The Yankees have turned Joba Chamberlain into the the Cowardly Lion

What the hell have the Yankees done to Joba Chamberlain?
In my rotisserie draft this year a big argument ensued because one participant claimed he yelled $21 before the gavel hit and the auctioneer claimed he had not. The other teams were split on the issue and everyone started taking sides. Half the league felt the bidding was still open with $21 as the price and the other half felt that Joba had been had for $20.

The guys in my league have been together for 16 years with no change in ownership and we are a tight bunch. At least we were. We’ve had squabbles before, but never anything like this. The year is almost over and there are still hard feelings over that issue. I would swear on a bible that another owner didn’t make a trade with me this year because of the way I claimed the issue unfolded, and not because it wasn’t good for the longer term outlook of his franchise.

At the time it was thought that this issue might determine the outcome of the league this year. The team that we all thought clearly had the best staff in our league going into the season (Tim Lincecum, Roy Halladay, Zack Greinke, Johan Santana, Chris Carpenter) was about to add Joba to the mix and that was going to be it, he was going to place a lock on virtually all the pitching categories.

Joba was a can’t miss. He was unhittable. The feeling was that Greinke or Carpenter would be on his reserve list awaiting an opportunity if there was an injury. Boy did we all have that wrong.

If you had Grienke and Carpenter on your roster chances are that you did quite well for yourself in the pitching categories this year……. Unless you had Joba too bringing you down.

 - 156 1/3 innings pitched
 - 4.78 ERA (The last place team in our league has an ERA of 4.67!)
 - 167 Hits and 76 Walks for a WHIP of 1.55 (The last place team in our league has WHIP of 1.44!)
 - 9 Wins (woop-de-friggin`-do)
 - 132 K’s (52 MLB pitchers had more strikeouts then he did!)

The Yankees have taken an absolute guaranteed force and ruined his confidence, his effectiveness, and maybe his future.

I have been of the believe all along that if they wanted to limit his innings (but wanted him to be a starter over the long haul) they should have let him start warming up in the 4th inning and brought him in the game at the start of the 5th inning letting him throw lights out for the 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th. By having him throw just 3 or 4 innings at the beginning of the game has not only messed him up, it messed up the bull pen. He’s out there counting him pitched in the 1st inning as he throws them knowing he’s got to come out when he gets into the 70’s (usually 3rd inning for him)! And that left the bull pen scrambling around trying to figure out how to mix and match its way for 5-6 innings.

I don’t know who is ultimately responsible for his usage, but they have done both Joba and the Yankees a disservice. He just turned 24, not 18. He should as much have the stamina and power that he will ever have as a pitcher at this point.

The Yankees are so worried about him getting hurt. Would the Yankees really rather have Joba end up with an 18 year journeyman career, or a 12 year career like Sandy Koufax………. They have turned this kid into the Cowardly Lion!

LET THE GUY THROW THE BALL TILL HIS ARM FALLS OFF! If I were his agent I would be pissed. Keith A. Baker

Keith A. Baker is a sports agent in Stamford, Connecticut. His goal is to offer a unique insight to the world of sports and Major League Baseball in particular. Comments in his columns are for entertainment purposes only and do not reflect the views and opinions of his firm or his clients.

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The Doctor is in...

Question #1: What the heck happened to Mike Pelfrey this year? He showed so much promise last year and did nothing but regress. Who is the real Pelfrey, this year’s or last? – Lawrence, Post University

Lawrence: Hate to say it, but I think this year's Mike Pelfrey is closer to what you will see down the road. He's a decent pitcher without a killer pitch. Maybe if the Mets were better, I could buy in, but right now the Mets are in shambles. Avoid.

Question #2: What is your take on Joba Chamberlain going into next year? – Junior, Newington, CT

Junior: Joba has all the skills to be a top notch AL starter. Dr. Roto thinks that Joba continues his ascent to stardom next year...give him time, he will be a stud.

Question #3: Is J. R. Towles still a top catching prospect or has his time past? – Fred, Perrysburg, OH

Fred: Back in 2007, the Astros thought they had something in Towles. He was high on their radar and looked like their catcher of the future. Since then, he's bounced around over the past couple of seasons, and has been nicked up with injuries. Let's give him a bit more time, but also check out to see what the Astros do in the off-season. That should be telling.

Question #4: Based on a $260 cap, what do you consider fair value for Curtis Granderson? – Kenny, St. Mary’s, PA

Kenny: Granderson has had a pretty good season in 2009. He has 30 HR and 20 SB, not too shabby. His runs scored have been low (due to Detroit's anemic offense). He also is hitting around .280 (big step up for him in that department). If you could get him for $25, be very happy.

Question #5: Guys in my league have soured on Homer Bailey, I haven’t. Am I insightful or a fool? – Aldo, Seneca, SC

Aldo: You may be on to something here, Aldo. Bailey has been excellent as of late. He has all the tools and nothing to prove in the minors. I still hate the bandbox ballpark he plays in and I don't trust Dusty Baker at all. But...he looks like a good sleeper for next year.

The Doctor is out...

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Ask Dr. Roto your fantasy baseball questions.

Roto-Rx

f your question was not answered this time, you can go directly to the source @ https://www.roto-rx.com/ where Dr. Roto will answer all your Fantasy Baseball and Football questions.

The Doctor is in...

Question #1: What the heck happened to Mike Pelfrey this year? He showed so much promise last year and did nothing but regress. Who is the real Pelfrey, this year’s or last? – Lawrence, Post University

Lawrence: Hate to say it, but I think this year's Mike Pelfrey is closer to what you will see down the road. He's a decent pitcher without a killer pitch. Maybe if the Mets were better, I could buy in, but right now the Mets are in shambles. Avoid.

Question #2: What is your take on Joba Chamberlain going into next year? – Junior, Newington, CT

Junior: Joba has all the skills to be a top notch AL starter. Dr. Roto thinks that Joba continues his ascent to stardom next year...give him time, he will be a stud.

Question #3: Is J. R. Towles still a top catching prospect or has his time past? – Fred, Perrysburg, OH

Fred: Back in 2007, the Astros thought they had something in Towles. He was high on their radar and looked like their catcher of the future. Since then, he's bounced around over the past couple of seasons, and has been nicked up with injuries. Let's give him a bit more time, but also check out to see what the Astros do in the off-season. That should be telling.

Question #4: Based on a $260 cap, what do you consider fair value for Curtis Granderson? – Kenny, St. Mary’s, PA

Kenny: Granderson has had a pretty good season in 2009. He has 30 HR and 20 SB, not too shabby. His runs scored have been low (due to Detroit's anemic offense). He also is hitting around .280 (big step up for him in that department). If you could get him for $25, be very happy.

Question #5: Guys in my league have soured on Homer Bailey, I haven’t. Am I insightful or a fool? – Aldo, Seneca, SC

Aldo: You may be on to something here, Aldo. Bailey has been excellent as of late. He has all the tools and nothing to prove in the minors. I still hate the bandbox ballpark he plays in and I don't trust Dusty Baker at all. But...he looks like a good sleeper for next year.

The Doctor is out...

Follow Dr. Roto on Twitter......

Ask Dr. Roto your fantasy baseball questions.

Joba Rules 3.0 - What a joke

What is it with these Joba Rules? This is Major League Baseball, not a recreational Little League where you can’t throw on consecutive days or more than three innings in a game.

3 innings and 35 pitches and out of the game! Are you kidding me? I am surprised that they let the kid play Guitar Hero, lest he might hurt himself!

If you are going to make it so that Joba Chamberlain can only throw 35 pitches then he should be in the bull-pen and he can pitch the 7th and 8th innings. Phil Hughes gets the starter spot and that’s it.

What’s the point on being a starting pitcher if you can only go 3 innings? The Yankee’s have the best record in baseball in spite of themselves.

Joba may turn out to be a wonderful starting pitcher, something that was worth the wait. But he’s a young healthy strong young man and if he’s got all this talent and upside they are wasting it.

Exactly what are they waiting for? If he pitches for 15 years and has an exceptional 10 years, what’s the problem with those 10 years being his 1st 10 years?

Either Joba has a condition or injury that has yet to be disclosed, one that will find out that he somewhere down the road, or they Yankees are just morons.

What if he gets hit by a car? What if he falls down the steps? There are 50 bazillion combinations and permutations of things that can happen to a person that would prevent him from being a successful MLB pitcher. The Yankees are at risk of having a pitcher on their roster for 3 years that they claim can be one of the very best in baseball, yet never have given him the opportunity to do that. Jerks.

And how the hell am I gonna get any stats from the guy? He can pitch 3 perfect innings and I can’t even get a win! Gee Wiz!

Has there ever been a pitcher more coddled and babied by a manager and front office than Joba Chamberlain?

When he first came up, the initial "Joba Rules" were developed, mostly to protect Joba from Joe Torre, who made a habit of overusing relief pitchers. That version of the rules prevented Torre from using Joba until his arm fell off, as he had done previously with Scott Proctor, Paul Quantrill, Tom Gordon, Tanyon Sturtze and others who didn't have nearly the talent Joba had.

Those rules made sense, because Torre was, and is, an idiot when it comes to managing a bullpen.

Version 2.0 of the Joba Rules began last season in the form of an overall innings limit. When arm trouble prevented him from reaching their innings goal, 2.0 carried into the 2009 season.

Now, with Joba closing in on the presumed limit, we've been introduced to the latest set of guidelines to protect him, which apparently include removing him from a game after three innings and 35 pitches.

P.S. - Does anybody in Boston still want to talk about how Mark Teixeira isn't worth the money? - Peter Costa

Pete is a serious Rotisserie participant playing the same league with the same guys for 17 years. Not only has Peter never finished in the money; he’s finished last 13 times and no higher than 10th (in a league with 14 guys). Join us in following Peter’s trials, tribulations and frustrations, as he attempts to navigate his way out of the basement in 2009.

REMINDER - Starting September 1st, you can get your fill of both NFL and NCAA Football on our sister site @ Extra Point (Football Blogs)

No Joba - Phil

I was in bar / restaurant last night watching the Yankees / Red Sox game and I overheard the bartender asking a baseball trivia question to the 30 or so men sitting at the bar.

Anyone who answered the question correctly was to receive free drinks for the rest of the night. The rules were that you had to write the answer on a napkin and put it into a hat.

The question was:

In this decade, there was a New York Yankee 8th inning pitcher who was Mariano Rivera’s set-up guy. During 26 games he threw 31 innings, gave up only 20 hits and 8 walks for a WHIP of .903, gave up only 3 runs having an ERA of .097, had 39 strikeouts. Who is that Yankee player?

When the napkins were collected and the answers read there were NO WINNERS. Every single guy in the bar answered Joba Chamberlain.

The answer was Phil Hughes. Those are the stats from his last 26 appearances. - Paul Leume

Paul Leume is a MLB columnist from Montreal, Canada. Paul, a one-time beat writer covering the Montreal Expos for the Montreal Gazette is a proud grandfather of 3 girls and now spends his time offering his thoughts and prospective on Major League Baseball on a variety of blogs and websites throughout Al Gore’s internet.

REMINDER - Starting September 1st, you can can your fill of both NFL and NCAA Football on our sister site @ Extra Point (Football Blogs)

Neftali rules?

When the New York Yankees brought Joba Chamberlain up in 2007, they had Joba rules. For every inning he pitched, he got a day off. In Chamberlain's case, that applied on the front end too (he could pitch two innings if he had two days off before the outing). It was an example of a team being careful with a young starter's arm as he was used out of the bullpen in the majors.

The Rangers now have Neftali rules. Anytime Neftali Feliz is on the mound in a game, he gets a day off. If he pitches 2 innings, he gets two days. If it's 2 1/3 (or a bundle of pitches), that could go to three days.

Last night, Feliz threw 2 pitches to get a huge double play ball to get out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth. He went back out in the seventh and threw 16 pitches for 18 pitches total. Manager Ron Washington pulled him after that because since he threw just 18 pitches and 1 1/3 innings, that means he could pitch him again on Saturday -- with one day off -- if necessary. No word on whether he would only pitch one inning in that case (but probably so).

Most people probably think this is smart. The argument is that it may seem drastic and it does handcuff the manager to have a guy in the bullpen that has to be used like that, but the organization can't take a chance on hurting Feliz's arm long-term. Better to be cautious with a talent like that.

Nolan Ryan has made a big push this year to let his pitchers throw as much a possible. He was campaigning all over the nation earlier thi syear to let pitchers throw more. They are trying to do away with pitch counts (within reason) in the Rangers minor league system. I don’t understand why this should be any different? Seems like Nolan isn't as keen on that idea as he previously sounded? I wonder if some of their minor leaguers have been getting hurt?

What do you think? Good idea? - Keith A. Baker

Keith A. Baker is a sports agent in Stamford, Connecticut. His goal is to offer a unique insight to the world of sports and Major League Baseball in particular. Comments in his columns are for entertainment purposes only and do not reflect the views and opinions of his firm or his clients.