Davidoff: Yankees facing some age-old decisions

Thinking is for the offseason. At least, when you operate the baseball team, as opposed to when you sit in the stands, at home or in the press box and merely watch.

"When you're on the run," Brian Cashman said Wednesday, "you try to keep everything together and get everyone healthy, young or old."

But when the Yankees' decision-makers congregate this winter and share thoughts, they'll remind themselves: Keep it as young as possible.

"We've made a concerted effort to get younger," Cashman said. "We have Curtis Granderson. We have Brett Gardner. But we're still vulnerable."

The Yankees proceeded to defeat the Tigers, 9-5, at Yankee Stadium, and the young 'uns led the way. Mark Teixeira (30 years old), Robinson Cano (27) and Granderson (29) hit homers, and Alex Rodriguez's substitute, Ramiro Peña (25), added a triple. Andy Pettitte's replacement, Dustin Moseley (28), backed by strong run support, threw five so-so innings for the victory.

Meanwhile, Derek Jeter (36) went 0-for-4 with a walk, and Jorge Posada (39) went 0-for-3 with an intentional walk. A-Rod (35) sat out with a strained left calf. Pettitte didn't do much more besides discuss his slow-healing left groin.

"I'm sure age has a lot to do with it," Pettitte said, referring to the lack of progress. "I have a lot of wear and tear on my body."

"Could it have to deal with age? Sure, it could," Joe Girardi said.

"Groins are tricky," said Cashman, who noted 28-year-old Alfredo Aceves has missed more than three months with a back injury.

The Yankees won their 27th World Series last year thanks in large part to the contributions of the "Core Four" (Jeter, Pettitte, Posada and Mariano Rivera) and A-Rod, and then they let Johnny Damon (here as a Tiger) and Hideki Matsui walk away in large part because of age.

This season, by using wins above replacement, Jeter, Posada and Rodriguez are all on pace to finish with statistically inferior campaigns.

Pettitte pitched so well in his first 18 starts that he provided more value (3.1 WAR) than he did in 32 starts last season (1.8). Nevertheless, if he can't participate in the postseason, then it won't matter much what he did from April through July.

Rivera? He clearly isn't human. The 40-year-old, the Yankees' oldest player, doesn't apply to this conversation. He threw a scoreless ninth.

But Rivera's name will come up once the Yankees' season has concluded, and so will Jeter's, as the two franchise icons are up for free agency.

The Yankees understand that both players' values transcend statistics, and they will factor that into the respective negotiations. But this won't be a repeat of the 2007-08 offseason, when the Steinbrenner boys - having just officially replaced their dad - tried to cover up for the ugly Joe Torre departure by giving Posada $52.4 million for four years, Rivera $45 million for three years and A-Rod $275 million for 10 years.

Rivera's extension figures to be easier than Jeter's. Rivera already gets paid higher than any other closer and has shown remarkably little sign of age.

Jeter's deal should be trickier, though. Will he use A-Rod's job security as a comparable? Back before he signed his 10-year, $189-million deal in 2001, he didn't display an interest in accepting hometown discounts. And he'll be negotiating after what's looking like the worst full season of his career.

The drama makes you wonder how tense the Jeter talks will get. Unless you're actually part of the Yankees, in which case you table those thoughts until they become pertinent.