"The sentiment preserved in ink on the inside of Joba Chamberlain's left forearm has come to represent his new beginning with the Yankees.

Live for today. Prepare for tomorrow.

The message of his newest tattoo is a fitting precursor for what he hoped would be a rebirth of sorts for him on and off the diamond.

No longer is Chamberlain fearful of not living up to expectations.

There is very little to fear when you have failed far too often to everyone's liking, and especially your own.

Sometimes reflection can be the most important step toward rediscovery.

"I got home this winter and just went through all the stuff we had gone through in four years," Chamberlain said. "I just sat down, thought about all of it and said to myself, 'You know what? Enough's enough. It's a new year for me. I'm going to do my job and prove that I can do it.'

"That was a big benchmark for me to get going."

So much so that Chamberlain sent for his preferred Clifton-based tattoo artist in March, flying her from North Jersey to Tampa, Fla., because of his desire to capture his newfound focus and approach in those prophetic words on his arm.

"That's just something I look at every day, kind of something I'm trying to live by," he said. "If you're not right mentally, I don't think you're going to be able to make the adjustments you need to make.

"For me personally, that's what it is, the mental part comes before anything else."

Chamberlain not only has regained the velocity on his fastball, but the clarity on the mound with which he burst on the scene in the Bronx in dominant fashion four years ago.

By the All-Star break of last season, though, he had gone from his status as a rookie rock star to being yet another once-promising pitcher seemingly rocked outing after outing."