Written by Greg Fertel | 19 May 2009

The Yankees roster construction(40-man and 25-man) has been nothing short of pathetic so far this season. Steven Jackson was recently DFA'd and like many other Yankee pitching prospects, he was picked up by the Pirates. The Yankees bullpen has been struggling, and it is good to have as many options as possible, so why DFA Jackson and keep Berroa around.

Jackson may not have been a valuable commodity, but why not give him a shot when no one else is succeeding. He's a reliever who gets a lot of ground balls and had a 1.88 ERA in AAA so far this season. Angel Berroa has appeared in one game since May 4th and that was just as a late inning defensive replacement in a game that was already over. Why keep someone on the roster who is going to play 1 inning in fifteen days. I am not advocating going back to that ridiculous 13-man pitching staff, but Berroa is a waste of a roster spot.

With Steven Jackson gone, the Yanks still have better bullpen options in the minors. I was at the game last night, and when Veras came in, I guaranteed my friend that Veras would walk the first batter he faced. That is exactly what he did. 13 Walks in 16.1 innings is just unacceptable. At this point, that is what you are going to get with Veras. His delivery is not conducive to commanding his pitches and I would definitely have chosen to DFA Veras over Steven Jackson. Regardless, it's time to DFA Veras now and bring Bruney up. While they're at it, the Yankees should option Edwar and see if he can get some control back(15 BB in 17.1 IP). Use that roster spot on David Robertson or Mark Melancon, at least those guys have high upsides.

Everyone is worrying about the bullpen right now, but I think with Bruney coming back, and with Coke finding a rhythm, if the Yankees make the right moves, the bullpen can turn into the strong spot that I thought it would be at the start of the season.

As a last note, the Yanks need to DFA Berroa, he honestly is not contributing in any way and I cannot fathom why he is still on the roster. It is time to call up one of Duncan, Rodriguez, Miranda, or Linden to have a decent pinch hitter off the bench in case Cervelli or Pena is up in a big spot. While that isn't the most efficient use of a roster spot, it would be better than having Berroa on the bench, playing 1 inning and getting zero at bats in the past fifteen days.

Sorry for the rant, but the way this roster has been constructed all year has really pissed me off.

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