Grading the Yankees: Midseason Report Card

Mike Mussina, SP: (3.28) I wanted Moose out of the rotation in April, but now I’m calling him the team’s MVP at the midway point. Quite a turnaround for a guy who was 1-3 with a 5.75 ERA on Apr. 17. Mussina is now third in the league with 11 victories, while sporting a 3.61 earned run average.

Andy Pettitte, SP: (3.26) I wrote in my Spring Training preview for the Yankees that Pettitte would determine how successful the team would be this year. At the quarter pole, Pettitte was at .500 and so was New York.

Now at the All-Star break, he’s a few games over, and so is the team. The left-hander has put together six good starts in his last seven outings since being crushed by the Royals for 10 runs on June 7—a game the Yankees won 12-11.

Chien-Ming Wang, SP: (2.90) Wang was the team MVP after the first quarter of the year, but he surrendered 23 earned runs during a four-start stretch between May 18 and June 5, before injuring himself running the bases in Houston on June 15.

That was a big blow for the Yanks. Wang was returning to form, giving up just one run in his final two starts before going on the DL. Dan Giese and Sidney Ponson have done a solid job replacing him, but the organization is really looking forward to hopefully getting its ace back in September.

Alex Rodriguez, 3B: (2.67) A-Rod has been the most important hitter on the team with a .313 average, 19 home runs, and 53 RBI, but his GPA is lower than you might expect because he missed 20 games with a quad injury.

Johnny Damon, LF: (2.36) Damon’s first career stint on the disabled list has really stalled the Yankees' offense. Since he was placed on the DL on July 5, New York is averaging just 3.25 runs per game. Up until that point, the Bombers were scoring 4.7 every night. Damon is really a catalyst at the top of this lineup, and his return is needed.

Hideki Matsui, DH: (2.31) Godzilla was the best hitter on the Yanks after the first quarter of the season, and while his average is still at .323, his absence since late June with a knee injury has dropped his GPA, and the Bombers’ runs per game.

The team hopes to have him back in the next few weeks, which would be a major addition to a struggling offense.

Derek Jeter, SS: (2.31) The Captain is having somewhat of a down year so far, hitting just .287, but he’s still clutch, batting .385 with runners in scoring position and two outs. The good news for Jeter is that he’s a career .322 hitter after the All-Star break.

Bobby Abreu, RF: (2.28) While he doesn’t have great range, and he sometimes misreads the ball off the bat, Abreu’s arm makes him an important part of the defensive outfield. Bobby’s eighth assist on Sunday puts him just one behind Nick Markakis for the lead among AL right fielders. Abreu is hitting .274 with 10 homers and 59 RBI.

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