25 Chasing 28: The New York Yankees Roster and Andrew Brackman

All right, I know this is a stretch, but we're one short of 25 player profiles and Andrew Brackman is much more interesting than Ramiro Pena or Greg Golson.

Name: Andrew Warren Brackman

DOB: 12/4/1985

Contract Status: The Yankees hold team options on Brackman for the 2011-2013 seasons at a total of about $7.5 million

2010 in review: Brackman did more to re-establish his prospect status than any other player in the Yankees system, perhaps even more than any other player in the minors. After an Oliver Perez-esque 2009, he regained his control without a significant hit to his strikeout rate while logging 140 innings, which would put him on decent footing to start for nearly a full season in 2011.

The Good: In addition to the downward plane that comes with a pitcher that's nearly seven-feet tall, Brackman can touch the high 90s with his fastball with a healthy 20 mph gap between that and his secondary pitches.

The Bad: Brackman has taken somewhat of an unusual path to the majors thus far. After missing all of 2008 to Tommy John surgery, he pitched well in High-A and Double-A, although let's not forget that he was among the oldest players in each league.

2011 Outlook: Brackman appears to be a good candidate for a call-up at some point this season, as he's already gotten solid reviews from Joe Girardi and others in Spring Training. It remains to be seen in what role though; barring a catastrophe, the Yankees are unlikely to need a high leverage reliever, so calling him up to pitch the 6th inning in Ivan Nova's starts wouldn't make much sense.  What he can bring as a starter is equally up in the air, but I think the Yankees have a greater need in that department.