starts, Kennedy posted a 6–1 record with a 1.29 ERA, striking out 72 batters in 63 innings and holding his opponents to a .183 batting average. He received a promotion to the Double-A Trenton Thunder at the start of June and won his Double-A debut against the Binghamton Mets on June 6, 2007. On July 24, Kennedy and his rotation mate Joba Chamberlain were both promoted from Trenton to the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees. At the time of his promotion, Kennedy led the Yankees' farm system with 129 strikeouts and was tied for first with 11 wins. He made only six starts with Scranton, going 1–1 with a 2.08 ERA and striking out 34 batters in innings. Altogether, Kennedy posted a 12–3 minor league record in 2007, with a 1.91 ERA and 163 strikeouts in 25 starts and innings. New York Yankees (2007–2009) After Mike Mussina lost three starts in a row for the Yankees, recording a 17.69 ERA in the process, Kennedy was called up to take his spot in the rotation at the end of August, becoming the second Yankee that season to climb from Class A to major league ball. He made his major league debut on September 1, 2007, allowing only one earned run in seven innings of an eventual 9–6 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. After going 1–0 with a 1.89 ERA in his first three major league starts, Kennedy had to be scratched from a scheduled September 22 game against the Toronto Blue Jays because he strained a muscle in his upper back. The injury forced Kennedy to miss the remainder of the season. Rather than acquiring a veteran free agent starting pitcher during the 2007–08 offseason, the Yankees chose to entrust their starting rotation to a trio of young pitchers: Kennedy, Joba Chamberlain, and Phil Hughes. The plan did not work as expected: Kennedy went 0–2 with an 8.37 ERA in his first six games and was optioned to Triple-A on May 4, with Darrell Rasner taking his place at the back of the rotation. After finding success in the International League, including a four-game stretch with a 1.33 ERA, Kennedy was called back up to the Yankees for an emergency start against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on August 8. He allowed nine hits and five runs and was pulled out of the game in the third inning. Kennedy's major