Sporting News On The Young Guns

From David Pinto, comes an original in-depth analysis of life with [possibly] three young starters on a contending team. He prefaces his remarks with the fact that most teams who implement young inexperienced pitchers [YIPs] are "rarely successful." A "YIP" has not spent more than one season in the majors, has started less than 15 games and is 24 years-old or younger.

A team's winning percentage has little to do with the number of YIP starts. Clubs win with YIPs, and clubs lose with YIPs regardless of the number of YIP starts.

The four first-place teams -- the 1961 Yankees, the '70 Twins, the '76 Reds and the 2003 Giants -- all went the playoffs the year before, and each bolstered their staffs with good, young pitchers. Many consider the '61 Yankees and '76 Reds to be among the greatest teams of all time.

The '08 Yankees offer parallels with those two clubs: High-powered offense, rotation anchored by two veterans. This year's Yankees appear capable of having a top-three offense, and Chien-Ming Wang and Andy Pettitte are the experienced arms at the top.

Both conditions should benefit the YIPs.

That is why Kennedy, Hughes and Chamberlain can be the exception to the rule this season. With the their the Yankees can afford to let their big three develop. They only need to be good in 2008. There's time for greatness later.

A analysis of the 2008 Yankees without an overbearing sense of doom and gloom? Preposterous.