The Experts Say Joba's Should be a Starter

Joel Sherman sat down with several scouts and asked him the most asked question in Yankee-Land today: Should Joba Chamberlain be a starter or remain in the bullpen?

Here's some of what they had to say:

A LONG-TIME SCOUT WHO SAW TWO SINGLE-A STARTS:

. . . The times I saw him, he was an easy-identification No. 1 starter. He was powerful and resilient. He went deep into games and used all four of his pitches. That is what impressed me most about him. . . . Not only did he have a good arm, but he also showed real pitchability. He has real aptitude. Would you use Brad Penny as a set-up guy? This guy is like that. . . . When he started, his mentality wasn't, "I am going to blow away everyone for six innings." He actually knows how to pitch.

. . . I will tell you what I think on this kid. You put him in a playoff game, and when he leaves it is going to be 1-0 or 2-1. The score is going to be low for the other side. He was a dominant No. 1 guy in the minors. . . . Chamberlain as a starter was better than Papelbon. He had more options. He threw harder. . . . Chamberlain in the minors showed four potential plus-pitches. I wrote down on my notes, "For power arm guy not afraid to use whole assortment of pitches."

I saw (Chien-Ming) Wang in the minors. He was a strike-throwing sinkerball guy. I liked Wang. I didn't walk out of the game going "wow." Chamberlain was a "wow" guy for me. Those guys are extremely difficult to find. Pro side, amateur side, international side. Everyone is looking for a No. 1 starter. This kid was a No. 1 starter for a first-division team."

AN NL SCOUT WHO SAW TWO DOUBLE-A STARTS:

I thought he was the best player in the Yankees organization, the No. 1 prospect. He was lights out. . . . The thing that concerned me is there is a lot of effort in that delivery. I wonder if it will hold up over time. I think his niche is in the bullpen. I am not saying he won't hold up. But there is a lot of effort there. He is not real smooth. But in the two games I saw him, based strictly on the stuff, he showed all the makings of a starting pitcher.

TOM FILER, PITCHING COACH, DOUBLE-A READING PHILLIES:

I was very impressed. The first couple of innings he was 94-96 (mph). By the fifth inning, he was 97-99. His slider was very impressive. . . . He is a major leaguer no matter where you put him. He can start, set up or close. What do you need? He can do it. This is a guy with power. He might not be as refined as (Josh) Beckett the first time I saw him at 19 or 20 years old. But with Joba Chamberlain, I saw more power."

AN NL SCOUT WHO SAW THREE DOUBLE-A STARTS:

For me, he was a top-of-the-rotation guy. I have had a long-running debate in my head between Chamberlain and (Phil) Hughes. As far as stuff, I think I wrote him up as a No. 3 with upside. . . . But the one thing is he threw seven innings and he maintained velocity. I saw him throw 98 in the seventh inning. . . . I remember one time he was pitching at 94 and it was either the sixth or seventh inning and two guys got on with one out, and he did not throw another pitch at less than 97.

. . . He was right on the edge with command. Where Hughes was ahead, was with better command with three pitches and better feel for pitching. Joba was more aggressive. They were both in my mind top-of-rotation guys without hesitation.

For me, he is a starter. There are a lot of guys who can do that set-up role.

With the exception of one NL scout, everyone said he has everything it takes to be a starter, and that that's where he should be. The one NL scout who said that his niche may be in the pen because of fears his body wouldn't hold up even said that "based strictly on the stuff, he showed all the makings of a starting pitcher."

If they want to keep him in the pen for this season, fine. As I've been saying since I heard the Yankees' plan for Joba this year, sending him to the minors for 3-4 weeks in June is stupid, and will hurt the Yankees. But when talking about where Joba should be long-term I really don't think there is even a point in debating this anymore. I've heard several arguments for why the Yanks should keep him in the pen, all of which were put to bed by these scouts. If Joba is not starting by April 2009 the Yankees are making a foolish mistake.