In his Under the Knife column yesterday, Will Carroll had this to say about former Yankee hurler Andy Pettitte:

The Astros are growing more concerned about the condition of Andy Pettitte, not only for this year, but the next two extremely expensive seasons he has left on his deal. Pettitte has been doing long toss, but still can't throw without pain. Worse, the elbow tends to tighten with usage, meaning there are still some internal problems. Pettitte has not yet gone for a second opinion, but if there's no progress in the next week, that visit will come.

It made me think: when is it safe to applaud the Yankees for choosing to go with Vazquez over Pettitte? I liked the cherce from jump, but the local media slammed the Yankees for letting Pettitte, a proven winner, walk. Late in the day, I read the latest from Peter Gammons:

There was a strong push to retain Pettitte, but a couple of voices argued to instead invest in Vazquez. "See who wins more games over the four years," argued one Yankee official.

"Vazquez is precisely what we traded for," says another. "We were not worried about him pitching in New York. He's smart, he's savvy. I'm not sure we realized how competitive he is, so in that way I would guess he's exceeded our expectations.

If Pettitte can't get healthy and Vazquez continues to pitch well in New York, it'll be interesting to see if and when Cashman and company receive some kudos for making a smart, tough move.

Rockin

It looks as if Gary Sheffield will be in the line-up tonight as the Rockies (?!?!) come to town (while Derek Jeter will be a game-time decision). According to Yankee advisor, Reggie Jax:

[Sheffield] brings an image to the Yankees that's important: a tough image, a very professional image.

Sheffield was named the AL player of the week. Considering that he was battling a stomach virus by the weekend, that's nothing to sneeze at. Oh, and not for nothing, but do you think his thumb has healed yet?

Picks

The Yanks selected two pitchers and a catcher in the first round of the draft yesterday.