Is pitcher Bartolo Colon worth his weight in gold?

Bartolo Colon / Keith Allison

Bartolo Colon was recently signed by the New York Yankees to a minor league deal on January 26th, 2011 with an invite to major league spring training. The Yankees are taking a huge chance on him, because even though he was a former American League Cy Young award winner with 150 career wins, his track record as of late has been  disappointing. In September 2008, he was suspended by the Red Sox because he went to the Dominican Republic to deal with personal matters. This decision ended his career as a member of the Boston Red Sox, as he was placed on the restricted list and filed for free agency. The following year he had an off-season injury to remove bone chips from his pitching elbow. Colon also did not play a single game in the big leagues in the 2010 season.

The Yankees have chosen to sign Colon despite these events because of his impressive performance in the Dominican Winter League. In seven starts with the Cibaenas Aguilas, he was 2-1 with a 1.93 ERA. He has the potential to add to the Yankees the depth and experience needed in their pitching rotation to become serious World Series contenders, if he is able to restore his throwing power to what it once was. Furthermore, what makes him of interest to the Yankees, is his ability to get stronger as the game goes on. Few other power pitchers have the ability to throw harder as the game goes on. Colon is notorious for still throwing four-seam fastballs at above 96 miles per hour as the game approaches the fifth and six innings. His ability to pitch late in games, with seven seasons of at least 200 innings a season, will take the pressure off the bullpen. All of these attributes combined will make him a great grab for the Yankees, granted that Colon gets back on his high horse.

Things with Colon seem to be up and up, as he continues to impress the Yankees in their 2011 spring training camp. In two starts and five innings pitched, he has a 1.80 ERA with four hits, one walk and one earned run.

Colon is the big guy wearing the #40 in the following video. In the first drill, he goes third: