Joba has a job: Jays sign Chamberlain to minors deal

Reliever Joba Chamberlain — released July 10 by the Detroit Tigers — has signed a minor league contract with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Chamberlain, 29, was 0-2 with 15 strikeouts and a 4.09 ERA in 30 games (22 innings) for the Tigers. In his nine-year career — the first seven with the New York Yankees — Chamberlain is 25-21 with seven saves and a 3.82 ERA.

But Toronto Star baseball writer Richard Griffin doesn't sound too excited about the Blue Jays' signing of the 29-year-old right-hander.

"It was a tale of two seasons for Chamberlain, who has been in the majors since he was 21 years old," Griffith writes. "Over his first 23 games of 2015, he posted a 1.06 ERA, but after that, from June 16 to July 2 in his final seven appearances, he allowed eight earned runs in five innings, on 12 hits, with two walks and four strikeouts.

"This is the real Joba. He will be assigned to the AAA-Buffalo Bisons."

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Now, the Tigers' bullpen has blown games with and without Chamberlain, who was Joakim Soria's setup man. But in his last seven games here — six of them Tigers losses — he had a 14.40 ERA and gave up four homers in five innings. Three of those homers came in his second-to-last appearance for the Tigers, the eighth inning of a July 1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Chamberlain was booed off of the mound after giving up the three solo blasts in just two-thirds of an inning.

"I'd boo myself, too," he said then. "I mean, you can't be mad at it. You spend your hard-earned money to come see somebody be successful, and you don't be successful."

Chamberlain pitched a scoreless inning against the Pirates the next night but then was designated for assignment July 3.

"It's tough to (lose) people that you like," Tigers manager Brad Ausmus said then. "Joba struggled recently at the end, but without Joba, we don't win the division last year. It's as simple as that."

Contact Steve Schrader: sschrader@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @schradz.