Sidney Ponson Era Over Again in New York?

While big and fat, Sid "the Kid" Ponson was brought in for one start. The Yankees didn't have any healthy major-league capable pitchers (outside of Kei Igawa, if you want to call him major-league capable), and they had a doubleheader against the Mets, so they signed Ponson to pitch that game with the understanding that he could stick around if he pitched well enough.

He pitched well enough.

A closer look at the stats indicates that he's been very lucky, barely scraping along, despite the cursory stats. He really hadn't imploded, and the Yanks haven't had anyone that has stepped up to replace him, so he was around a little longer than initially expected.

Plus, Ponson's penchant for problems has remained dormant during this second stint.

There have been rumors abound about the Yankees trying to acquire a capable fifth-starter in Jarrod Washburn, and one has to assume this "as-of-yet-unacquired player" should replace either Ponson or Darrell Rasner in the rotation.

Right now, it looks like it'd be Ponson.

Was it only one bad start?

Yes.

And it was against a really good team, and you can't expect your fifth starter to pitch well against great teams all the time. However, this great team was the Red Sox, and that makes the boo-boo hurt much more. Plus, we all knew it was just a matter of time with Sidney. The fear is that this is only the start of something terrible.

The Yankees may now pursue another starter with more urgency, so that the latest incarnation of the Sidney Ponson experiment could be over. The Mariners were reportedly asking too much for Washburn, but they may be more willing to bend with the trade deadline approaching.

Learning from Dachs that NY could be chasing for Brian Bannister, I don't see the point, especially since Washburn has at least been very good since June, but what has Bannister done (besides strike nobody out)?

I'd rather not trade for him and call up Ian Kennedy, who has been strong in the minors. He may not be excellent, but he's projected to be a decent pitcher, so we should really give him more time before passing judgment. (See the sudden "Mets-siah," Mike Pelfrey.)

And more importantly, Kennedy may be just as good as any of the more expensive options out there.

As I've said countless times, "The Yanks should go after a bigger name," but they don't appear headed in that direction. Washburn remains a possible target, and I hope last night's debacle doesn't force them to part with more than they should.

Don't be surprised to see J-Wash in the Bronx sooner than later, with Ponson once again out the door.