Hank On Joba's Move to the Rotation

From George King:

"That's the smart move for us in the long run and for this year," Steinbrenner told The Post. "We can't put it off. That's what the Red Sox did. They tried it with [Jonathan] Papelbon, but they have [Clay] Buchholz and [Jon] Lester.They don't have Buchholz and Lester in the bullpen. You can't waste talent like that.

"You have to do what is right. . . . This isn't just about this year. Everything flows from starting pitching. Chamberlain wasn't doing us any good sitting in the bullpen with [Mariano] Rivera and we were down, 7-2, in the seventh inning."

I think Joba needs to be in the rotation, I've said it many times. So it's pretty obvious that I agree with what Hank is saying here.

The article also mentioned that the Yankees remain undecided about whether Joba will start or relieve in his next appearance.

Now for some more from Hank about the bullpen:

"The bullpen will have to hold up its end. If there is a problem, and I don't think there will be a problem, we will fix it," Steinbrenner said.

J.B. Cox and Mark Melancon should fix it.

Also in the article were several quotes from some scouts:

"I didn't see all the pitches that I saw in the minor leagues," said a scout who watched Chamberlain in Baltimore. "I didn't see the change-up, but what he has is plenty good enough. His slider and fastball are the top two pitches in the league. It is different, going one or two innings as opposed to five or six because he is going to have to use his off-speed stuff, but his stuff is front of the rotation stuff."

Another scout in Baltimore agrees with Steinbrenner.

"I think he was rotting in the bullpen," the scout said. "The only question is will he hold up, but his [stuff] is plenty. A lot of teams made a mistake not drafting him."

High praise from the experts. I don't know is his fastball and slider are really the "top two pitches in the league," but they're damn good, and when you mix in the curve and change that's a lethal combination.