There’s a chance Monday night that the bullpen phone will ring at Yankee Stadium, giving Aroldis Chapman the call he’s waited so long to receive.
“First of all, I want to say that I’m super excited and I’m happy that the manager has given me that vote of confidence,” Chapman said Sunday through an interpreter of stepping into the closer’s role, now that his 30-game MLB suspension has been served.
“At the same time, I’m very humbled by (Dellin) Betances and (Andrew) Miller moving down the order to allow me to pitch the ninth.”
The left-handed Chapman’s entry - featuring a 100-mph fastball - gives the Yankees an electric, late-inning relief trio, one they envisioned since trading four prospects to get him from Cincinnati in December.
But that deal was made at a discounted price, following the serious matter of Chapman’s violation of MLB’s domestic violence policy.
Chapman, 28, was never charged in the October 30 matter at his Miami-area home when he was alleged to have pushed and choked his girlfriend and later, alone, fired eight shots from a handgun inside his garage - one of which exited a window.
Commissioner Rob Manfred emphasised the use of a firearm in handing down the suspension.
“I learned a lot from it. It’s part of life to keep on learning,” Chapman said Sunday, though he quickly darted from the subject. “The good thing is it’s something that is behind me now and I want to focus on baseball, being here with my teammates and having the opportunity to contribute (and) to hopefully win.”
Manager Joe Girardi never deviated from his mid-January decision to have Chapman assume the closer’s role from Miller, who saved 36 games in 2015 and is 6-for-6 in saves this season - without yielding an earned run in 12 appearances.
“What do you want me to do, you want me to throw a fit?” Miller said evenly, after once again praising Chapman’s addition.
“He’s an established closer, he’s a guy that throws incredibly hard, he’s got incredible stuff and he’s got a great track record,” Miller said. “There’s no reason to think he doesn’t make us better.”
Girardi hadn’t announced yet how he’d handle the set-up duty between the right-handed Betances and the lefty Miller, though “it could be beneficial to use it as a matchup sort of thing even though both of them have been extremely successful against either side,” Girardi said.
Either way, the manager planned to chat with the duo about their updated roles.
“Your hope is on every night you have at least one of them available (to close a game),” Girardi said.
Chapman sought to close another subject, saying he was speaking generally - and not in terms of his suspension - when he told the New York Times in Sunday’s edition that Latin players were often targeted due to their money and status.
“As a Latin player, we come to this country, we don’t know the language, we don’t know laws, and sometimes we can become a target by people who are really trying to take advantage of us or really get us in a bad situation where sometimes we don’t understand much,” Chapman said. “That’s what I meant by that.”
During his suspension, Chapman - a Cuban expatriate - completed the long process of becoming a US citizen. “This is the country that has given me such a unique opportunity,” said Chapman, who spent the past five weeks toiling in extended spring training. He watched the Yankees games whenever he could on TV or his iPad.
“It was a long time, but I feel great,” Chapman said. “I feel ready.”
Chapman’s Bronx stay might be brief; he’s eligible for free agency after the season.
“As of right now,” Chapman said, “I can tell you I’m very happy to be here.”