The Joba debate

I'll probably have more to say about the great Joba debate of 2008 (it rhymes!) before long. However, Peter Abraham summed up my opinion pretty well today:

Mike and the Mad Dog were at Legends Field the last two days and interviewed assorted Yankees. Listen to the clips on WFAN.com if you want.

I just listened to their interview with Brian Cashman and wanted to put my head through a wall as they discussed Joba Chamberlain. They want him to pitch the 8th inning based on the 24 innings everybody saw last season.

What they (and many other people) don’t seem to understand is that Chamberlain was brilliant as a starter in the minors last season. Not good, brilliant. He was 9-2 with a 2.45 ERA. He was considered one of the best two or three starter prospects in the game.

The Yankees scouted him and drafted him as a starter. He throws four pitches and stands 6-2, 230 pounds. He’s a classic big, power right-hander. Using Joba as for one inning would be like saying A-Rod should be a pinch hitter because he’s such a great hitter.

Joba is, by most accounts, the number one pitching prospect in the game today. You wouldn't put Beckett or Johan in the pen, even though they'd be extremely successful there; you'd probably be laughed at for suggesting it. While Joba isn't at their level yet, he could reach that level very soon. He could be the Yankees' answer to those pitchers. It's beyond foolish to take someone with his level of talent and put him there.

And they day Mike and the Mad Dog have a valid opinion about present day baseball is the day pigs fly, Hell freezes over, and all the Diet Coke he drinks actually helps Mike to lose a pound.