MLB Predictions: New York Yankees Position by Position Hitting Projections
April 5, 2011 · Chris Sbalcio · Jump to comments
Article Source: Bleacher Report - New York Yankees
“Pitching wins championships.” That’s what most people say, anyway. But even the best pitching can’t help a team if there’s no offense to back him up. A perfect example is this past year’s AL Cy Young Award-winner, Felix Hernandez of the Seattle Mariners. The Mariners’ offense is the worst in the American League, so despite King Felix’s minuscule 2.27 ERA, he only posted a record of 13-12. If the award was called “Most Valuable Pitcher,” Hernandez wouldn’t have stood a chance. His offense would have destroyed any chance at him winning such an honor.
So then, wouldn’t you agree, maybe the offense doesn’t get enough credit. Another perfect example, in 2010 the Texas Rangers ran away with the AL West title before making it all the way to the World Series. Now, some of you are probably saying, “Dude, they had Cliff Lee,” but remember when they got Cliff Lee? It was midseason, and he didn’t even pitch well for them in the regular season. It was Lee’s excellent postseason that left the Rangers throwing lucrative contracts for him once he became a free agent.
Aside from Lee, who pitched for the Rangers last season? Their ace was a converted reliever in C.J. Wilson. Following him in the Texas rotation were Colby Lewis, Tommy Hunter, Scott Feldman, and … Derek Holland? Honestly, I don’t even remember, because it wasn’t about the rotation, it was about Texas’ explosive lineup, stacked with power and average threats like Josh Hamilton, Nelson Cruz, Vladimir Guerrero, Ian Kinsler, and Michael Young. As long as they got decent starts (5-6 innings, 4-5 runs), the Rangers had a chance to win, and they did.
The Rangers’ offense was great last year, but this year (and in my opinion last year too) the Yankees’ offense is (was) better. I believe a lot of the Yankees’ hitters are going to have great seasons this year. God knows the talent is there, it just needs to be used appropriately to offset the lack of reliable pitchers. In this article, I am going to predict how I think each Yankee could hit, and how each will hit this season. In other words, I’m going to predict which Yankees will be hot, and which will be cold.
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