We already know the argument of Joba as a starter compared to him being in the bull pen but is it time to put him back in the bull pen? I say this not because he doesn’t have the stuff to be a starter but because he’s being babied. How much longer can you baby some one and treat him like he’s not a major league player? I was a little bothered by the fact that he was taken out of the game on Tuesday and Joba let himself be taken out of the game when he was hit in the knee by a hit pitch. There were no problems with his knee and he made his next start. In his next start, was taken out after four innings. To me, this is nonsense. Joba has pitched seven innings just once this year. I don’t imagine Nolan Ryan or Curt Schilling being taken out after six innings after every game when they played. It’s time to take the training wheels off of Joba or put him back in the pen. Wang is coming back and Hughes has been solid. One person has to be the odd man out. I’m usually sure about my thinking on certain situations but this isn’t one of them. Maybe we need more patience? After all, he’s only 23 years old. Joba has started 10 games this season and only has two wins to show for it. The Yankees are 5-4 when he starts. Maybe in our dream world Joba will be an ace but I’m not in a deep sleep right now. A good recent argument on why Joba should be in the bull pen. Jorge Posada is coming back tomorrow and I don’t like it. The Yankees were 11-10 when Jorge was behind the plate. The Yankees are 14-7 without Jorge. That’s seven games over .500 compared to one game over .500. Is it just a coincidence that the Yankees have taken off in his absence? He plays one of the most important positions in baseball and to me, Francisco Cervelli and Kevin Cash are more than up for the job. They save more runs than with Posada behind the plate. They definitely don’t need his bat. The Yankees have scored five or more runs 12 times since his absence but that has more to do with the wind tunnel in Yankee stadium. Still, the Yankees score runs with or without him. A good recent argument on why Jorge Posada shouldn’t be the starting catcher. Nick Swisher. Sure, he’s a team guy that’s great in the club house but he can’t hit. He’s batting just .123 since May 1st. He’s a career .243 hitter and he’s not going to get better. If Melky has a starting outfield position, which he has earned, I want to see him moved to left or right field and have Gardner start in centerfield. Gardner is a much better outfielder than Swisher and he makes things happen when he gets at bats. Gardner doesn’t get on base on a consistent basis but you have to give him more experience so he becomes a better player. The thing we don’t have to worry about right now is who to put where because Melky Cabrera is going to miss 5-7 days with a bruised right shoulder. So it looks like Gardner is going to have to make the most of his opportunity.
