When you have an arm like Aroldis Chapman does pitching should be a pretty easy way to collect a pay check.
Basically all you have to do is roll out of bed drive down the ballpark and unleash hell. Even the best hitters in the world cannot hit the kind of velocity Chapman brings with any kind of consistency.
As a result one wouldn’t think the 28-year-old would be particularly motivated to do things any differently from the the first day of his career to the last. Wake up, uncork weaponized baseballs, go to sleep. A simple life amidst the chaos of the modern world.
However, since joining the New York Yankees Chapman has looked a little different, like he’s not exactly satisfied with coasting on his unbelievable natural talent. The southpaw closer is changing things up.
Specifically, he’s throwing strikes. This a simplistic, but theoretically dangerous tactic. For all the talk of the importance of pounding the zone that’s where balls go to get hit. Some of the best pitchers in baseball are those that dance elegantly around the edges without getting in there too often.
Perhaps due to his otherworldly stuff, Chapman is ignoring the dangers of the strike zone and diving in headfirst. As it stands he ranks first among relievers with at least 10 innings pitched with a Zone percentage of 58.1%.
This runs in stark contrast to his previous work. Between 2010 and 2015 among relievers with at least 300 innings pitched his Zone rate of 43.3% was 35th among 45 qualifiers.
The season is young and he will likely revert to form to some degree, but right now Chapman is harnessing his stuff in a way that wouldn’t have seemed possible prior to the year.
Walks were supposed to be a necessary evil with the left-hander. For the first six seasons of his career his BB/9 sat at 4.37. Right now he’s looking at 1.93. Not an unbelievable number on its own, but very strong for a guy constantly dealing in three digits.
Chapman has thrown only 14 innings, the time for strong and definitive statements about his season lie in the distant future. Even so, he’s flashing the kind of control normally reserved for soft tossers and seeing first-hand the power of filling the strike zone with a 0.76 FIP to show for his efforts.
At this juncture it’s hard to tell what that means for the Yankees. He’s certainly solidifying a closing role that was already rock solid. It’s possible than by the end of the season another team will be benefiting from his improved control.
Whether it’s wins or a prospect haul their chasing, having Chapman doing better than expected is only good for the Yankees.
Photo: Isaiah J. Downing / USA Today Sports