Aroldis Chapman as the closer? Hmmm, what a novel idea, isn't that what he's being paid $17 million a year for anyway?
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Well, there seems to be some talk about "officially" reassigning him to that position since his status was lowered. Yesterday, he came back! One inning, 2 strikeouts, and Severino got the win.
But here's my question. Is it too soon to make Aroldis Chapman the closer again? Joe Girardi leaned in that direction and last night we got lucky, but will he be consistent? It’s a tricky situation, considering Dellin Betances blew a save the other night.
Look, ideally the Yankees’ bullpen is at its best with Chapman on his game in the closer role, but I can’t forget how lost he looked in August to the point where Girardi demoted him during the now-famous sign-stealing series in Fenway Park.
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| Photo: Getty Images |
Is yesterday the start of something good again? I know right now is not the time to experiment and put him out there to sink or swim. But hopefully last night was a confidence booster. Bottom line, it's not like the Yankees have a 10 game lead and can afford to drop one here and there.
Look, baseball folks talk all the time about pitchers mechanics and the need for him to get right again. How do you know if he can do that without using him? Think about it like a car, if you don't drive it for awhile it's going to need a tune up. If you only drive it once and a while eventually it's mechanics are going to go haywire. I really believe some of the problems might have to do with under use rather than overuse. I really believe that you can't ask a pitcher to throw 10 pitches one day, maybe 30 the next and then say he isn't available for the next couple days.
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| Photo: Getty Images |
Somewhere, in the timeline of Major League Baseball, pitchers have become prima donnas that need to be babied. Somewhere, pitchers have become obsessed with the need to reach the triple digit plateau while forgetting how to pitch. They aren't pitchers anymore, but rather guys that try to throw the ball as fast as they can hoping that you swing and miss or can't see it so you let it go by for a strike.
I'm not a pitching coach. Hell, I'm not even a pitcher, so I can't really tell you what needs to be done or how it needs to be done. All I really know is something needs to change. I hope and pray last night with Chapman as the closer again is the beginning of something good for him and the Yankees.
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