girardi). Posada has improved drastically over the years and has one of the best arms in the game. Molina is a Molina. That means you may or may not get hitting, but you will have an extremely solid defensive catcher. And he will hit better than John Flaherty or Alberto Castillo or Sal Fasano.

The Yankees will carry Wilson Betemit as a reserve, but he's not a guy who could probably spell Jeter at short. So that opens the door for either Chris Woodward or Nick Green, with the former being more versatile.

Bonus Question - Will the Yankees make the playoffs?
We're going to hold off on that one for a while.

What's your biggest concern about the Yankees this season? Be sure to take our poll, which is sitting right below our banner!