The New York Post is reporting that “Joba Chamberlain’s eyes are set squarely on the fifth spot in the Yankees’ rotation.”

I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t exactly strike fear in my Red Sox heart. In fact, as powerful as the Yankee line-up is, their pitching doesn’t really impress me at all:

Hughes is Chamberlain’s primary competition for the final spot in the Yankees’ rotation behind CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Andy Pettitte and Javier Vazquez.

Hughes pitched effectively from the bullpen last year, mostly in a setup role for Mariano Rivera, and Chamberlain had a shaky season as a starter, finishing 9-6 with a 4.75 ERA as he faced an innings limit toward the end of the season. Chamberlain spent the postseason in the bullpen, leading to speculation he and Hughes, who struggled most notably in the ALCS and World Series, might trade places in 2010. That could still happen, as Hughes is expected to receive a long look for the rotation.


I’ll take Beckett, Lester, Dice-K, Lackey, Buchholz and/or Wakefield any day. Starting April 4th…