White Sox in NY
New York, NY – After Joba Chamberlain endured a poor outing following an extended break, the New York Yankees changed their minds and decided to pitch him on regular rest for the remainder of the season.
The right-hander looks to get back on track when the Yankees try to complete a three-game home sweep of the reeling Chicago White Sox on Sunday.
Chamberlain (8-4, 4.34 ERA) had eight days off before taking the mound Tuesday against Texas and suffered a second straight loss. He allowed a season-worst seven runs over four innings of a 10-9 defeat.
He was given the extra time off because New York (81-48) wants to limit the 23-year-old pitcher’s innings and keep him fresh for the postseason.
Oddsmakers from online sportsbook SBG Global have made the Yankees -235 moneyline favorites for Sunday’s game against the White Sox. Current MLB Public Betting Information shows that 82% of more than 156 bets for this game have been placed on the Yankees -235.
Manager Joe Girardi, though, announced Friday that Chamberlain will take a regular turn for the rest of the year, although his outings may be shortened.
After winning his first three starts after the All-Star break with a 0.83 ERA, Chamberlain went 1-2 and posted an 8.55 ERA in his last four.
"It’s the results. The bottom line is for us to win games and get the best out of players," Girardi said. "So in evaluating what happened, it looked like it was working great. He came out of the break, was lights out, but we think that a change needed to be made."
Chamberlain said Friday he had been frustrated with the staggered rest even though he understood the reasoning. He praised Girardi and pitching coach Dave Eiland, saying they did a great job of communicating with him about the schedule and how it was working out.
"It’s going to be something that’s going to be good for all of us," Chamberlain said. "The wins are going to come. I’m not worried about that. But at the end we need to win a World Series."
Chamberlain has never started versus the White Sox, posting a 1.80 ERA in four relief appearances against them.
The Yankees had a starter pitch well on seven days’ rest Saturday as Sergio Mitre allowed one hit over 6 1-3 innings before leaving with a bruised forearm in a 10-0 victory. Chad Gaudin finished up with 2 2-3 hitless innings.
Chicago (64-66) committed three errors to bring its AL-high total to 100. The White Sox are 1-5 on a 10-game road trip and have dropped into third place in the Central.
"I’m embarrassed. Everybody in that room should be embarrassed," manager Ozzie Guillen said, mixing in a few expletives but never shouting. "When you have more errors than hits, you better look yourself in the mirror.
"I watched Little League this morning and they played better. This is not major league ball. I’m getting a lot of money to manage this team, and I feel like I’m stealing money from (chairman) Jerry Reinsdorf."
Freddy Garcia (0-1, 6.75) will make his third start of the year for Chicago after having his contract purchased from Triple-A Charlotte on Aug. 18. Garcia did not get a decision Tuesday at Boston after allowing three runs over 6 1-3 innings of a 6-3 loss.
The veteran right-hander last faced New York in 2006. He is 4-3 with a 4.19 ERA in nine starts against the Yankees.
Garcia has limited Derek Jeter to a .179 average and Johnny Damon to a .205 mark. Alex Rodriguez is batting .375 with five homers in 32 at-bats against the White Sox starter.
Posted: 8/30/09 6:00AM ET
