Joba Chamberlain Choking Away Spot in Yankees Rotation With Six-Run Inning

After the lifting of the famed “Joba Rules,” the fifth spot in the Yankees rotation looked to be Joba Chamberlain’s to lose. Like Phil Hughes, Chamberlain was expected to use spring training to distance himself from a pack of also-rans and give the Yankees two equally potent hurlers at the back end of the staff. Now it’s Chamberlain who’s looking like an also-ran.

After giving up six runs in 2 1/3 innings (all six coming in the third inning) against the Tigers on Wednesday, Chamberlain saw his spring training ERA rise to 27.00 and now appears destined for the bullpen — assuming he can avoid the bus to Scranton.

Hughes relieved the big Nebraskan and cooled down the Tigers bats slightly, allowing just one run on three hits in 2 2/3 innings. Hughes shined in a setup role last season but could be wrestling away Joe Girardi’s last starting spot with his 3.86 Grapefruit League ERA.

The real interesting stats come from the guys who were long ago written off in the rotation battle. Sergio Mitre, Alfredo Aceves and Chad Gaudin have all had stellar springs. Aceves threw four perfect innings his last time out while Mitre got out to arguably the best start of the five.

While nothing is for certain, the race for the fifth spot in the rotation is no longer a two-horse race. It has become a rugby scrum to see who comes out with the ball in their hands.