Joba Chamberlain

One of the hot topics for debate amongst Yankee fans for the past two years has been the role of Joba Chamberlain in the pitching staff. He was simply dominant out of the bullpen and I just knew that the Yankees were going to keep him there, since he was practically untouchable. When the Season was over, one could not help but look into the advantages of having Chamberlain as the bridge to Rivera and the sense of hopelessness opposing teams would get if the game got to the seventh inning. This, however was not the plan the organization had for Joba, as general manager Brian Cashman and the coaching staff announced that they would use him as a starter to get the full compliment of his talents. While it seemed totally illogical to the fans to take a pitcher who had so much success out of the Bullpen and suddenly place him in the rotation, where so many pitcher had fallen victim to sour careers before him. Nonetheless, support for Chamberlain came as Yankees fans still wanted to show their confidence in the team, as well as support for the up and coming Joba in hopes he would prove all the naysayers wrong and anchor a championship formula; which was accomplished this past season, though he worked as a reliever not a starter in the post season.

As a Fan of Chamberlain I would like no more than to see him return to the bullpen as I have said previously. I say this on behalf of his statistical output in the bullpen as compared to as a starter. Who can argue against an ERA of 0.38 in his first year as a reliever as opposed to a 4.75 in his first years a a full time starter. It is most probable that his inconsistencies as a starting pitcher are due to the Yankees holding him back in hopes of preventing injury that could hamper his career as it did to Mark Prior. While I do understand the logic behind it, I cannot condone coddling a pitcher to protect their arm, young pitcher like Justin Verlander, Zack Grienke, Tim Lincecum, and Andrew Bailey were not held back by their respected teams, and they each have carved a name for themselves as elite pitchers in the major leagues. As a team that now has twenty seven championships I am certain I speak for all Yankees fans in saying that they should not allow other organizations to best them in player development. Whatever the future holds for Joba I certainly hope he is successful in the endeavors of making a name for yourself in the most unrelenting sports haven in the world...The Yankee Universe