New York Yankees: Three Pitchers Brian Cashman Would Not Have Drafted

Three of the greatest pitchers in New York Yankee history have a lot in common.

Whitey Ford, Ron Guidry, and Mariano Rivera each were great.

Ford is in the Hall of Fame, Rivera is a lock for it, and Guidry would have made the Hall if injuries had not shortened his career.

Number 16 is permanently attached to the wall in Monument Park in Yankee Stadium.

So is Number 49.

Number 42 will be there as soon as he retires.

All three of these guys were big game pitchers.

All three of them played their entire careers only with the Yankees.

And all three of them would probably have been passed up in the draft by Brian Cashman were they coming onto the major league scene now or in the past five years or so.

Whitey Ford was 5'10" and weighed 178 pounds.

Ron Guidry played at 5'11 and weighed only 161 pounds.

Mo stands 6'2", but weighs only 185 pounds.

On the current Yankee 40-Man Roster, other than Rivera, there are only two pitchers who are less than 6'0" and weigh less than 200.

They are Chad Gaudin and David Robertson.

Robertson was drafted by the Yankees, but Gaudin was acquired in a trade.

There are 11 pitchers on the roster who are 6'4" or taller, and even the guys who are shorter are big, beefy-type pitchers.

Cashman has shown a remarkable tendency to go after only the really big pitchers.

It is doubtful that the current Yankee General Manager would even have given a second look at three of the greatest pitchers in baseball history.