Even though the Yankees Aroldis Chapman made the 2018 American League All-Star team, there is concern surrounding his health following a very poor performance against the Mets on July 21st.
According to Bryan Hoch of MLB.com, Aroldis Chapman skipped the All-Star game in order to have extra time to rest his left knee. In that same article, Yankees manager, Aaron Boone commented on Chapman’s decision to sit out during All-Star weekend.
"“Hopefully he can benefit from that a little bit,” Boone said. “To have four or five days potentially off certainly can’t hurt him. Obviously this is something he’s been dealing with for a while; it’s something that he’ll continue to maintain throughout the season and that we’ll continue to monitor all the time. Hopefully it’s a good decision for him and for us.”"
The Yankees do not seem overly concerned about his left knee soreness and plan to monitor him for the remainder of the season. Nonetheless, his performance following the All-Star break has caused some to be concerned.
In a game against the New York Mets on July 21st, the Yankees took a 7-3 lead into the top of the 9th inning. Chapman entered the game with a 1.51 FIP, a 1.35 ERA, and a 0.825 WHIP. Although this was not a save situation, he has 26 saves in 27 save opportunities, so the game was seemingly over. However, that was not the case.
Chapman walked Kevin Plawecki to start the inning and allowed a single to the next hitter, Amed Rosario. Chapman then walked Ty Kelly and Jose Reyes on 8 straight balls out of the zone. After hitting Brandon Nimmo with a pitch on a 3-0 count, the Yankees removed Chapman from the game.
Stunning to see Chapman implode like that. Couldn’t find the plate. Threw 19 pitches and 16 were balls, including last 11.
— JackCurryYES (@JackCurryYES) July 21, 2018
Chasen Shreve came into the game for the Yankees and saved the game for the Yankees. He was able to get a ground ball double play to second base by Devin Mesoraco and a ground ball to himself to end the game. 3 runs scored in the inning and they were all charged to Chapman. The Yankees won 7-6 against their crosstown rivals.
Although Chapman had a terrible outing, Aaron Boone does not seem overly concerned and believes it was due to rust. The last time Chapman took the mound was on July 14th against the Cleveland Indians when he recorded his 26th save of the season.
Aaron Boone says the team thinks Aroldis Chapman is OK. The Yankees will be further evaluating the closer who has been pitching through knee tendinitis the past couple months, but the belief is it may simply have been rust and the long time off for Chapman.
— Coley Harvey (@ColeyHarvey) July 21, 2018
In an article by Dan Martin of the New York Post, Chapman was also not concerned about the poor outing or his decrease in velocity.
"“I feel good, it was just a bad outing,’’ Chapman said through an interpreter. “That’s all.”“That doesn’t concern me at all,’’ Chapman said. “I feel good. My arm feels good. There’s nothing to worry about.”"
Regardless of the comments from Boone and Chapman, there are others who think the Yankees need to shift their focus to acquire a back-up plan in the bullpen due to Chapman’s lingering left knee soreness.
After that Chapman performance (19 pitches, 16 balls), yankees may have to step up pursuit of Britton. Phils, cubs, dodgers, braves, maybe Red Sox also among possibilities.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 21, 2018
More from Call to the Pen
- Philadelphia Phillies, ready for a stretch run, bomb St. Louis Cardinals
- Philadelphia Phillies: The 4 players on the franchise’s Mount Rushmore
- Boston Red Sox fans should be upset over Mookie Betts’ comment
- Analyzing the Boston Red Sox trade for Dave Henderson and Spike Owen
- 2023 MLB postseason likely to have a strange look without Yankees, Red Sox, Cardinals
The Yankees will most likely be checking into relief pitching regardless of Chapman’s health. As there are not a lot of options on the starting pitching side of the trade market, the Yankees may opt to further strengthen their bullpen.
There is still time between now and the trade deadline for additional appearances from Chapman. Due to this, I do not think there is a cause for concern just yet.
Following last year’s All-Star break on July 14th, Chapman gave up 2 runs on 2 hits and 2 walks without recording an out in a blown save-loss against the Boston Red Sox. Chapman then went on to pitch 9.2 between July 15th and July 31st where he only allowed 1 run on 3 hits and 3 walks with 10 strikeouts.
Next: Five trade scenarios for the Yankees
A lot of pitchers struggle with extended layoffs, so this horrendous outing could all simply be due to Chapman not pitching for seven days in between appearances.