Suddenly, the Yankees have a lot more to worry about with Joba Chamberlain than whether he's a starter or a reliever.
The Yankees phenom was arrested for allegedly driving under the influence on Oct. 18 after Lincoln, Neb., police pulled him over for speeding and detected alcohol on his breath. A day later, Chamberlain, who rose to iconic status quicker than any Yankee in recent memory, issued a statement.
"I want to apologize to the New York Yankees and the fans for an error in judgment and for putting myself in a difficult situation," Chamberlain said in the statement released by his agent, Randy Hendricks. "I intend to properly resolve the situation and do not intend to be in such a situation again. My goal is to focus on pitching for the Yankees in the 2009 season."
First, Chamberlain will have to appear in court, and he has an appearance scheduled for Dec. 17.
According to reports, the Nebraska native had been drinking at one bar before moving to a local strip club, where Chamberlain got into an argument with a Red Sox fan who taunted him for being home while the Red Sox were still in the playoffs at the time. Chamberlain left a little while after the argument and was discovered with an open container of alcohol. His blood alcohol content level was reportedly nearly double that of the legal limit for Nebraska.
The Yankees have said the typical things about standing behind the 23-year-old pitcher, from co-chairperson Hal Steinbrenner to manager Joe Girardi, but this has to raise concerns regarding his judgment. While he's young and mistakes are made, these types of mistakes are too dangerous to be dismissed so easily, and the Yankees will have to ensure Chamberlain does accomplish his goal of learning from the error.
