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Report: Dodgers showing interest in Joba Chamberlain

By Stanford Crissey

Oct 2, 2014; Baltimore, MD, USA; Detroit Tigers relief pitcher Joba Chamberlain (44) pitches during the seventh inning in game one of the 2014 American League divisional series against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 2, 2014; Baltimore, MD, USA; Detroit Tigers relief pitcher Joba Chamberlain (44) pitches during the seventh inning in game one of the 2014 American League divisional series against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Credit: Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports /
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L.A. may be interested in bringing in former Yankee Joba Chamberlain

The MLB Hot Stove may have cooled off and been put back in its box in the basement to wait for next year, but that doesn’t mean that everyone of note has signed.

Former Yankees and Tigers reliever Joba Chamberlain is among those still on the market, and now it’s being reported that the Los Angeles Dodgers have interest in him.

Chamberlain spent last season with the Tigers, posting a 3.57 ERA in 63 innings.

The Marlins have also recently been linked to Joba.

Chamberlain is not the only good reliever who is still a free agent– Francisco Rodriguez, Phil Coke, and Rafael Soriano are among those who don’t have teams yet. Rosenthal’s tweet was unclear on whether he meant that the Dodgers would be considering other possibilities, or whether that meant Joba himself, but in any case, both will have options.

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Chamberlain was a pitching phenom with the Yankees in the mid-2000s, but did not come close to living up to the hype, becoming an average reliever rather than the ace starter they hoped for.

To put it one way, he compiled 6.9 WAR between 2007 and 2010, and from 2011 through 2014 has compiled just 0.6 WAR (via FanGraphs). His strikeout rate, walk rate, FIP, ERA–you name it, it’s gone downhill.

Basically, he’s a big-name reliever who in reality is closer to Scott Proctor than Mariano Rivera, to use two former Yankees as examples. That being said, he’s still likely to be looking for big-name reliever money, which is one explanation for why he’s still on the market. Chamberlain has reportedly turned down multiple offers already this winter.

It’s telling that the Tigers, despite having a bullpen that looks like Swiss cheese at the moment, have left Chamberlain on the market this long. If they wanted him back, he wouldn’t still be a free agent on Feb. 19.

Still, it never hurts to have too many relievers, and anyone who showed the kind of promise that Chamberlain has is always going to get second, third, and fourth chances. Plus, no matter what he’s asking for, it’ll be such a pitiful amount for the Dodgers that they won’t even notice it’s gone.

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