Joba to Starting Rotation

Drowning_in_the_Sea_of_Red · May 23, 2008

Joe Girardi knows that Joba Chamberlain would do whatever the Yankees asked. So when he spoke with Chamberlain on Tuesday, he tried hard to find out exactly how much he wanted to shift to the rotation.

“I’m not your manager, I’m your friend,” Girardi said he told Chamberlain. “Is this what you want to do?”

When Chamberlain said yes, Girardi asked another way, “Is this what you would tell your dad?”

That is a crucial question for Chamberlain, whose father, Harlan, is his inspiration. They talk every day, and in a telephone interview Thursday, Harlan Chamberlain said his son was excited about his new opportunity.

“I mean, he’s excited every day he goes to Yankee Stadium, but there was just a little more excitement in his voice,” said Harlan Chamberlain, who is recovering from a respiratory illness and hopes to visit the Yankees next week in Minnesota.

“Joba likes challenges, and if he didn’t feel he could do it, he would tell you,” he said. “It’s just another step toward his dream — to be a starting pitcher on the biggest stage in major league baseball, and that’s for the New York Yankees. He’s ready to take the next step.”

That is what the Yankees believe, and that is why Girardi let Chamberlain throw 35 pitches Wednesday. Girardi said Chamberlain’s next scheduled appearance is Saturday, and he will gradually increase his workload. By the time he can throw 70 to 75 pitches, Girardi said, Chamberlain could be ready to start.

Chamberlain succeeded as a starter in college and in the minors last season, but joined the Yankees as a reliever so he would not exceed his innings limit. Girardi explained the rationale behind moving Chamberlain back to the rotation.

“Obviously when you look at the amount of innings in a season, a top-end starter throws a lot more than an eighth-inning guy,” Girardi said. “And you want your best pitchers, in a sense, on the mound for more innings. Now, there are guys that are great pitchers that are closers that just aren’t meant to physically be starters. But we believe Joba can do it.”

Pitching more innings was the main reason Chamberlain said he wanted to go back to starting. “It’s exciting to know I have a chance to help this team win ballgames, not only in the eighth inning, but the first through seventh innings,” he said.

That is also the opinion of Girardi, General Manager Brian Cashman and the co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner. The players do not necessarily share it.

“It’s not my decision,” Johnny Damon said. “We’ll just have to see how it pans out. If we get to the playoffs, we’ll see what kind of role he’ll have. He could go back to that role. But right now, this is the decision management is making and hopefully it’s the right decision.”

Derek Jeter said he did not know about Chamberlain’s new role until a reporter told him Thursday. Jeter’s initial reaction was mixed; he could not decide whether a setup man or a starting pitcher was more valuable.

“I don’t know if you could really say one is more important than the other because they both go hand in hand,” Jeter said. “You could have the best starting pitching in the world, but if the bullpen doesn’t do the job, you waste the start. But if you have the best bullpen in the world and the starters don’t do the job, how does that help?”

The Yankees have stressed that Chamberlain’s move is unrelated to the struggles of their starters, who went into Thursday’s game with a 4.92 earned run average this season.

But Jason Giambi looked at the move in the context of the season, with the Yankees often unable to take advantage of Chamberlain because of the offense’s struggles.

“We loved him in the bullpen in the beginning; that’s what was best for our team then,” Giambi said. “But with Phil Hughes and those guys hurt, it’s definitely changed our dynamics. The problem is when we can’t stay in the game to take advantage of the bullpen.”

Giambi added: “He’s one of those guys that has the ability, with his arm, to be one of those rare athletes who can change the outcome of a game. You’d like to see him out there a lot more. Unfortunately, the way things have been going, we haven’t had a chance to use his ability. We haven’t been ahead in enough games. Right now, as long as he stays healthy and he’s able to adapt to it, I think he’ll be great for us.”

The Yankees also must adapt to life without Chamberlain as the setup man. Kyle Farnsworth will be the primary eighth-inning reliever, and Girardi talked to him Thursday about his role.

“Farnsy has thrown the ball very well for us all year long,” Girardi said, “and you’re probably going to see Farnsy in that situation a lot.”

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