49 Facts About Aroldis Chapman

Albertin Aroldis Chapman de la Cruz is a Cuban-born American professional baseball relief pitcher for the New York Yankees of Major League Baseball.

Aroldis Chapman previously played in MLB for the Cincinnati Reds and Chicago Cubs and in the Cuban National Series for Holguin.

Aroldis Chapman pitched for Holguin domestically and internationally for the Cuban national baseball team.

Aroldis Chapman defected from Cuba in 2009 and signed a contract with the Reds in 2010.

Aroldis Chapman won the MLB Delivery Man of the Month Award as the best relief pitcher for July 2012, was named to four straight National League All-Star teams from 2012 to 2015.

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On July 11,2014, Aroldis Chapman broke the record, previously held by Bruce Sutter, for the most consecutive relief appearances with a strikeout, having struck out at least one batter in 40 consecutive appearances.

Aroldis Chapman's streak began on August 21,2013, and lasted 49 consecutive games over two seasons, with the 49th and final game being on August 13,2014.

Aroldis Chapman currently has the record for the fastest recorded pitch speed in MLB history, at 105.

Aroldis Chapman was born in Holguin, Cuba, on February 28,1988.

Aroldis Chapman lived in a three-room house with his parents and two sisters.

Aroldis Chapman's father was a boxing trainer and then later worked for the city.

Friend of Aroldis Chapman invited him to join a local baseball team at the age of 15.

Aroldis Chapman began playing as a first baseman until the coach noticed that Chapman could throw well enough to become a pitcher, which Chapman began in 2003.

Aroldis Chapman joined the Holguin Sabuesos of the Cuban National Series League in 2006.

Aroldis Chapman was used mainly as a starting pitcher, although he made 11 relief appearances in the 2007 season.

Aroldis Chapman was part of the Cuban national team at the 2007 Pan American Games and the 2009 World Baseball Classic.

Aroldis Chapman successfully defected from Cuba while in Rotterdam, Netherlands where the Cuban national team was participating in the World Port Tournament on July 1,2009; Aroldis Chapman walked out the front door of the team hotel and entered into an automobile driven by an acquaintance.

Aroldis Chapman eventually established residency in Andorra and petitioned MLB to be granted free agent status.

On January 10,2010, Aroldis Chapman agreed to a long-term contract with the Cincinnati Reds.

Aroldis Chapman threw the fastest pitch recognized by MLB on September 24,2010, at Petco Park in San Diego, California.

In Game 2 of the 2010 NLDS against the Philadelphia Phillies, Aroldis Chapman allowed three unearned runs due to miscues of the outfielders.

Aroldis Chapman got his first career postseason loss and the Reds lost the division series to the Phillies in a three-game sweep.

Aroldis Chapman served solely as a relief pitcher in 2011, appearing in 54 regular season games and finishing the season with a 3.

Aroldis Chapman struck out 71 batters in just 50 innings of work that season.

Aroldis Chapman was due to be introduced as a starter for the 2012 season, but preseason injuries to closer Ryan Madson and middle relievers Bill Bray and Nick Masset led manager Dusty Baker to put Aroldis Chapman in the setup role.

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Aroldis Chapman was an All-Star selection for the second season in a row.

Aroldis Chapman underwent surgery to fix a skull fracture above his left eye.

Aroldis Chapman recorded his 100th save against the Arizona Diamondbacks on July 29,2014, becoming the eighth-fastest pitcher to reach the milestone.

Aroldis Chapman avoided arbitration on February 12,2016, by agreeing to a one-year contract worth $11.

Aroldis Chapman made three saves in four opportunities in the 2016 National League Division Series against the San Francisco Giants to tie and set new Division Series records respectively; Wade Davis tied his record in the 2017 National League Division Series, but Davis did it with only three opportunities.

Aroldis Chapman made four appearances during the 2016 National League Championship Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Aroldis Chapman blew a save opportunity during the first game of the NLCS, but the Cubs rallied back and Aroldis Chapman remained in the game to earn the win.

Aroldis Chapman pitched through the bottom of the ninth to send the game into extra innings.

The Cubs tallied the game-winning run in the 10th inning, making Aroldis Chapman the winning pitcher and giving him his first World Series title.

On December 15,2016, Aroldis Chapman signed a five-year, $86 million contract to return to the Yankees.

On May 14,2017, Aroldis Chapman was placed on the 10-day disabled list due to rotator cuff inflammation in his left shoulder.

In 2018 Aroldis Chapman was elected as an MLB All-Star, representing the American League.

Aroldis Chapman's sinker had the highest average speed of any MLB pitcher's pitches in 2018, at 100.

Aroldis Chapman logged one save in the American League Division Series and one in the American League Championship Series but gave up a walk-off home run to Jose Altuve with two outs in the ninth inning of Game 6 of the ALCS, eliminating the Yankees from the playoffs.

Aroldis Chapman pitched in his first major league game of 2020 on August 17.

Aroldis Chapman struggled throughout the 2022 season and lost the closer role to Clay Holmes.

Aroldis Chapman missed a mandatory workout before the 2022 American League Division Series and was left off the team's postseason roster.

That same year, Statcast revealed that Aroldis Chapman threw the 62 fastest pitches of the season, topping out at 103.

Aroldis Chapman almost never pitches more than one inning per appearance, which is a major reason for him being used as a formidable closer.

Aroldis Chapman reunited with them when he helped them transfer to the United States; the details of how they transferred remain confidential.

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On June 30,2014, his son, Atticus Gabriel Aroldis Chapman, was born in Cincinnati.

On December 7,2015, news broke that Aroldis Chapman was involved in an alleged domestic violence incident with his girlfriend in Davie, Florida at his home on October 30,2015.

Aroldis Chapman was the first player disciplined by the new personal conduct policy enacted in August 2015, which empowered MLB to suspend a player from games without a final sentence.

Aroldis Chapman recovered and returned to baseball activities on August 17,2020.