Yankees Can't Afford Sound Medical Advice

First off, sorry for the light posting during April. I like to have around 30-35 posts a month, I'll try to have 40 in May to make up for it

Now about the Yankees. Of course they can afford sound medical advice, but as Pete Abe notes, the Yankees have done a pretty piss poor job evaluating injuries of late:

Damaso Marte went seven days without pitching then they decided to put him on the disabled list. Then we found out today that the injury he had in spring training never really cleared up. Meanwhile, he made seven appearances and got knocked around.

Chien-Ming Wang, as it turns out, had weakness in his injured foot and that led to atrophied hip muscles. How did this go unnoticed all spring and lead to his getting crushed for three starts?

A-Rod said his hip injury was an issue last June. Yet he played the rest of the year and it went undiagnosed until March. Then he needed surgery that has so far kept him out a month. [...]

Look at Mark Teixeira, for instance. He has not been the same since he injured his wrist. What would be better for the Yankees, Juan Miranda playing first base or Tex going 2 for 27? Should he be on the DL?

The Yankees motto is to win now at all costs (although recently it's been a slightly less cost) so it would be understandable if the Yankees, aware of Arod's hip last year, would want him to play even if it meant missing some of this year. But to not be aware of the injury, well that is just unacceptable. Ignorance is bliss, but in this case ignorance leads to damaged expensive goods.

Recently when someone brought up Mark Teixeira's struggles I was quick to say how he's a notoriously slow starter, but I forgot about that wrist. Of course Teix is a slow starter with a career .869 OPS in the first half and a .964 in the second half, but now his health could be the issue. And if it is an issue, I'm with Pete on this one. Too often star players will play at levels not near 100%, where the backup at 100% health will likely be more productive. When Jeter has a sore hammy, a broken toe, and a tweaked shoulder I think I'd rather have Pena start at SS that day, I'd even want him to bat in the clutchiest of clutch situations that Jeter always excels in (notice the slight sarcasm). That's not to say that Teix's struggles are with the wrist and that he won't go .330/.420./.600 in May, but if is because of the wrist, then get it fixed goddammit.

And as for this being a reoccurring problem with the Yankees, I'm not sure what to think about that. Like I said, I understand a team willing to sacrifice something later in order to win now, there is some value to that. However, sacrificing later because you are unaware of the problem now is just inexcusable. I don't follow every team's injury issues (in fact I father no team's injuries in depth) so for all I know this could be a just a flukey thing that randomly happens to teams from time to time, but that sounds kinda stupid. The Yankees have $300m invested in Arod, the starting pitchin (the 'strength' of the team) relies on a healthy Wang, and their only proven non Mo reliever is Marte, yet the Yankees have missed the boat on all their injuries? Like Pete said, no one person can be blamed, but it would benefit the Yankees to find out why this has happened, and figure out that wind tunnel deal too while you're at it.