Surviving ARod's absence

The silly "Yanks are better off without ARod" type articles are nearly as bad as the "Yanks can't live without ARod" rebuttals. Honestly, I have tried hard to read neither. The Yanks have a huge hole to fill at 3b and in the middle of the lineup. No matter how much you hate, revile, mock, despise (insert your choice here) ARod as a person, you can't discount his incredible abilities on the field.

So while I think he will be missed, I also think the Yanks can do well thanks to the fact that they added two superb pitchers this off-season to front what was merely a good rotation and nothing more. CC and Burnett, in front of Wang, Pettitte and Joba should anchor the rotation and help cure the ills that a lineup sans ARod suffers from.

From Boston beat writer Nick Cafardo:

For the last five years, A-Rod has averaged 42 homers and 123 RBIs, but the Yankees have not won a championship. You can't blame that all on him.

What could help the Yankees ride this out is their superior starting pitching. Don't forget, it was pitching and defense that won them championships.

"It hurts not having A-Rod, but I'm not sure it kills them," said another AL GM. "When they throw those five starters at you, that's awfully tough. They still have good hitters who can score runs, and if I were a betting man, I'd bet they're trying to get another hitter in that lineup."

Yep, that's spot on.