Joba Chamberlain

This spring, as the Yankees decided to toss Joba Chamberlain in the bullpen (where he belongs) I kept hearing people being critical of Chamberlain for all the wrong reasons. I heard this phrase over and over again. Over-hyped punk.

Overhyped… That might be true with the “Joba Rules” etc. but can we really blame the kid for that? He’s not the one who decided that he needed to be brought through this disastrous babying system.

It was during last night's game at the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim that I realized Joe Girardi does indeed hate New York Yankees relief pitcher David Robertson .

Why do I think that? Because after another game which has Robertson finishing off a tough inning by retiring batters with ease, Girardi pulls him in favor of a new reliever to begin the next inning.

Pure lunacy.  

The New York Yankees.  Lord of their realm, with fans who let you know it.

Talking to a Yankee fan is generally an exercise in futility, since they are programmed to utter two basic phrases:

Phrase one: “Twenty-seven rings, baby”, or a something along that vein.

Through five innings, CC Sabathia appeared on his way to an Opening Night victory over the Red Sox at Fenway Park.

But the Yankees' ace quickly ran into trouble in the sixth, issuing a walk to Dustin Pedroia before Victor Martinez doubled and Kevin Youkilis brought them both home with a triple to cut Boston's deficit to 5-4.

After the Sox tied the game at 5, New York once again jumped ahead at 7-5, only to see the lead disappear another time thanks to poor middle relief by newly acquired Chan Ho Park and always erratic Damaso Marte.

When I get home from my dorm room during school breaks, I often like to see my little brother, spend some quality time with my mom, and talk sports with Dad—a fellow pinstripes fan.

The only thing I enjoy more than these things—yes I said more—is seeing my autographed Joba Chamberlain jersey that hangs above my bed.

He has been my favorite player on the Yankees since he was called up. And that won't change anytime soon.

When Joba Chamberlain took the mound in his first major league appearance, he piqued everyone's interest. The Yankees hyped him up as a special pitcher.

Chamberlain backed it up by pitching well in relief for the first few weeks of his callup in 2007. For good measure, he earned a standing ovation from the fans and respect from his teammates for throwing the ball at Kevin Youkilis’ head.

With the announcement Thursday that New York Yankees right-handed pitcher Phil Hughes will be the team's fifth starter, a firestorm has arisen over what many now call the misuse of fellow right-handed flamethrower Joba Chamberlain.

Say what you want about George Steinbrenner and his management style, but I guarantee that the Joba Chamberlain debacle would not have happened under his watch.

The word came down today that Phil Hughes has won the fifth starter spot over Joba. It's the right decision–I'm not arguing that. The problem is that the Yankees have spent the last three years messing with Joba's head and because of it, he may very well end up needing a one-way ticket out of the Bronx to get his career back on track.

So it was all for nothing.

The innings limits, the pitch limits, the extra days off between starts the Yankees forced Joba Chamberlain to undergo during the second half of 2009—that rendered him impotent come the playoffs—under the guise that they were "protecting his arm" so that he could at long last become a full fledged starter this season...it was all a lie.

Tossed aside because of 3 2/3 spring innings.

This announcement doesn’t exactly come as a surprise, but Yankees manager Joe Girardi made it official today, Phil Hughes—not Joba Chamberlain—will be the Yankees fifth starter going into the season.