Jays Try Joba
New York, NY – Playing in their new, hitter-friendly stadium has helped the New York Yankees pile up runs. Joba Chamberlain hasn’t been the beneficiary of that production.
Chamberlain tries again for his first home win as the Yankees look to claim a share of the AL East lead for the first time in nearly a month Sunday when they face the Toronto Blue Jays.
Oddsmakers from online sportsbook Sportsbook.com have made the Yankees -180 moneyline favorites for Sunday’s game against the Blue Jays. Current MLB Public Betting Information shows that 69% of more than 199 bets for this game have been placed on the Yankees -180.
Chamberlain (4-2, 3.89 ERA) has put together a solid season, holding opponents to three runs or fewer in 13 of his 15 starts, including 10 straight.
The right-hander has been better on the road than at home, where he has a 5.17 ERA in part because New York’s new ballpark has allowed the most home runs (135) and the fourth-most runs (435) in the majors this year.
Though Yankee Stadium has quickly earned a reputation as a hitter-friendly ballpark, it hasn’t helped Chamberlain much. The Yankees, near the top of the majors with 5.65 runs per home game, haven’t given him more than three runs of support in any of his eight starts at the new $1.5 billion stadium.
New York (47-33) is 6-2 in those games, and Chamberlain is 0-2.
Chamberlain gave up three runs in 5 1-3 innings on Tuesday, failing to get a decision in an 8-5 home win over Seattle. He’s 1-1 with a 1.83 ERA in nine career games against Toronto, including 0-1 with a 4.00 ERA in two starts.
The Yankees hope they’ll be able to provide some support for Chamberlain by riding the emotion of a walk-off 6-5 victory Saturday. Johnny Damon hit a game-tying two-run home run in the seventh inning and Jorge Posada sealed the win by singling home Alex Rodriguez in the 12th.
New York has won nine of 10 to move a season-best 14 games above .500 and pull within one game of division-leading Boston. The Yankees haven’t had a share of first place since they were tied with the Red Sox at 34-24 on June 9.
“They have a good lineup so you’ve just got to hope that you can hold them for a few innings, score some runs yourself,” Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston said. “Otherwise they will come back and beat you.”
The Blue Jays (42-40) have lost their last four games against the Yankees and six of seven overall.
“We’re not playing bad. We’re just not playing good enough,” designated hitter Adam Lind said. “Just need to score more runs.”
Toronto will try to get back on track with Brett Cecil (2-1, 5.09), who gets the emergency start after Scott Richmond was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a sore shoulder following Saturdays loss.
Cecil hasn’t made a start since June 25, when he allowed five runs, nine hits and three walks in three innings of a 7-5 loss to Cincinnati. The left-hander surrendered one hit in two-thirds of a inning in a 4-1 loss to Tampa Bay on Tuesday in Richmond’s most recent appearance before heading to the DL.
After beating the Chicago White Sox on May 15, Cecil is 0-1 with a 9.82 ERA in three starts.
Blue Jays third baseman Scott Rolen, batting .407 (35 for 86) during his career-best 21-game hitting streak, is 2 for 5 with two strikeouts in his career against Chamberlain.
Posted: 7/5/09 6:00AM ET