May 22, 2008
Joba Moves Toward the Rotation
Last night I wondered if the Yankees were starting to move Joba Chamberlain to the rotation with his two innings pitched. Cashman announced afterward that was the plan:
April 1, 2008: Toronto Blue Jays Vs. New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in New York City, NY - Opening Day. Yankee pitcher Joba Chamberlain pitches through the eighth inning. This is a nice example of the power Joba brings to a pitch and makes clear his great upper body strength.
Photo: Icon SMI
"I'm excited," said the 22-year-old Chamberlain, a stellar setup man since he was called up from the minors last August. "I have zero question marks."
General manager Brian Cashman wouldn't divulge many details about the plan, such as how often Chamberlain will pitch, when he will join the rotation and whether he could be sent to the minors for a few starts first.
But Cashman did say he asked Chamberlain what role he preferred, and the right-hander said he'd like an opportunity to start this season. Cashman said the Yankees targeted a particular portion of their schedule when they want Chamberlain in the rotation, and to achieve that he needs to begin the transformation now.
"We're going back to the purpose that we drafted him and the projection that we had for him," Cashman said. "This was a road we planned on taking. Now it's time to take it."
Looking at the schedule, the Yankees have a stretch between July 3 and August 10 in which they play Boston seven times, Tampa Bay twice, LAnaheim seven times, and Toronto, Oakland and Minnesota. All those teams are pitching well, so the Yankees are going to keep their runs allowed low. I bet Chamberlain starts in late June so he can get one or two under his belt before facing the Red Sox.
Thanks to Tony O for pointing out this article in the comments to the previous post.
Posted by David Pinto at
07:53 AM
|
Pitchers
|
TrackBack (0)
So was this the plan all along -- let Joba relieve for several weeks to keep his innings down, and then move him into the rotation? Is this a panic move, in response to the tattered rotation? Or is Hank throwing his weight around behind the scenes?
We'll probably never know. What we do know is that Joba will almost certainly help the rotation, and the Yankee bullpen just got substantially weaker.
Not a panic move. This was the announced plan before the start of the season.
Mmmm... I could be wrong, but I seem to remember Cashman saying, not that long ago, that Joba was in the bullpen for all of 2008, and that it would be dangerous to make the transition to a starting role in midseason.
Not what I've heard/read, which was to transition Joba during the season. They wanted to build up his arm/innings pitched. You don't do that by limiting him to 80 IP this year. More like he needs around 140 IP.
"I have zero question marks."
What a blowhard. This guy couldn't give up enough runs to make me happy.