The Yankees, at this moment, are dealing with more problems with youth than age.
It has been common to wonder year after year if a team that relies so much on older players, as the Yankees do annually, has reached a tipping point in which grayness outweighs greatness.
I certainly have asked those questions many times, including in the past few days when I mulled an aging synchronicity between the 2012 Yankees and the decaying group in 1965 that signaled the end of the organization’s dynastic run. But take a closer look at these Yankees and you see more twentysomething reasons that the club has teetered around .500 than geriatric ones.
Derek Jeter, Raul Ibanez and Andy Pettitte all have birthdays in June. Jeter, 37, is the majors’ oldest shortstop; Ibanez, 39, is the AL’s oldest regularly used position player; and Pettitte, 39, is the AL’s oldest starting pitcher. They also are among the most productive 2012 Yankees — in other words, hardly the problem.
Yes, Mariano Rivera, 42, is out for the year. Yes, Alex Rodriguez, 36, is underperforming his career norms (though still outperforming the average third baseman). And, yes, Hiroki Kuroda is struggling, although that could be more attributable to being in the AL than being 37.
But Kuroda arguably is outpitching Phil Hughes and Ivan Nova, who both are 25. Michael Pineda, 23, was supposed to be an ace-in-training but is out for the year. The potential high-level reinforcements at Triple-A were supposed to be Manuel Banuelos and Dellin Betances. But Banuelos is on the disabled list for the second time this season, now with an elbow injury. And Betances again is reinforcing the notion — like another supposed Killer B before him, Andrew Brackman — that he is a big guy unable to master a consistently smooth delivery (38 walks in 44 2⁄3 innings).
One person who has worked with both prospects told me this week he thinks Banuelos and Betances were overhyped, citing a lack of fastball command for both. That is detrimental for any pitcher with top-of-the-rotation aspirations; worse yet in an AL East renowned for patient lineups. To this point, the Mets’ touted duo of Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler have zoomed past Banuelos and Betances and — most important — the Yankees’ duo remains nowhere near helping the rotation in 2012, and maybe beyond.
Meanwhile, Rivera’s bullpen absence is magnified because David Robertson, 27, and Joba Chamberlain, 26, also are on the DL. On offense, the Yankees have slowed considerably with Brett Gardner, 28, on the DL and Eduardo Nunez, 24, demoted to the minors because his defense became intolerable.
Austin Romine, who has been on the 60-day DL all season, is scheduled to finish back-stabilization exercises this week and try baseball activities next week. With Jesus Montero gone in the Pineda trade and Romine out, the Yankees really have not had an alternative to consider to Russell Martin’s sub-.200 average.
Martin and Mark Teixeira have been the biggest holes in the lineup and they are 29 and 32, respectively. They have played old without actually being baseball senior citizens.
“It is like when people asked if I thought Alex would hit, I said, ‘yes,’ ” general manager Brian Cashman said. “I feel the same way about our young players and prospects. They are not doing well or are injured right now, but I still believe in them. One thing I have learned is patience is vitally important. Your young players are never ready when you want.”
Wright is chasing Utley
QUIZ: David Wright hit his 188th home run last night, tying him with Philadelphia’s Chase Utley for the sixth-most among current players who have hit all of their homers for just one team. Name the top five (answer below).
* The successful arrival of Andy Pettitte to the Yankees’ rotation cannot be overstated. His presence has helped the club mentally. But also physically. He has stabilized the rotation, taking weight off other starters and the undermanned bullpen by bringing badly needed quality innings.
Pettitte has gone at least 6 1⁄3 innings in each of his three starts — the same amount as Ivan Nova has managed in eight starts, one more than Phil Hughes (nine starts) and one fewer than Hiroki Kuroda (nine starts). CC Sabathia has done so six times. But that is nothing new.
The Yankees have six starts of eight innings or more this year — four by Sabathia. Since the lefty’s arrival in 2009, he has 32 of the Yankees’ 53 starts of eight innings or more. A.J. Burnett, with seven, is second, followed by Pettitte’s six.
Sabathia is praised as a workhorse. But in times when the Yankees’ rotation is struggling and the pen is short, manager Joe Girardi will push his ace even more to rest relievers for starters who need the help. The Yankees’ relief corps particularly has been strained because the team has 10 starts of fewer than five innings (none by Sabathia or Nova), which is tied for third in the majors.
The last sub-five-inning start occurred May 9 by David Phelps. Pettitte then stepped into Phelps’ spot and the rotation has turned over three times since, averaging nearly 6 2⁄3 innings a start.
* The Yankees obtained Lance Berkman and Kerry Wood on July 31, 2010. Both helped the Yankees get to the ALCS. Wood, in particular, was terrific, his 0.69 ERA was the lowest ever produced by a Yankee who worked at least 25 innings.
Last Friday, Wood announced his retirement. The next day Berkman tore up his knee, was lost for the season and now is also mulling retirement.
Neither will be remembered as Yankees. But in their short times in The Bronx, both gave off memorable and favorable impressions. Wood made those around the team think of him as a baseball gym rat — such was his happiness and appreciation for being in a major league clubhouse. Berkman lived up to his reputation for pleasantness and insight.
* QUIZ ANSWER: Atlanta’s Chipper Jones (459), Colorado’s Todd Helton (351), Philadelphia’s Ryan Howard (286), Derek Jeter (245) and Minnesota’s Justin Morneau (191).