It seems that everyone who worships the New York Yankees has come to know in the past year what Husker fans discovered long ago.

Harlan Chamberlain — the familiar face who whizzes around in his motorized scooter at Lincoln high school and University of Nebraska athletic events almost in defiance of the polio that handicapped him as a child — has always been there for his son Joba.

And so when the latest Yankees standout learned after Sunday night’s game at Boston that his father had been rushed to a Lincoln hospital in critical condition, he did what you’d expect. He shed tears of fear, then high-tailed it back to Lincoln.

On Monday, as he gathered with family at Saint Elizabeth Regional Medical Center, the rookie pitcher was cautiously optimistic about his father’s condition: critical but stable.

“As many of you know, my family is dealing with a serious personal medical condition involving my father,” Chamberlain said in a statement released by the Yankees. “We cannot express how much we appreciate the enormous amount of love and compassion that has been shown to my family by so many.”

Among those who stopped by to offer support was Joba’s coach at Nebraska, Mike Anderson. After spending a season at the University of Nebraska at Kearney, Chamberlain emerged from obscurity to become an All-American while playing for the Huskers in 2005 and 2006, a stint that led to him being taken by New York with the 41st overall pick of the 2006 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft.

The Yankees have placed Chamberlain on the bereavement list, which will keep him from the team a minimum of three days. He could remain out for an indefinite period.

“I want to thank my teammates and my manager for giving me so much support when I have needed it most,” Chamberlain said in the statement. “Their actions are the reason I was able to reach my father’s side as quickly as I did. I ask that you please afford my family the privacy that it needs to deal with my father’s condition appropriately. In turn, I will provide updates through the Yankees as they become available to me.”

Family members told the Journal Star that Harlan Chamberlain was undergoing tests at the hospital on Monday afternoon. A team official told the New York Daily News that Joba Chamberlain’s sister, Tasha Dahlberg of Lincoln, called the Yankees during the eighth inning of New York’s 8-5 loss on Sunday night.

The Daily News said the relief pitcher spoke with his sister after the game and broke into tears, and manager Joe Girardi tried to console him.

After the game, the Yankees flew to Tampa, where they began a series with the Rays on Monday night. Chamberlain flew from Tampa to Lincoln early Monday.

Harlan Chamberlain attended New York’s season opener earlier this month and was at the Yankees’ series in Kansas City last week.

The family has asked that no more details of Harlan’s condition be released. In 2006 and 2007, he was hospitalized for five months after his appendix ruptured and complications with infections led to further surgeries.

Before the Yankees’ games in Kansas City last week, Joba Chamberlain noted how his father’s on-going health issues have had a profound impact on him over the years.

“I’ll never take anything for granted,” said Chamberlain, who was raised solely by his dad from the age of 3. “I have to play this game and take care of my family, but I know it can all be taken away in one day.

“I learned real quick that life’s too short to take anything for granted.”

Monday’s news about the Chamberlains received spotlight status on MSN and ESPN and front-page  placement in the Daily News.

A Lincoln Northeast graduate, Joba Chamberlain earned Nebraska’s only win ever at the College World Series in 2005. He sat out the summer after being drafted but reached the majors last August in his first professional season and became an overnight sensation as the 100-mph-throwing setup man for closer Mariano Rivera.

Chamberlain finished 2-0 with a minuscule 0.38 ERA in 24 appearances last season and has not allowed a run in four outings this season.

Reach Curt McKeever at 473-7441 or cmckeever@journalstar.com. Journal Star writer Steven M. Sipple contributed to this report.