I’ve come to terms with the idea that Kennedy and Phil Hughes may not be competing for the #1 starters role on the Yankees any time soon. On the other hand, I constantly remind myself that Kennedy is 23 years old and Hughes is 22, so obviously there’s room for development and improvement.

I agree with the Yankees fans who say too much was expected of Kennedy, Hughes and Chamberlain this season, but I have a hard time blaming Cashman for their problems. Imagine the shitstorm Cashman would have had to deal with if he started the spring with the likes of Darrell Rasner, Sidney Ponson, Eric Milton and Victor Zambrano competing for the #4 and #5 spots.

What confuses me about Kennedy is the discrepency in his major and minor league stats. His career minor league ERA is 1.89, his WHIP is 0.84, and he has 203 K’s in 190.2 innings. In the majors, his ERA is a gross 5.56, his WHIP is 1.55, and he has just 41 strikeouts in about 58 innings. Surely he should be able to adjust to the majors, right? Without talking about the quality of his pitches, it possible to be that dominant at AAA and that lousy at the top level?

I don’t think so. In my worst case scenario, Kennedy is at least a #4 starter in the big leagues, and performances like this make me think/hope he can be better than that.