Yanks Finally Let Joba Know His Rules

There's been so much talk about the "Joba Rules" lately. The kept changing, old timers don't like the rules, his teammates didn't like them either. Then, Joba wasn't being informed of the specifics of the rules and he didn't like that. Now, finally Joba and the rest of the world knows the deal so hopefully this will at least cut down the talk.

We learned yesterday that Joba will make six more starts this season, and then remain in the rotation in the playoffs. The Yankees have told Joba what the plans are and it's safe to say he's glad he knows the deal.

Here's some quotes from Joba via Pete Caldera:

Perhaps it’s the unwritten code of the Joba Rules – the part about getting Joba Chamberlain into October, and letting him loose.

"I think when one training wheel is off, the other one might be off at that time," Chamberlain said Wednes-day afternoon, sitting by his locker, absently thumping a giant ice pack on his right shoulder.

At last, Chamberlain has been privy to select blueprints of his Rules. And he’s relieved.

"Mentally, for me to know this is the plan we’re going to do for the rest of the year is definitely calming," Chamberlain said. "I kind of have an idea what the plan is pretty permanently."

...

"We sat down and figured a plan that works for [all] of us," Chamberlain said of a recent meeting with Eiland and manager Joe Girardi. "[We talked about] how we’re going to try to keep it as normal as possible."

During the meeting, "We kind of all threw our ideas out, what would work and what would be comfortable," Chamberlain said of the plan that calls for varying days of rest between starts. "So, you kind of have it in your head what’s coming."

Dave Eiland also reveals that the innings limit that the team has set for Joba is just a regular season number, which means once the playoffs start all innings limits go out the window. I'm not sure this is such a great idea, but I'll reserve judgement on that until I see how many innings he throws in October.

He also said that while Joba doesn't know the exact dates of each of his next six starts, he does know "what he’s faced with the next two weeks." And most importantly he also said that Joba's "mind is in a lot better place now."