Alex Cora says Aroldis Chapman will be Red Sox’ closer
Chapman, 36, still brings the heat with his fastball.
Aroldis Chapman will be the Red Sox’ primary closer this season, according to Alex Speier of The Boston Globe.
The Red Sox signed the left-handed flamethrower to a one-year deal back in December.
“I think he brings something that was sorely missed in our 2024 bullpen, the ability to generate swings and misses [with an] electrically dominant fastball, particularly from the left side,” said Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow at the time of the signing.
At age 36, he is still capable of reaching triple digits on the radar gun. Speier noted that Chapman will see action in other innings besides the ninth as well.
“I think Chappy has been amazing,” manager Alex Cora said, per MLB.com. “But if Corey Seager leads off the eighth, he could be used in the eighth. And there’s certain times he’s gonna pitch the eighth, but most [often], he’ll pitch the ninth inning.”
The seven-time All-Star has a pair of World Series championships under his belt, having won with the Cubs in 2016 and the Rangers in 2023.
The Red Sox will be Chapman’s seventh team. The 6-foot-4, 235-pound veteran reliever began his career with the Reds, had two stints with the Yankees, won a title during a brief stop with the Cubs, and spent each of the last three seasons with a different team (Royals, Rangers, Pirates).
He has 335 career saves and a career ERA of 2.63. Last season, he went 5-5 with a 3.79 ERA with the Pirates. He made 14 saves and his five blown saves are tied for the most in his career.
Chapman, along with Justin Slaten, Garrett Whitlock, Liam Hendriks and Justin Wilson is one of five locks for bullpen spots, Cora reportedly said last week.
Hendriks, a two-time MLB reliever of the year, also has experience as a closer and could fill in on nights when Chapman has to pitch the eighth. He told the Globe last week that he thought Chapman earned the job.
“I think it’s been pretty well proven this spring training who deserves that spot after earning it all spring and that’s definitely not me,” said Hendriks. “I always said I wanted to win it, but it’s not the end of the world if I don’t.”
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