Bombers Banter: Trade Deadline Hits and Misses

Xavier Nady was the biggest addition the Yankees made before the trade deadline. They needed a right-handed outfield bat to replace Brett Gardner and get the offense going, and Nady is finally doing just that, after a rough first few games.

At the time, I didn’t think the Damaso Marte acquisition was necessary because the bullpen was already doing a great job, but the move allowed the Yankees to trade away Kyle Farnsworth for Ivan Rodriguez, so the trade with Pittsburgh turned out to be important for a few different reasons.

I worry, however, that New York’s inability to add another starter like Jarrod Washburn might keep them out of the playoffs. There are still a lot of games left until Chien-Ming Wang returns in September, and Darrell Rasner and Sidney Ponson will be pitching 40 percent of them. They need to step up even more now

 

Do you think Sidney Ponson and Darrell Rasner will be able to hold down the fort until Chien-Ming Wang, Phil Hughes, and Carl Pavano become available in September, or should the Yankees call up Ian Kennedy or another minor leaguer to fill the fifth-starter's spot over the next month or so?

 

Ethan Gooderum: The Yankees are not going to be able to survive with Ponson and Rasner in the back end of the rotation. I think that when Pavano and Hughes are back up, the rotation will be solidified with good starting pitching, however, until they come back up, the Yankees need to find replacements, at least for Ponson.

One possibility is Victor Zambrano, whom they signed to a minor-league deal, so if I am the Yankees, I call up Zambrano as fast as I can.

 

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?