Yankees 2009 team numbers, with MLB rank in parentheses:
Pitching
ERA: 4.28 (11th)
FIP: 4.32 (13th)
Baserunning
Stolen Bases: 111 (11th)
EqBRR: -6.4 (20th)
Defense
UZR: -17.6 (19th)
PADE: -0.39 (13th)
Hmm, not overly impressive. Let's look at some batting numbers:
wOBA: .366 (1st)
OBP: .362 (1st)
SLG: .478 (1st)
The goal is to score more runs than you allow. Hitting, pitching, defense and baserunning are all factors in this run scoring/prevention balance. The Yankees had the 2nd best run differential in baseball this season and they did it without the benefit of great pitching or above average defense. Home runs are not evil and pitching alone does not win championships.
On a personal note I'm glad this nonsense is over. My RSS Feed won't be clogged with stories about Chase Utley being the greatest 2nd baseman of all-time or ex post facto results-based 2nd guessing of Joe Girardi's decision to go with a 3-man rotation. Now we can get down to the offseason business we know and love - trade and free agent rumors, 90% of which turn out to be totally bogus.