Aroldis Chapman cleared one major hurdle in the way of making the Yankees look smart.
New York took a calculated risk in trading for the controversial closer after he was accused of domestic violence in a move that gave them, at least on paper, one of the most dominant bullpens in the league. The criminal case against him will no longer move forward, according to TMZ.
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After a trade with the Dodgers fell through in light of allegations of abuse made by Chapman's girlfriend, the Yankees swooped in and acquired the hard-throwing closer from the Reds for four players. It was a controversial move, but it may pay off.
The trade with Los Angeles hit the skids due to a Florida police investigation into the alleged crime. Chapman's girlfriend claimed the reliever pushed and choked her on Oct. 30 at his home after she got suspicious about something on his cell phone.
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The reliever also allegedly then went into his garage and fired off several rounds from his gun, though no one was hit. While New York took some criticism, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner defended the trade publicly.
"In this country, when allegations are brought against a person, that person is completely innocent until proven otherwise. Not the other way around," Steinbrenner said Wednesday via ESPN.
The case was dropped by prosecutors because they don't believe there's enough evidence to convict him of the crime, according to TMZ.
Though that's a good sign for the Yankees, the MLB can still suspend the 27-year-old flame-thrower for acting against its new domestic abuse policy.
Still, with no legal trouble set to face Chapman, the Yankees were certainly smart to bring him on board. The Bronx Bombers now have a three-headed monster of a bullpen as Chapman joins seventh-inning man Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller, who will now shift to the eighth inning.
Chapman (15.74), Miller (14.59) and Betances (14.04) each finished in the top three among MLB relievers for strikeouts per nine innings in 2015.
It's safe to say the Yankees made the right call.
A closer look at the Yankees' three-headed monster in the 'pen:
|
Stat |
Dellin Betances |
Andrew Miller |
Aroldis Chapman |
|
W-L |
6-4 |
3-2 |
4-4 |
|
ERA |
1.50 |
2.04 |
1.63 |
|
K/BB |
131/40 |
100/20 |
116/33 |
|
K/9 |
14.04 |
14.59 |
15.74 |
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