It was not a good night for the Yankees. As if losing to the Rangers 9-5 wasn't bad enough, Joba Chamberlain had to leave the game early with tightness and soreness in his shoulder. The Yankees rotation is shakey as is, barely coping with the loss of their ace Chien Ming Wang, but the loss of Joba could be fatal.
JC is returning to NY today for medical evaluation and at this time, there aren't many details. Pete Abraham is reporting that Dan Giese is going to replace Darrel Rasner in the rotation. Ian Kennedy might be coming back soon as well, especially if Joba has to miss a start.
I'm sure this incident will start bringing out guys like Goose Gossage who will once again go on about how Joba belongs in the bullpen and a new wave of controversy will start up again. I stand by my position that if Joba can be a starter, he should start. The caveat is that if injury problems creep up repeatedly, it's time to consider a move to the bullpen. Chamberalin wouldn't be the first pitcher who couldn't handle the load and had to be moved to the pen for injury reasons. That being said, if he can get over this temporary setback and go back to pitching injury free as a starter, that's where he belongs.
Damaso Marte walked the bases loaded and then gave up a grand slam home run in the ninth inning, once again showing that the scouting reports regarding his inconsistency were on target. Clean-shaven Giambi went 3 for 4 and Xavier Nady went 2 for 4. The Yankees can hit some days, and they can pitch some other days. Someone needs to get everyone on the same page again for the winning to resume.
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