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My guess is that pitchin gin 2006 will look no better than 2005, because there's not much change in the pitching staff. The new relievers look roughly equal to the ones they replaced. Although there's uncertainty over how various starters will pitch, I think deterioration is at least as likely as improvement.

I'm with David on this one. The staff is about the same as last year so we shouldn't expect a dramatic jump up the list. The pitching will be good enough to win some games 6-5 and bad enough to lose some games 7-6. There will be some amazing single-game performances and there will be just as many of the usual Mussina/Pavano 4 inning starts where one of those bums'll get us in a hole after a few batters.

The real question is this: what will the Red Sox staff look like in 2006? With Schilling and Beckett they could be great (if healthy) or they could be dreadful (if hurt). We all know the Yanks have the offense to muster together at least 90 wins. I want to know if the Red Sox have the pitching to get 80 wins or 100 wins.

The starting rotation is the same, but how can you even compare the two bullpens? Have you already forgotten names like F-Rod and Embree and Wayne Franklin and Proctor and Stanton? The bullpen was a mess last year. When Scott Proctor gets major innings, you're in trouble. This year the Yankees added Farnsworth, Myers, Villone and Dotel (while retaining Small and Wright for bullpen duties). With Small and Villone around, Sturtze might not have to set his shoulder on fire, which means he might be effective for more than a month. Farnsworth replaces Gordon, who was old and terrible last year. Myers is a lefty who can actually get out lefties. And when Dotel arrives (if he arrives healthy), it gets the Yankees the best seventh-eighth-ninth inning setup since '96.

So if you want to say the rotation won't pick up, fine, but the bullpen has made vast improvements. Just the fact that guys like Proctor and F-Rod aren't around make it better. At the very least, unlike last year, this bullpen has the POTENTIAL to be effective. Last year there wasn't even that.

We all know the Yanks have the offense to muster together at least 90 wins. I want to know if the Red Sox have the pitching to get 80 wins or 100 wins.
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FWIW, the Sox as a staff had a -54 RSAA last season (for comparision, Yanks had -11) and they were able to win 90 games. I'd say it's a possiblity that they have the pitching to do it.

They're kinda weird on the offensive side of the ball, tho'

Raf, if they won 95 games with a pitching that that was much worse than ours was last year then honestly I'm pretty scared for 2006 since our pitching staff is the same and theirs has the potential to be much better. I still don't understand how Cashman got away with not improving the rotation this offseason. How can he really believe in Mussina and Pavano at this point?

Raf, if they won 95 games with a pitching that that was much worse than ours was last year then honestly I'm pretty scared for 2006 since our pitching staff is the same and theirs has the potential to be much better.
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Fear not, fellow Yankee fan, for it is but one piece of the puzzle...

FWIW, the Jays had a 60 RSAA