Injury panic no-no for YES
So the Yankees lost Sabathia and Pettitte. Don’t sweat it. Or at least that was the message delivered by Yankees Sports & Entertainment voices, after CC Sabathia was put on the shelf followed by Andy Pettitte breaking his left leg Wednesday afternoon after being hit by a Casey Kotchman one-hopper.
Paul O’Neill, Michael Kay & Co may have actually saved a few lives. After the Bombers lost Mariano Rivera for the rest of the season in early May due to a freak warning-track knee injury in Kansas City, Yankee fans had to be ledge-walking and contemplating jumping after seeing Pettitte go down a few hours after Sabathia was put on the DL.
Perhaps sensing the untimely, unnecessary and all-too-early demise of viewers (it’s always about the ratings), Al Yankzeera voices found enough silver linings to send fans back into the air-conditioned comfort of their pinstriped bunkers. For this, all YES voices should be in line for some hefty bonuses. Congratulations.
For the rest of us interlopers, YES’ reactions to “the big two” vaporizing on the same afternoon left something to be desired and some questions to be answered. The potentially ugly residue of these injuries was not thoroughly examined.
Since YES’ motives were obviously altruistic, and its voices were clearly on a mission of mercy, we will momentarily postpone firing up the blow torch of negativity.
Don’t jump — please. That’s what O’Neill was saying on the postgame show. While Kay looks nothing like Speedy Alka-Seltzer, or a roll of Tums for that matter, he brought instant relief for an epidemic of heartburn spreading rapidly throughout the metropolitan area when he said Sabathia’s groin injury is “not too significant.”
Then, O’Neill spread sunshine all over the place.
“You get caught up so much in what’s going bad. You have to remember what’s going so good,” O’Neill said. “The Yankees are having a tremendous June. They’re scoring runs. They have guys hitting home runs. The bullpen is tremendous. This team can go out and throw up big numbers and still win games.”
“The Warrior” ain’t worried. Why should you be?
O’Neill was just getting started. He’s not going to miss any sleep over losing Pettitte or Sabathia. Neither is Jeter, A-Rod, Cano or the rest of the team. O’Neill should know. Unlike you, he played the game. Unlike you, he actually was a Yankee.
“You don’t worry who is on the mound,” O’Neill said. “. . . They’re in a focus of going out and expecting to win every day. That’s what you look at, not what you don’t have.”
Considering the way the Yankees have been dominating, it’s hard to dispute O’Neill’s analysis. Ya think maybe after hearing this insight, fans were beginning to forget about Pettitte and Sabathia? Oh, it was also mentioned (so many times we forgot who said it first) that these injuries could be a blessing in disguise.
For Sabathia, who the Yankees contend is a sure thing to return to the mound following the All-Star break, this isn’t just about healing, it’s about recharging and coming back with that old CC electricity. The Pettitte spin is all about having a “very fresh, live arm” (Kay’s words) whenever he comes back, which the all-knowing ones say will be sometime in September.
This is where we part company with YES’ mouths. This is where they could have balanced all the positives, and reasons not to freak out, with some potential reality.
Pettitte is now adding even more down time to the months he has already missed. Granted, he returned to the Yankees strong and productive. No one can guarantee, considering his age (40) and injury history, that he will return to action (if he returns at all) flashing the same form, and rhythm. This did not stop YES from speculating that because of all the games he will miss this season, Pettitte will be more inclined to return for the 2013 season as well.
And while Sabathia’s injury is being reported as inconsequential compared to Pettitte’s, it raises a question YES voices did not ask. Because of his weight (Sabathia has dropped some pounds but is still listed by the Yankees at 290) it’s no reach to wonder if he’s going to be susceptible to various muscle strains down the road.
But as Yankees general manager Brian Cashman says, “You’ve got to look for positives in the negatives.”
Yet there is one positive YES mouths did not bring up. It’s about the Yankees as a TV product. While the loss of Pettitte and Sabathia is serious business, it makes the Yankees a more intriguing, compelling property. Once the Yankees got in a groove, their season was becoming all too predictable. Now it’s not.
There are pitching questions. There is a possibility of seeing young guys taking advantage of an opportunity and trying to make it with H the most storied franchise in sports. ow will they do? How will the team respond?
This is a baseball mystery worth watching.
And what will Pettitte do to rehabilitate?
“It’s time to put my pom-poms on and be a cheerleader,” Pettitte said.
Sure sounds like an audition for another job.
Only on YES.