It is only the third week in May, but pundits everywhere are already writing off the Yankees in 2007. Mired deep in the American League East and already 10 games back in the standings, it may be that these baseball experts are right. Although I personally am hesitant to blow Taps on the Yanks season, the team is without a doubt taking on water. The New York woes start and end with the pitching staff. The Yanks came out of spring training with a starting rotation consisting of Chien Ming Wang, Andy Pettite, Mike Mussina, and Carl Pavano. Then disaster struck. In an eerie series of injuries, Wang, Mussina, and Pavano went on the Disabled List. Only recently has Wang and Mussina returned. Pavano blew out his shoulder and is gone for the year and perhaps for good.

In an effort to shore up his mangled pitching staff, manager Joe Torre has had to resort to smoke and mirrors. As of this past Sunday night, seven rookies were called up from the minors to start games for the Yankees. Their performance has not been stellar and this lack of solid starting pitching has hurt New York more than anything.

The Yankee bullpen, already tired from overwork, has not performed well, either. When you put all this together, it is easy to see how the Bronx Bombers have ended up in such a hole in the standings.

With Wang and Mussina returning to form, and with Pettite pitching well, the Yankees have placed much hope, $18 million worth of hope to be exact, on the signing of Roger Clemens. Like a hired gun out of the old West, Clemens will come riding into the Bronx later this month with the goal of saving the day.

Perhaps the best right handed pitcher of all time, Clemens could indeed be what it takes to revive the ailing Yankees. At a little over a million bucks a start, the Yankee faithful hope so.

Problem is, the Yankees have more than pitching problems. Although the New York offense is potentially the most potent in baseball, the team has been very inconsistent thus far this season. Alex Rodriguez, who only makes $25 million per year, had a blistering April. A-Rod hit close to .400 and belted 14 homers. It was largely his performance, along with clutch hitting by Jorge Posada, that kept the Yankees at least marginally afloat.

In May, however, Rodriguez has cooled off to hit below .275 and seems to be in the midst of a power outage. Posada is still hitting, and Derek Jeter is starting to hit as well, but that’s about it.

Bobby Abreu is barely topping the Mendoza line at .200 and his defense has also been below par. Last year’s top hitter Robinson Cano has been so abysmal at the plate and in the field that Torre finally benched him last week. Cano hit .340 last season and his season-long slump in 2007 is a mystery.

That brings us to Jason Giambi. Counted on to be an integral part of the Yankee offense, Giambi has also been inconsistent. A horrible defensive player, Giambi must hit to justify his place in the lineup, not to mention what is remaining on his $180 million contract. To make matters worse, Giambi talked to the press over the weekend, again making veiled apologies for his past “use of that stuff,” meaning steroids. At the present time, Yankee brass would much prefer for Giambi to keep his mouth shut.

Even fan-favorite centerfielder Johnny Damon has been sub-par this year. Damon is playing with a bad back and a strained calf. Last week he went so far as to say he wished he had three or four months off, just to heal.

It will be interesting to see just how the Yankees pan out this year. With the addition of Clemens’ salary, owner George Steinbrenner again has a payroll in the $200 million range. Consider that the Bronx Bombers are currently fighting it out with the lowly Devil Rays to see who can stay out of last place in the division. Did I mention the Devil Rays have a payroll of just under $40 million?

No, I am not writing off the Yanks just yet. But it will be interesting to see how things pan out over the next four or five weeks. Stay tuned.