Is this the end of the Yankees?

Alex Rodriguez: Benched. Derek Jeter: Broken. Is this the end of the Yankees?

Well, it might be the end of THOSE Yankees. Alex Rodriguez has struggled through the post season this year, and it has led to his being benched. If Raul Ibanez had failed in his role as a pinch hitter for Rodriguez, this wouldn’t be discussed, but it is. The funny part, of course, is if they use this post season to dictate their future. Can you imagine if the Yankees actually decided to go with Raul Ibanez or Eric Chavez over Alex Rodriguez? In fewer games, A-Rod nearly matched Ibanez in home runs, surpassed him in batting average by 30 points and doubled his WAR. But hey, two awesome at bats! Not only that, but Rodriguez and Ibanez are both in their late 30s and clearly on the down side of their career, so it’s not like you are getting younger if you favor Raul.

Derek Jeter is still producing. He might be turning into a liability in the field, but this season he was still an effective bat at the top of the order. He hit .316 and was on base 36% of the time. This is vital for someone at the top of the order, and is a good source for runs when a series of strong batters is behind him. No doubt, losing Jeter will hurt. It may even hurt next year. They don’t want to replace Jeter, but a late career, major injury is tough to come back from, and he may never be the same. The Yankees can buy whomever they want, but they likely won’t try to find someone to replace Jeter, and he will run out there no matter how bad he is. If he is injured, that means Eduardo Nunez, which is rather embarrassing.

So, yes, America, the Yankees might have some holes next year, with a nicked up Derek Jeter and the potential for mismanagement of Alex Rodriguez. It’s a good thing New York still has Mark Teixeira, Robinson Cano, CC Sabathia, Curtis Granderson, Nick Swisher, Russell Martin, David Robertson, Hiroki Kuroda and Phil Hughes.