Yankees pitchers midseason report cards

I wasn’t so nice to the Yankees hitters in their report card, but the pitchers are a whole different story. At least the starters are.

The Yankees sport the second best ERA in the American League at 3.81, only trailing division foe Tampa Bay.

I will give each pitcher a grade based on their expectations. A grade of ‘C’ is meeting expectations, ‘A’ and ‘B’ are above expectations, you get the picture.

Starters:
CC Sabathia: A- 
The first of three Yankees starters named to this year’s All-Star team. Sabathia finished the first half on an eight-game winning streak — all quality starts of seven innings or more — to lower his ERA by a full run to 3.09. His WHIP is at an astounding 1.14.

A.J. Burnett: C 
He’s right where I expect him to be. He got off to a hot start, but followed it up with a cold stretch heading into the break to even out his numbers. He has a 7-7 record and a 4.75 ERA with a 1.47 WHIP. Those stats are a little worse than his career averages, but he seems to be climbing back ever since Dave Eiland returned.

Andy Pettitte: A+ 
I expected him to pitch like a No. 3 starter, not an ace. He’s got 11 wins under his belt with a 2.70 ERA. The second All-Star of the rotation, at age 38, notched 14 quality starts in 17 tries. Not too shabby.

Javier Vazquez: B+
After April, this would’ve been a solid F. But if this was only since June 1, it would be a solid A. His hot pitching has helped him even his record at 7-7 and lower his ERA from 9.78 (May 1) to 4.45. If he continues to pitch like he has since June 1, the offseason trade will prove to be a huge success. You saw a couple days ago how poorly Melky Cabrera has been doing.

Phil Hughes: A-
The third All-Star in the rotation was on pace for a Cy Young and a start in the All-Star Game through May 12, but Hughes has stumbled through a rough patch recently. His team has puffed up his record a bit, offering him 7.61 runs per game for an 11-2 record. His ERA is up to 3.65, but his WHIP is still very low at 1.18.

Bullpen:
Mariano Rivera: A
In Mo’s spectacular 16-year career, he’s never posted a sub-1.00 ERA. This year he boasts a 1.05 ERA in 34-1/3 IP. He was selected to his 11th All-Star Game, but wasn’t healthy enough to pitch in it. Hopefully Mo can manage his health honestly and be prepared for another World Series title run in October.

David Robertson: B+
Robertson has been the second best reliever in the pen, but that’s not saying much. He has a 5.46 ERA, but has two outings of four earned runs inflating it. In his last 13 appearances, he’s allowed runs in only two.

Joba Chamberlain: D- 
When the Yankees opted to put him in the bullpen, I was excited that the Yankees would have a lockdown setup man for 2010. Joba has been far from a lock in the eighth inning this year, allowing runs in 10 of his 39 appearances. Most recently, he took the loss against Seattle after allowing a grand slam.

Chad Gaudin: C
Gaudin has been mediocre for the Yankees after getting off to a terrible start to the year with Oakland. In 17-1/3 innings, he’s allowed nine runs with a 1.39 WHIP.

Damaso Marte: C-
A 4.08 ERA is pretty atrocious for a lefty specialist. Against lefties his K/BB ratio is 3.67. Against righties, the ratio is 0.13 (8 walks, 1 strikeout). I don’t like that at all.

Chan Ho Park: D
Diarrhea man’s numbers are as rotten as his nickname. A 6.18 ERA in 27-2/3 IP is just not healthy. It’s only a matter of time before he gets DFA’d, in my opinion.

Sergio Mitre: A-
He’s been great, but only for 12 appearances. He’s been slowly recovering from an injury and is starting for Triple-A tonight. The Yankees really miss the Meat-Tray.

Boone Logan: C+
He’s having his best year in the majors in his fifth year, but he hasn’t been overly impressive. The southpaw has been just as effective against righties as he has been against lefties.

Alfredo Aceves: B+
I’m considering him because he has at least 10 appearances, but he hasn’t pitched since May 8 and isn’t likely to return this year.