Where Will Joba Find His Place?

Much has been said about the Yankees' decision to make Joba Chamberlain a starter. People generally love the idea, believing you ought to get 200 innings from a talent like that, while others believe he will break down and should be used as a reliever, where he dominates. The baseball world has long waited for RJG to chime in on this debate, understanding well that our intelligent, stat based approach to player projections leads the field. We know present the final say in the Joba debate: Joba should be . . . a first baseman. More specifically, he should be first baseman Jason Giambi.

We realize that we have just turned the baseball world on its head, destroying every a priori assumption you ever held dear. Your welcome. Let's look at the facts. Joba is a big guy. With his size, it can be safely assumed that he cannot run well. Thus he fulfills an important requirement for being Jason Giambi.

It is well documented that Joba likes to drink. He even discussed his drinking habits with a Nebraska state trooper, who then needlessly cited him for driving drunk. Thus, Joba fulfills another important requirement for being Jason Giambi.

Jason Giambi did not hit well last year. It is safe to assume that Joba, a career pitcher with little plate experience, would not hit well this year. Again, Jason Giambi.

Joba has never played first base, guaranteeing a defensive ability equal to Jason Giambi, of whom it is not clear how often he has played first base.

With these rock solid facts in hand, one cannot deny that Joba should be our first baseman, this year's Jason Giambi. With this shocking turn of events, the debate over Joba's future role with the Yankees is now closed. Thank you for reading.