Joba Chamberlain arrived in the big leagues six years ago and instantly became a Bronx idol.
Today, thanks to a myriad of developments — some of his doing and others created by the Yankees — Chamberlain looks to be in the final lap of a Yankees career that never lived up to the massive early hype. He likely will leave as a free agent or be dealt before the season ends.
Wednesday night at a muggy Yankee Stadium, some of the same customers who adored the hard-throwing right-hander heavily booed him three times during an 8-5 Yankees loss to the Rangers in front of an announced crowd of 38,264.
Home runs from Ichiro Suzuki and Lyle Overbay and clutch hits by Robinson Cano and Travis Hafner weren’t enough to overcome the hole Chamberlain dug deeper in the seventh when a one-run deficit turned into a three-run ditch.
Coupled with the AL East-leading Red Sox winning, the loss dropped the Yankees to 3½ games back.
After the Yankees pulled to within a run in the sixth, Chamberlain gave up two runs the following frame and was loudly booed after Nelson Cruz’s two-run homer and Adrian Beltre’s double. When manager Joe Girardi rescued Chamberlain, what was left of the crowd gave him a final shower of boos to take to the clubhouse.
“Two, four, six, eight, Joba sucks,’’ shouted a disgruntled customer behind the plate during the seventh frame.
Shawn Kelley gave up two unearned runs in the ninth thanks to a tough error by Brett Gardner that handed Joe Nathan a three-run cushion to post the save.
Andy Pettitte, who collided with third baseman Jayson Nix in the third inning, absorbed the loss and has dropped three straight. Pettitte (5-6), who gave up four runs in the third after hitting Nix’s upper body with his throwing arm, went six innings, allowed four runs (three earned), walked two and fanned six. He has one win since May 11.
After escaping a two-on, no-out situation in the first inning, Pettitte couldn’t duplicate a bases-loaded, no-out deal in the third.
The inning started badly for Pettitte when he collided with Nix attempting to field Leonys Martin’s leadoff bunt. As they converged on the ball, Pettitte fielded it and when he threw his arm collided with Nix’s upper body and Martin was safe.
Pettitte stayed on his knees after the collision, but following a visit from trainer Steve Donohue and Girardi, the veteran lefty remained in the game.
Following the collision, Pettitte walked Ian Kinsler and watched Nix throw away Elvis Andrus’ sacrifice bunt. With the bases loaded, Pettitte caught Cruz looking at a 91-mph, 3-2 pitch for the first out.
Nevertheless, a 0-2 pitch clocked at 89-mph and up in the strike zone wasn’t a match for Beltre, who hit it off the left-field wall for a two-run double that erased a 1-0 Yankees lead. A.J. Pierzynski followed with a first-pitch double to right-center that upped the visitors’ advantage to 4-1.
That Beltre and Pierzynksi hurt Pettitte wasn’t a surprise. Beltre opened the game batting .308 (4-for-13) against Pettitte and the left-handed hitting Pierzynski was at .364 (8-for-22).
Pettitte recovered from the collision and the four-run third by retiring eight straight following Pierzynski’s double.