Yankees Best Starting Rotation Plan For ALDS
Posted by Steve L. on September 29th, 2010 · Comments (28)
There’s a lot of different ways that the Yankees can go with their ALDS starting rotation. Here’s a few:
Plan A:
Game 1 10/06/10 Sabathia
Game 2 10/07/10 Pettitte
10/08/10 NO GAME SCHEDULED
Game 3 10/09/10 Hughes
Game 4* 10/10/10 Sabathia on 3-days rest
10/11/10 NO GAME SCHEDULED
Game 5* 10/12/10 Pettitte
Plan B:
Game 1 10/06/10 Sabathia
Game 2 10/07/10 Hughes
10/08/10 NO GAME SCHEDULED
Game 3 10/09/10 Pettitte
Game 4* 10/10/10 Sabathia on 3-days rest
10/11/10 NO GAME SCHEDULED
Game 5* 10/12/10 Hughes
Plan C:
Game 1 10/06/10 Sabathia
Game 2 10/07/10 Hughes
10/08/10 NO GAME SCHEDULED
Game 3 10/09/10 Pettitte
Game 4* 10/10/10 Burnett
10/11/10 NO GAME SCHEDULED
Game 5* 10/12/10 Sabathia
Plan D:
Game 1 10/06/10 Sabathia
Game 2 10/07/10 Pettitte
10/08/10 NO GAME SCHEDULED
Game 3 10/09/10 Hughes
Game 4* 10/10/10 Burnett
10/11/10 NO GAME SCHEDULED
Game 5* 10/12/10 Sabathia
Me? I’d go with Plan A – because I don’t want to give Burnett a start in a five-game series and I want Andy Pettitte pitching Game 5, if necessary. How about you, what way would you go?
I’m voting for Plan A as well. It gives the Yanks the chance to pitch their best pitcher (Sabathia) twice, sets up Pettitte for a Game 2 and Game 5 on regular rest, and minimizes Hughes’s potential exposure to only one start in Game 3. Plus, any rotation that skips Burnett in the first round makes perfect sense to me.
I’d go with A if the Yanks have HAF (
) and B if they don’t
I’d rather see Hughes pitch away from yankee stadium which he makes seem like the homerdome, and Andy at home so he can neutralize lefty-power.
@ Corey Italiano:
I would never want Hughes pitching two starts and Andy only getting one. It would never make sense to have the team’s second-best starter getting only one start in a playoff series.
If Hughes gets lit up at home in Game 3, so be it. It beats having to rely on him twice.
@ MJ Recanati:
I can’t say your line of thinking is absurd, I just am sayin how I would do it.
@ MJ Recanati:
Would you want to send me to Chicago if I ran things and did it that way?
I have to agree with Corey. It’ll be all hands on deck for Game 5 so if Hughes isn’t sharp he’ll be lifted at the first sign of trouble and Andy could give us something on two days rest.
Corey Italiano wrote:
Damn I butchered it…meant to put HFA
RobertGKramer@AOL.Com wrote:
Yup, exactly.
Did you guys see Hughes pitch in the post-season last year? He still has to prove that he’s able to stand up to the pressure of October. And, I’d rather not have that test go down in a Game 5 of 5.
@ Steve Lombardi:
I saw Hughes pitch on Sunday, and I saw Andy pitch on Friday…
Corey Italiano wrote:
Based on the way you managed over the past month, yeah, I’m ready to move on without you.
RobertGKramer@AOL.Com wrote:
I don’t understand the concept of “all hands on deck.” Why would Pettitte on two days rest be better than Pettitte on regular rest?
I’m truly amazed that people would rather go with Hughes over Pettitte in any situation.
Corey Italiano wrote:
I’m not sure why that would make a difference. Based on that logic, Pettitte’s previous start was better than Hughes’s, so where are we now?
If we only judge by the pitcher’s last start and Vazquez pitches seven crisp innings tonight, do you give him the ball for Game 2? Of course not…
MJ Recanati wrote:
I was merely pointing out that to make a decision on Hughes based on the 2009 post season is just as short sighted as what you describe
@ Corey Italiano:
OK, we agree then, at least on that point.
To elaborate further, I’m trying to say you have to look at the season as a whole rather than a 6+ innings in October and 6+ innings last weekend.
And when you look at the season as a whole, Andy has been better at home and Hughes has been better away. Add to that the fact that Andy has been nasty vs. lefties, whom have a natural advantage at Yankee Stadium, and to me the decision is easy.
I don’t dispute your argument as it’s quite valid. I just would choose to do it this way.
@ Corey Italiano:
I hear what you’re saying but, to me, that’s being too overly granular. At the end of the day, the most important thing is knowing that your second best pitcher gets to pitch twice. You have to always go with your best players, first and foremost.
If you’re looking at it as a must win (Game 5) with the choice of Been-There-Done-That Andy Pettitte or an untried Phil Hughes I think you go with Pettitte. More to the point, I’m certain Girardi would go with Pettitte. So it’s Plan A all the way.
@ Corey Italiano:
Phil Hughes H/R splits:
Home: 106.1 IP, .248/.312/.443, 4.66 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 1.70 HR/9
Road: 69.0 IP, .240/.291/.340, 3.52 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 0.65 HR/9
Andy Pettitte H/R splits:
Home: 69.1 IP, .260/.317/.408, 3.89 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 1.30 HR/9
Road: 55.2 IP, .235/.295/.342, 2.26 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 0.45 HR/9
Hughes is clearly a worse pitcher at home than is Pettitte. But despite this, I’d rather put the team in the best position to come to Yankee Stadium ahead 2-0 rather than risk a 1-1 split.
Irrespective of venue or results, I’ll always pick Pettitte over Hughes at this point in their respective careers. Perhaps that makes me biased towards veterans. Perhaps, however, it’s just my preference to have Pettitte pitch two games instead of one game.
To me, that last point is the most important one.
Corey Italiano wrote:
I’m stoked to be such an influence on some of the grammer around here
.
I’m kinda torn, but mostly I agree with having CC/Andy twice* and Hughes once. Does this mean AJ pitches in relief in LDS?
“A” probably makes the most sense; although, unless we win in 3 or 4 games, we’ll go into the next round pretty winded.
Before I throw Burnett out their, I’d give the ball to Nova. I see no downside (Nova blowing up in the 2nd inning is just as likely as AJ doing the same) and potential upside (5 solid innings, unlikely from AJ at this point).
clintfsu813 wrote:
The way Burnett walks people, he’s just a caddy for any starter that gets knocked out early IMO
Anybody have any predictions on AJ’s future? How long will Cash put up with the inconstincy and just bite the bullet on a trade? Or will they suck it up and turn him into the most expensive 4th starter in the history of baseball?
@ clintfsu813:
With that many years left on his deal, all you can do is wait and see.
Corey Italiano wrote:
Exactly. The Yanks would have to eat too much money to realistically trade him. Plus, as much as we’re all down on Burnett now, there’s no reason to think that he can’t come back and be better next year. We won’t know exactly what the problem was this year until we see him again after a winter of rest and some perspective.
#15 wrote:
I actually don’t agree. Even if the ALDS goes a full five games, under Plan A, Sabathia would’ve pitched Game 4 of the ALDS on 10/10/10 on three days rest. As a result, he would be fully rested for Game 1 of the ALCS on 10/15/10. Andy Pettitte would be on three days rest for Game 2 of the ALCS but, if need be, the team could easily flip-flop Hughes and Pettitte since Hughes would’ve last pitched in Game 3 of the ALDS, six days before.
Of course, all of this is predicated on no rainouts, which we know is hard to predict, especially in the northeast around this time of year.
#15 wrote:
Under no circumstances do I agree that Nova is a better option for a playoff start than Burnett.
All that matters is which of the options the manager decides on……
and then of course fudges on and changes his mind like a woman anyway.
Steve Lombardi wrote:
Yep. Saw him pitch in the 2007 postseason as well. What does it all mean?