Zell's Pinstripe Blog

The question in Yankee Land right now is whether Hughes or Joba should take the 5th spot in the rotation. Is this really a tough decision though? I don’t think so.

Joba was terrific when he was in the bullpen. There was no arguing whether he could be a successful reliever or not. Some still want him in the rotation, while others believe that he could be the heir apparent to Mariano Rivera. Brian Cashman wouldn’t budge the last few years on his stance, but it looks like he may be coming around and decide that he is better suited for the bullpen. Chamberlain’s electric stuff in the pen put him on the map. Fans lost interest and even booed him as a starter. You didn’t see a lot of that with him coming out of the pen. Joba lost velocity on his pitches, he started to get hit hard and he struggled getting past the 5th inning in his starts.

I remember when he would come into tight games, the home crowd would go nuts and give him a standing ovation with the word’s “It’s Joba Time!” going across the boards. Don’t you miss that? 

I believe that the best decision is for Hughes to take the 5th spot. Phil was fantastic out of the bullpen last year, but nobody ever envisioned him as a reliever before he was pretty much forced there. Hughes was seen as a starter only before he turned into a reliever. He wanted to avoid being sent down to Triple-A by any means necessary, so he took the job. If Hughes was to stay a reliever, that would make it four straight years of him pitching not much more than 100 innings. That would make it very difficult for the organization to ever make him a starter in the future.

Phil offers a fastball, curveball, cutter, and a changeup. It’s very important for a starting pitcher to have an assortment of quality pitches. The only negative about this move is that Hughes will have a innings limit. “The Joba Rules” are out the door. Now, the “Hughes Rules” begin. Hughes threw 105.1 innings this past season. He has thrown 146 innings in the minor leagues (back in 2006), which is more than Joba ever threw prior to this past season but you can count on the Yankees being very cautious with him.

If Hughes can pitch a little bit more than Chamberlain threw last year (160-170IP), then I think it could work out. 

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According to Ken Rosenthal, Gaudin could be a possible option for the 5th spot in the rotation. I think that’s crazy, considering they have two other better candidates for the job.

A rival executive says that neither Phil Hughes nor Joba Chamberlain should be in the Yankees’ rotation next season.

Instead, the exec suggests that the Yankees keep both youngsters in their bullpen and make Chad Gaudin their fifth starter.

Not a crazy thought. But if the Yankees enact such a plan, they are far more likely to use Alfredo Aceves as their fifth starter, according to a source with knowledge of the team’s thinking.

The Yankees mostly have used Aceves as a reliever, but he was a starter in Mexico and at Class AA and AAA — and his ERA in five major- league starts is 3.42.

Aceves, 28, also has been an effective reliever, going 10-1 with a 3.18 ERA in 44 career relief appearances. But the Yankees could put together a powerhouse bullpen without him.

Hughes and Chamberlain would set up for Mariano Rivera. Damaso Marte would be the left-handed specialist. Gaudin, Sergio Mitre and David Robertson could fill the other spots.