Insight into the ALDS.

I'll bet you didn't know why the Yankees lost in the ALDS. According to Ken Rosenthal, the Yankees lost because their pitching didn't hold up. The reason you thought differently is because Ken Rosenthal is wrong:

"Just play it out.

The Yankees’ likely Game 1 starter would have been right-hander Freddy Garcia, who shut out the Rangers for six innings on April 16, but no longer is anyone’s idea of an ace.

Left-hander CC Sabathia probably could have started Game 2 after throwing 37 pitches in 1 1/3 innings in his first career relief appearance on Thursday night. But Sabathia looked gassed in the postseason and at times down the stretch. The Yankees might have pushed him back to Game 3 in favor of — gulp — righty A.J. Burnett.

And Game 4? Righty Ivan Nova, who left the Division Series clincher with tightness in his right forearm, probably would have been done for the postseason, creating an opening for righty Phil Hughes.

The Rangers would have trashed such a collection. They won’t trash Verlander and fellow right-handers Doug Fister and Max Scherzer."

Maybe the Rangers would have pummeled the Yankees. Maybe the Rangers won't pummel the Tigers.

I know, for a fact, that the Yankees' pitching was mostly excellent in the ALDS vs. the Tigers.

A.J Burnett (gulp!) pitched pretty good. So did Freddy Garcia, even if he's no longer anybody's idea of an ace. So did Nova ... unsure if his injury is minor ... so it's unclear if he'd have been available for the imaginary ALCS vs. the Rangers that Ken Rosenthal is handicapping in his head.

"But really, what is Sabathia now?

He wasn’t the same pitcher after Girardi twice brought him back from rain delays in Seattle on July 26. In his first 24 starts, he had a 2.55 ERA and allowed seven homers in 176 2/3 innings. In his last nine starts, he had a 4.30 ERA and allowed 10 homers in 60 2/3 innings. He also turned in a rocky performance in his one true Division Series start (not the abbreviated one), allowing 13 baserunners and four runs in 5 1/3 innings."

Sabathia is one of the best pitchers in baseball.


"Don’t get me wrong — Sabathia still is a top-of-the-rotation starter, and if he gets his weight back under control, he almost certainly will be one again."

Sabathia is a top-of-the rotation starter.

If he gets his weight back under control, he will be one again.


Sabathia, is X.
If Sabathia does Y, he will be X again.


"They already are stuck with one albatross of a contract, the six years and $143 million remaining on third baseman Alex Rodriguez’s deal. First baseman Mark Teixeira, owed $112.5 million over the next five years, is showing early signs of offensive decline."

I don't know what any of this has to do with the Yankees' pitching in the ALDS, which performed quite well in the ALDS


No Yankee contract is an albatross. The Yankees make tons of money. They could release ARod if they wanted to, absorb the payroll hit, replace him with Nunez, and still win 90 games.

They missed the ALCS by one whole run.

That failure is clearly on the offense not the pitching.


The Yankees are actually stacked with young talent -- Robertson, Hughes, Nova, Joba, Gardner, Montero, Nunez.

I don't know how they will fill the roster in the future. I am too concerned, frankly, with next week's imaginary ALCS vs. Texas.