Tip o’ the hat to commenter yankz for pointing this story out. It appears that Joba Chamberlain will, in fact, be a starter in 2008:
Speaking with a reporter from The Associated Press, owner George Steinbrenner’s son, Hank, confirmed the news on Chamberlain — who allowed just one earned run during 24 innings in the regular season as a setup man for Mariano Rivera.
This decision is independent of Rivera’s status as a potential free agent.
That’s always good to hear.