State of the Yankees: Quarterly Review

The Yankees (19-17) are 1.5 games behind the Orioles for the division lead and just a half game ahead of the Red Sox. Before the Yankees start this week's Subway Series, there's the good, the bad, and plenty of first quarter surprises to review. Let's get right down to what really matters, shall we?

Opening Day Rotation
1. CC Sabathia – 15-day DL (knee), 5.28 ERA
2. Hiroki Kuroda – 4.43 ERA, had 5.00+ ERA in August, September & April
3. Ivan Nova – underwent Tommy John Surgery, out for season
4. Masahiro Tanaka – 5-0, 2.57 ERA, 58 K's, what else is there to say?
5. Michael Pineda – 15-day DL (muscle strain) out until June, 1.83 ERA possibly spiked with pine tar

Current Rotation
1. Masahiro Tanaka – proven quickly he's the true ace of the staff
2. Hiroki Kuroda – two strong starts in a row is encouraging for 39-year-old
3. Vidal Nuno – coming off very promising start vs. Angels (W, 6.1 IP, ER, 82 pitches)
4. David Phelps – two decent starts as Pineda's replacement, 4.09 ERA
5. Alfredo Aceves – the only real candidate to replace Sabathia, hasn't made a start yet