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Updates On Moose and Pettitte
While all media reports seemed to point toward Mussina riding off into the sunset following his first 20-win season, some of us were holding out hope. Now, according to Buster Olney, it looks like Mussina may be leaning toward coming back and presumably going for 300 wins.The blurb mostly focuses on Pettitte, and a friend of his saying he plans to pitch in 2009. Personally, I'd say if he wants to pitch you offer him arbitration, let him sign elsewhere, and collect the draft picks. He's cooked.
I'll say it one more time, give Moose a two-year deal for $20-$24M, with a player option for the third season at the same rate. That keeps him a Yankee through his 300th win, and if he gets it early he can retire. Keep him happy, and lock down one slot in the rotation for the next couple of years. Not to mention the fact that seeing Moose work his craft can only help guys like Hughes, Joba and Kennedy.
Then again, this time last year I was hoping against hope that Mussina would retire, so who knows. Would a rotation of CC, Wang, Mussina, Pettitte and then Joba/Hughes/Aceves be a good thing heading into 2009? Can Pettitte reinvent himself the same way the Moose did? I haven't seen any sign that he'll be able to make the adjustment from a cutter/fastball lefty into a change/curve soft-tossing lefty a la Jamie Moyer.
(H/T MLBTR)
But didn't everyone say Moose was "cooked" after last year? It turns out that once he adjusted and, more importantly, was full healthy, he was able to have a great season again. I think Andy is in a similar position. We know that his shoulder had been bothering him, and it's supposedly an injury which will heal with rest. He also probably has to make some adjustments, and while I don't know if he is as likely to make successful adjustments as Moose was (just a gut feeling), it's not entirely out of the question. I like the idea of bringing him back for one year and seeing if he has anything left.
If it's a choice between bringing Pettitte back for a year to see what he has left, or committing to Sheets, Lowe or Burnett for 5 or more years, then yeah, I'm all for it.
I don't really think they need him if they sign CC and bring Mussina back, though.
If you sign CC, what a lineup! You have three legit aces off the bat with CC, Moose and Wang, and a possible future ace in Joba. (Jury's still out on whether Hughes can be an ace).
While there are many teams without one legit ace, you'll have three. If all three pitch the way they pitched in 2008 (Wang up until the injury), and the team can avoid several serious injuries, a 100 win season is a possibility.
Assuming your scenario (CC + Moose signed), I would still be for bringing Pettitte back for a year because I'm so afraid of the injury bug.