As the Yankees look forward to their first season under Joe Girardi’s tutelage, one of the biggest questions the manager has to face is the role of Joba Chamberlain.
On Tuesday, the New York Post reported that Chamberlain would begin the 2008 baseball season as Mariano Rivera’s setup man. This would take place during April and May.
In June, Girardi decided, he will be sent down to the minors to stretch out his arm so that he can be part of New York’s starting rotation for the second half of the season.
As Yankee fans can remember, last season Chamberlain worked under very strict pitch and innings limits, which came to become nicknamed as the “Joba Rules”. According to the Post, this year’s “Joba Rules” will consist of limiting the 22-year old fire-baller to 140 innings in the upcoming season. If 140 innings is the goal, starting him out of the bullpen for the early months of the season is a reasonable decision.
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The Yankees starting Chamberlain out of the bullpen will not only protect his arm, but will also provide the team with sufficient time to find his successor as setup man. The Yankees reportedly will audition several young relievers early in the season from a group including Alan Horne, Jose Veras, Ross Ohlendorf, and Edwar Ramirez, in order to uncover Joba’s successor.
Chamberlain became Rivera’s primary setup man during the final two months of last season, and he will report to the Yankees spring training camp on Wednesday. He will enter the camp along with two other unheralded young pitchers, Phil Hughes, who posted a 5-3 mark and a 4.46 era in 2007, and Ian Kennedy, who was had a 1.89 era in only three starts.
The Yankees are looking to their youth more than in recent years to get them back to the World Series.
Chamberlain has been throwing off a mound for the past month at the Yankees’ minor league complex. The 2008 season will bring with it answers to our questions about the role of Joba Chamberlain.
With the “Joba Rules” working for him, he is likely to be an impact pitcher in the MLB for years to come.
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6 months ago
Providing there is not another gnat attack, Joba will be a dominant force in the Yankee bullpen.
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