Yanks Sweep ChiSox; Joba Rules Only Three Innings
The New York Yankees completed a three-game weekend sweep over the Chicago White Sox with an 8-3 win on a beautiful Sunday afternoon at Yankee Stadium in the Beautiful Bronx.
Joba Chamberlain was the Yankees starting pitcher; but, really, he was only a three-inning set-up man for construction of a very long bridge by the bullpen that thankfully led to victory.
In the "new and improved" [?] version of the Joba Rules, Chamberlain was slated to pitch only three innings -- no matter how well he pitched. The top secret "rules" which are known by fewer people than those who know the top secret recipes of Coca Cola and Kentucky Fried Chicken have left all of us in the Yankees Universe, and I'm sure other baseball fans as well, to wonder: what exactly will be Joba's innings limitations and pitch counts for the rest of the 2009 season?
I mean, come on already. Is it too much to let Chamberlain pitch at least five innings in games that he starts?
Joba threw "only" 35 pitches over three innings of work. He gave up two runs on four hits, walked none and struck out one, and, then, was replaced by Alfredo Aceves at the start of the fourth inning with the Yankees leading 3-2. Joba Chamberlain's effort earned him a "no decision" without any chance of getting the win in this game because he did not pitch five innings [a decision made by the Yankees braintrust].
It is not only the fact that Joba was allowed to pitch only three innings that is annoying. The limited time on the mound by Joba meant the bullpen would be given extra pressure to perform perfectly; and, it was annoying to sit through a parade of five Yankee relievers entering the game starting from the fourth inning with our starting pitcher sitting on the bench.
The Yankees only had a 3-2 lead at this time; and, the odds are: the more relievers that take the mound in a game, not every relief pitcher is going to pitch well. Also, using some of these relievers in this game would prevent them from appearing in the next game or two, when they may be really needed.
Until the Yankees reach the eight inning in a game, where Phil Hughes has performed brilliantly; and, of course, the ninth inning, in which the "Great Mariano" Rivera is having one of his best seasons of his career -- a Cy Young Award type season -- it is in the best interest of the New York Yankees to have their starting pitchers work [at least] seven innings in every start they take the mound.
As it turned out, though, in this game ...
Johnny Damon hit a two-run homer (#24, which tied his career high) that gave the Yankees the 3-2 lead in the bottom of the third.
Alfredo Aceves (9-1), pitched very well in three innings of relief to earn the win in this game.
Derek Jeter had two hits in three at-bats, walked once, and scored three runs, raising his batting average to .335.
The Yankees broke this game wide open when they scored five runs in the bottom of the seventh inning on a three-run homer (#32) by Mark Teixeira; a RBI double by Melky Cabrera; and, a sac-fly by Jerry Hairston, Jr., that increased their lead to 8-2.
Mark Teixeira was (1-for-3), with four RBI's, which moved his season RBI total to 101. This is Teixeira's sixth straight season with 30+ homers, and 100+ RBI's. Only Mark Teixeira and Albert Pujols of the St. Louis Cardinals have accomplished this feat over the last six seasons.
Phil Coke ended the five scoreless innings streak by the bullpen when he allowed a ninth inning homer to Dye (#25) that capped the scoring in this 8-3 Yankees victory.
This win increases the first place New York Yankees record to 82-48, still six games ahead of the second place Boston Red Sox (76-54) who just completed a three-game sweep of the Toronto Blue Jays.
Well, as we reflect on the "Joba Rules" the one good thing is: next year there will be "no more" Joba rules. Joba Chamberlain will be allowed to be a real starting pitcher without innings limitations, and hopefully, also, without an unreasonable pitch-count limitation, that will advance Joba's progress into the 200+ innings pitched neighborhood.
Then, the new discussion that everybody will be focusing on, will be:"Innings Usage Rules for Phil Hughes" who the Yankees project as a starting pitcher next season.
What will these rules be called?
"Innings Use Rules For Hughes", or some other ridiculous version of this year's Joba Rules.
-- Jimmy, "BY&L"
Jimmy - the Joba rules seem to get sillier by the day. It would seem that the stress of an ever changing schedule for him would do more "harm" to his arm then actually pitching a game. It will be interesting to see if the "rules" are still working by the end of the season.
Julia
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Yankees were a big reason the White Sox went into "Fire Sale" after that Sat game in the series.
Got to be a good feeling not only sweeping them, but getting Ozzie so worked up he almost melted into pools of molten pewter all over the Visitors' Clubhouse.
This last 30-odd game should be a true joy to watch from every angle. So many teams still fighting for a chance and your team just having to sit on the perch and see who want to try and out-hit them in the NEW Yankee Stadium.
Always fun to be in a chase in September.
Rays Renegade
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Hi, Julia ...
It seems the Joba Rules are a work in progress, with the Yankees braintrust really not having a guaranteed method of success regarding the inning limitations they have imposed on Joba ... All this shifting back and forth, starting from last year, in the bullpen, then, starting rotation, then, to the disabled list, to starter this year, to now, early inning set-up man for the bullpen, is all so annoying, and very confusing to all Yankee fans, as well as, other baseball fans !!! ... It is projected that over Joba's next five starts, he will pitch: three; four; four; five; and, finally, six innings in his last start of the regular season against the Red Sox on September 27th !!! ... I hope the Yankees braintrust knows what they are doing !!! ... But, I agree with you Julia, "the stress of Joba's ever changing schedule could be doing more harm to his arm, then if he just pitched the regular innings of a starting pitcher" !!! ... It will be very interesting to see the results of these "Joba Rules", throughout September, and when the final pitch of the regular season is thrown !!!
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Take care, Julia !!! ... Have a very enjoyable day !!!
-- Jimmy, "BY&L"
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Hi, Rays Renegade ...
The Chicago White Sox looked like they were not into the three games that the Yankees swept them over this past weekend ... And, Ozzie was not very happy [rightfully so] with the performances by his team, in which they bascially played themselves out of the playoffs !!! ... It now looks like the Twins will battle it out with the Tigers for the top spot in the AL Central [the Twins are four games behind in the loss column].
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The final 30 games of the 2009 regular season will be fun to watch ... As of September 2nd, the Yankees magic number is "24", and all the Yankees need to do is just keep winning games and series', and play each of their remaining games as if they were "playoff games" until they clinch the AL Esat !!! ... But, there still are many games yet to be played ... The Rays are still in the wild card race, but really need to win the next two games of their current three-game series against the Red Sox so they do not fall any further behind Boston as they are now six games behind the Sox in the loss column !!! ... September is a great month, and the pennant races will go right down to the wire !!!
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Take care, Rays Renegade !!! ... Have a great day !!!
-- Jimmy, "BY&L"
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With the Yankees changing the Joba Rules over and over, his schedule will get thrown off, and he will not be able to get back on track for the postseason.
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Great, Great, Great, GREAT series. Yes, it was against the basement dwelling orioles, but they did sweep them and 2/3 were great pitchers games and the other was great offense all around great. I can only hope the playoffs go this easily.
http://tyf.mlblogs.com/
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Monday, September, 7, 2009 ...
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Thanks to all who offered comments on the above post ... Sorry I could not respond to all the comments sooner !!!
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As always, I greatly appreciate everybody's visits, and all your excellent comments and thoughts !!!
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Take care; and, have a great day !!!
-- Jimmy, "BY&L"
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Hi, Babu ...
I agree ... The Joba Rules definitely have affected Chamberlain in a negative way ... He doesn't look as sharp as he was right after the All-Star break, and is allowing too many runners reach base ... The way things are going, Joba may not be ready to start many [or any?] playoff games as he really is not at the top of his game !!! ... Hopefully, things will be much different in 2010 when the "Joba Rules" will no longer restrict Chamberlain in his starts !!!
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Take care, Babu; and, enjoy the holiday weekend !!!
"Go Yankees" !!!
-- Jimmy, "BY&L"
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Hi, 2yankeeboy ...
The Yankees are playing very well right now, sweeping the White Sox, and going 5-2 on their just completed road trip against the Orioles and Blue Jays !!! ... The playoffs will be like a whole new season, though; and, I think, pitching will be the key to the Yankees success ... The Yankees really need the starting pitchers to go deep into the games they start, so that we have to use the bullpen as little as possible !!! ... The most solid "Bridge to Mariano" [and, Phil Hughes in the 8th] is directly from the starting pitchers !!! ... Let's hope all starters are in top form in October !!!
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Take care, 2yankeeboy; and, enjoy the holiday weekend !!!
"Go Yankees" !!!
-- Jimmy, "BY&L"
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I think the five inning rule for starting pitchers is unfair because a starter must pitch five innings to get a win and a reliever need only pitch a third of an inning to be in contention to get a win. I suggest the following replacement for 10.17 a, b, c, e by the following wording. If the pitcher closing the half-inning just prior to the winning run is a relief pitcher, credit him with the win, otherwise credit the win to the first pitcher g4etting the most outs (innings pitched). This would also remove discretion to the official scorer, and would produce reasonable results in the case of the all-star game and for games shortened by weather, where the manager limits pitchers to three innings, and where the winning run is scored in the first half-inning of the game. I have looked at certain past box scores. l notice that on Friday, 18 September 2009 that in a game between the Phillies and the Braves that the winning run was scored in the top of the 4th inning after the starter had pitched three innings. The first reliever pitched four innings and got the win and would still get the win under my proposal because he got the most outs. Thus, under my proposal not every starter who left the game with the lead which was maintained throughout the game would get the win. Thus my proposal would be fair to both starters and relievers. Peter Gaposchkin
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Hi, Peter ...
I like your suggestions regarding which pitcher [starter or one of the relievers] should be credited with the "win" in various baseball games !!! ... The "five inning rule" is unfair to the starting pitchers, especially, the way today's "game" is played when it is very rare for a starter to throw a "complete game" or even pitch more than seven innings in most of their starts !!! ... A quality start is considered six innings pitched while allowing three or less runs -- which I think is ridiculous [in my view, a quality start should be credited when a starter throws at least seven innings while allowing two or less runs] ... Anyway, like you said in your comments, giving the win to the pitcher that records the most outs in a game, and is the pitcher of record when his team takes the lead, and holds the lead, in the game, makes a lot of sense, and would be a better way of determining the winning pitcher in most games !!! ... And, of course, the performance and effectiveness of each pitcher in a game should also be taken into consideration regarding which pitcher gets the win !!!
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Peter, thanks for your visit to my blog; and, also, your excellent comments and thoughts !!!
-- Jimmy 27NYY Curran, "BY&L"
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Dear Jimmy27nyy:
I think the rule for winning pitcher should give no discretion to the official scorer. In my proposed wording, the word otherwise covers two cases: (1) where the pitcher closing the half inning before the winning run is the starter, (2) where the winning run was scored in the first half of the first inning. Thus, the starter would still get the win if he pitched at least 4-2/3 innings and his team retained the lead for the rest of the game, and provide a fair criterion where the game was shortened because of weather, in exhibition games, and where the winning run was scored in the first half of the first inning. In every case the win would go to a pitcher who closed the half inning before the winning run or to the pitcher getting the most outs. Peter Gaposchkin
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