It was a noble (if not surprising) decision by the Yankees last winter not to go after Johan Santana and instead try to build from within with young pitching prospects Joba Chamberlain, Philip Hughes and Ian Kennedy. It seemed like a good idea at the time. But not if the show is being run by Hank "Yosemite Sam" Steinbrenner.Right from the start there was confusion among the Yankees hierarchy about whether Chamberlain should start or relieve. Chamberlain has electric stuff and could work in either role...as long as he's properly conditioned for it. There is a huge difference between the mindset of starters and relievers and how they prepare for their respective jobs. All spring long Hanky and GM Brian Cashman fought over 
Chamberlain's role. In the latest example that the complete lack of baseball knowledge is a hereditary trait in the Steinbrenner gene pool, Hanky bellowed," I want him as a starter and so does everyone else, including him, and that is what we are working toward and we need him there now. There is no question about it, you don't have a guy with a 100-mile-per-hour fastball and keep him as a set-up guy. You just don't do that. You have to be an idiot to do that." Cashman calmly responded that Chamberlain was staying in the bullpen. That was the right thing to do, but only if it was to be for the entire season. Cashman has apparently caved.
What Hanky doesn't realize (among many other things) is that no starting pitcher throws 100 mph. A few relievers may touch triple digits on the gun, but if a starting pitcher even tried to throw like that he'd be lucky to last two months without blowing out his arm. In June when the Yankees were short on starters with the injuries to Hughes, Kennedy and C
hien-Ming Wang, the decision was made to put Chamberlain in the rotation. The Yankees gave him a crash course but in spite of his 3-1 record and 2.76 ERA as a starter, he came up with a rotator cuff problem that has landed him on the DL. Why should anyone be surprised at this development? It's very unlikely that Chamberlain, who's only 22, learned to pace himself as a starter in that short a time and it's almost certainly how got hurt. This is a major-league red flag.
Chamberlain's role. In the latest example that the complete lack of baseball knowledge is a hereditary trait in the Steinbrenner gene pool, Hanky bellowed," I want him as a starter and so does everyone else, including him, and that is what we are working toward and we need him there now. There is no question about it, you don't have a guy with a 100-mile-per-hour fastball and keep him as a set-up guy. You just don't do that. You have to be an idiot to do that." Cashman calmly responded that Chamberlain was staying in the bullpen. That was the right thing to do, but only if it was to be for the entire season. Cashman has apparently caved.What Hanky doesn't realize (among many other things) is that no starting pitcher throws 100 mph. A few relievers may touch triple digits on the gun, but if a starting pitcher even tried to throw like that he'd be lucky to last two months without blowing out his arm. In June when the Yankees were short on starters with the injuries to Hughes, Kennedy and C
hien-Ming Wang, the decision was made to put Chamberlain in the rotation. The Yankees gave him a crash course but in spite of his 3-1 record and 2.76 ERA as a starter, he came up with a rotator cuff problem that has landed him on the DL. Why should anyone be surprised at this development? It's very unlikely that Chamberlain, who's only 22, learned to pace himself as a starter in that short a time and it's almost certainly how got hurt. This is a major-league red flag.Unless he's having a terrible year, you don't switch gears on a pitcher in mid-season. If Chamberlain's destiny was as a starter they should have begun the transition after the season, maybe with a short stint at winter ball, and then completed it during spring training. Then he'd be ready to go when the bell rang and it's full speed ahead.
That's not all Hanky's Yankees are screwing up. They're also jerking Ian Kennedy around. He got hit hard early in the year and was sent to the minors. A few weeks ago they brought back him up, he got shelled and down he went again. This can do nothing but harm to the kid. What the Yankees should be doing is letting Kennedy pitch at least most of the season in AAA and if he's doing well enough, bring him up for a taste of the action in September. Then, with that in his blood, they could run him through his paces in spring training trying for a spot in the rotation. Instead, however, the Yankees may be doing serious damage to his confidence.
I may turn out to be wrong about it; Kennedy could just survive this snafu. So could Chamberlain. But it's not worth the gamble. I've seen this kind of irresponsible pattern from sports executives who think they know what the hell they're doing so often that I can spot it every time. Hanky's Yankees may be ruining two prized prospects at once.
Hey, C.C.! Let's do lunch. Le Bernardin, December 12.
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