This is a complete reversal for me. Last season, I was adamant that Chamberlain should be in the starting rotation, because that was where he was needed most. That was before CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett signed with the Yankees and that was when Chien-Ming Wang was injured.

With a top three of Sabathia, Burnett and Wang, and with Pettitte on the back end, Joba is most needed in the bullpen now, especially since Mariano Rivera is coming off shoulder surgery.

This way the Yankees can keep Joba's innings under control, and if Rivera needs a little extra time to be ready for the season, Chamberlain can be the emergency closer. If Rivera is right for the start of the season, then Chamberlain has the eighth inning and the Yankees are that much more of a force.

An eighth-inning dynamo is much more important to the Yankees now than a back-end starter. And besides, the Yankees have candidates for that fifth spot, including Phil Hughes and Alfredo Aceves.

There are some people in the Yankees' front office who are convinced Chamberlain is best-suited for the bullpen anyway because of his emotional makeup and arm. Many scouts I've talked to say the same thing. In some ways, Chamberlain is like Jonathan Papelbon in makeup and talent — he lives for the competition every night.