Originally Posted by
Hmark6
My thoughts about Mel are mixed. I think both sides of the Mel discussion have a valid point. The reason that the Yankees ripped of 4 titles in 5 year with out a doubt was the pitching. You knew with guys like Coney, Pettitte, Wells, Rocket, and El Duque you were going to be in the game, and if you gave the bully a lead, the game was over. Mel deserves all the credit in the world for that. On the other hand, the Yankees achilles heal over the last 5 years has been without a doubt the pitching. The Yankees can no long look at a series and put 2 or 3 wins in the bank just on starting pitching alone. Mel has to assume some responsability for this. I also think the front office has to answer for this as well. How do you let Andy Pettite get away? Look at what Duque and Contreras are doing in Chicago. Jon Leiber even won 17 games this year.