As a relief pitcher, it’s hard to be the story of the night when your team loses, 9-3, but somehow, Joba Chamberlain managed to do it.
Chamberlain tossed up more home runs, three, than he recorded outs, two, in the eighth inning on Wednesday. Neil Walker, Starling Marte and Pedro Alvarez each took him deep for a solo shot. On the bombs from Marte and Alvarez, Chamberlain hanged a curveball.
The right-hander now has a 4.29 ERA and 1.67 WHIP in 21 innings this season. Chamberlain has allowed eight runs in his last six appearances.
One positive to take away from Wednesday night was the fact Kirk Gibson returned to the television booth for the first time since being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.