It’s a shame that Andy Pettitte’s dark night of the soul, in which, to paraphrase his testimony to House interrogators, he had to choose between Roger Clemens and God, will dominate reportage from the Yankees camp, because this is one of the more compelling camps that the Yankees have had in years. It doesn’t need a soap opera, it doesn’t need a reenactment of Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible,” because its drama is that of pure sports survival of the fittest: The Yankees must grow younger or die.

Money has protected the Yankees from many a mistake and kept them in the postseason hunt for almost 15 seasons, but in baseball even the green has its limits. With 29 other clubs grasping for the top 1% of pitchers, there is a real scarcity of aces. You can’t buy what’s not available, and because George Steinbrenner lacked the patience to grow his own pitching prospects, the Yankees were forced time and again to go the expensive trade and free agent route. Looking to find diamonds, they would bring home overripe tomatoes, either overrated nonentities like Carl Pavano and Jaret Wright or aged greats like Kevin Brown and Randy Johnson, whose physical capabilities no longer matched their reputations.

Now the Yankees, having lived through the indignity of having the game’s largest payroll and yet needing to rely on the likes of Aaron Small, Shawn Chacon, and Sidney Ponson to carry their flag into October, have finally gotten religion. Whereas in the bad old days of Steinbrennerian intemperateness they would have hedged their bets by signing a boatload of veterans despite the presence of top pitching prospects, there is no safety net this time. If Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, and Joba Chamberlain don’t perform up to expectations, maybe Alan Horne or Jeff Marquez will, but either way, the choices are between this collection of youngsters and that collection of youngsters, not between the youngsters and Rich Dotson. Mike Mussina can only duck the falling calendar pages for so long, especially if he picks up where he left off last season, with line drives undressing him like Charlie Brown.

If all goes according to plan, the 2008 season will have a flavor that has not graced Yankee Stadium in more than 30 years, that of a real youth movement taking root. Even if the youngsters fail, and there is more than a small chance of that, for it is the way of young pitching to self-destruct, the Yankees should be applauded for trying something new, instead of subjecting their fans to another false dawn and three years of Kyle Lohse and Kris Benson. Sometimes you have to take a step back before you can take a step forward, as earnestly as the Yankees hope this gamble pays in a championship right away.

For a preview of what could go wrong, consider Hughes, victimized last season by the two big “I’s” of young pitching: injuries and inconsistency. Think of Francisco Liriano of the Twins, a 22-year-old All-Star in 2006, a picture on the back of a milk carton in 2007. Think of past Yankees pitching prospects like Brad Arnsberg, Sam Militello, Brien Taylor, all felled by injuries. There are no guarantees. Fortunately, the Yankees finally realize that the Pavanos of the world don’t offer much more in the way of surety than the youngsters do, and the youngsters have the benefit of being cheaper and having a higher upside.

Away from the mound there are other mysteries to solve. Johnny Damon was a disaster at bat last year and is at an age in which the precarious balance of skills that make for his offensive contribution are prone to collapse. For the second year in a row, Melky Cabrera finished the season in an epic slump and needs to find consistency to establish himself as something greater than tempting trade-bait. First base is wide open, and all the potential choices have something objectionable about them. Derek Jeter’s legs looked heavy and slow in the second half last year, and his ability to show some defensive sprightliness will have a big impact on the development of the young pitchers — every single that goes through shortstop will go on the pitchers’ records, not Jeter’s, and errors will lead to more runs allowed and higher pitch counts.

Perhaps that last issue is the greatest danger facing Yankees decision-makers this year, missing the forest for the trees, confusing pitching with defense, interpreting a spring training shelling as meaning that a pitcher who rampaged through the minors last year isn’t ready or lacks confidence. Something that would lead them to bring on whatever Orioles releasee happens to be available at the moment. It’s all about patience. The season will go right for the Yankees only if they’re willing to stay their nervous hands and risk it going wrong.

Mr. Goldman is the author of “Forging Genius,” a biography of Casey Stengel.