Joba Chamberlain hasn\u2019t thrown a pitch in a decade \u2014 but he still has some heat left for a longtime Red Sox nemesis.<\/p>\n
During a recent appearance on\u00a0\u201cThe Eddie Mata Show,\u201d<\/a> the former Yankees flamethrower didn\u2019t hesitate when asked which player he disliked most during his 10-year career.<\/p>\n \u201cKevin Youkilis,\u201d Chamberlain replied, without blinking.<\/p>\n Chamberlain, 40, burst onto the scene with the Yankees in 2007, overwhelming hitters with a 100 mph fastball and a 0.38 ERA in 19 games.\u00a0<\/p>\n During a recent appearance on The Eddie Mata Show, former Yankees pitcher Joba Chamberlain revealed which player he disliked the most during his career. Eddie Mata\/X<\/p>\n Chamberlain did not hesitate in naming longtime Red Sox nemesis Kevin Youkilis. Eddie Mata\/X<\/p>\n That breakout run came with drama \u2014 specifically, with the then\u2013Red Sox first baseman.<\/p>\n The right-hander fired two fastballs over Youkilis\u2019 head on Aug. 30, 2007, earning an ejection, a $1,000 fine and a two-game suspension over his \u201cinappropriate actions.\u201d<\/p>\n Then-Yankees skipper Joe Torre and Chamberlain\u00a0insisted he wasn\u2019t trying to hit Youkilis, with the rookie saying the pitches \u201cslipped<\/a>\u201d out of his hand.<\/p>\n The tension carried into the following year when Youkilis collided with Chamberlain at home plate on a wild pitch on July 8, 2008. <\/p>\n Chamberlain and Youkilis had a series of on-field run-ins, including this home plate collision on July 8, 2008. Anthony J. Causi<\/p>\n On July 25, 2008, Chamberlain threw a fastball near Youkilis\u2019 head, but the pitch hit his bat instead. EPA<\/p>\n Weeks later, Chamberlain sent another heater up near his head \u2014 this time clipping Youkilis\u2019 bat.<\/p>\n \u201cSo technically, he hasn\u2019t hit him, but he\u2019s gone up and in on [Youkilis] way too many times for it to be a coincidence,\u201d Yankees announcer Michael Kay said during an August 20, 2012, YES Network broadcast<\/a> replaying their past issues \u2014 moments after Chamberlain actually hit Youkilis, who was then with the White Sox, in the back.<\/p>\n \u201cI just didn\u2019t like him,\u201d Chamberlain said. \u201cObviously, [it started] when he was with the Red Sox, he never came and got me.\u201d<\/p>\n For his career, Chamberlain struggled against Youkillis, with the three-time All-Star and Gold Glove winner hitting .333\/.565\/.900 with a home run and four RBIs against the righty in 23 plate appearances.<\/p>\n After all their personal drama, the pair became teammates when the Yankees signed Youkilis<\/a> as a free agent ahead of the 2013 season in the wake of an Alex Rodriguez injury.<\/p>\n Youkillis dominated Chamberlain during their careers, slashing .333\/.565\/.900 with a home run and four RBIs against the righty in 23 plate appearances. Charles Wenzelberg<\/p>\n At the time, Chamberlain tried to downplay their history, telling reporters their run-ins were overblown and that there was \u201cnothing\u201d between them.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s one of those things where people made it a bigger deal than it was,\u201d Chamberlain said, per the Associated Press.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s nothing to it. There\u2019s nothing between us. I\u2019m glad to have him on our side. We\u2019re two grown men. We\u2019re playing on the same team. Our one goal is to win.\u201d<\/p>\n Youkilis signed a one-year, $12 million pact with the Yankees for 2013, but appeared in just 28 games due to season-ending back surgery. Anthony J Causi<\/p>\n Despite his public praise, Chamberlain said that Youkillis\u2019 silence after he initially reached out did not sit well.<\/p>\n \u201cThen he was my teammate and I was like, \u2018Dude, it\u2019s baseball. Between the lines, it is what it is but you\u2019re my teammate,\u201d Chamberlain told Mata. \u201cI called him right when he signed and he ignored me, ignored me ignored me. He gets to spring training and then he wants to be all buddy-buddy.\u201d<\/p>\n