Yankees Aroldis Chapman Likely To Receive 25-30 Game Ban

Per Pedro Gomez of ESPN.com, New York Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman is extremely likely to receive a 25-to-30 game suspension from MLB commissioner Rob Manfred for his domestic violence incident over the winter, and the decision could be announced later today.

The good news for the New York Yankees is that the flame-throwing southpaw will likely miss just one month’s time worth of games.

The bad news is Chapman’s suspension won’t span over 45 days, so the Yankees will be without his services for an entire month and they won’t receive an extra year of control over the 27-year old left-hander, and instead, he’ll become eligible for free-agency immediately following the 2016 World Series.

Aroldis Chapman told reporters about a week ago that he planned on appealing any potential suspension the MLB would hand him, so expect this one to get messy.

Related Story: Chapman Plans to Appeal

Regardless of the outcome, Chapman’s suspension won’t include spring training, so we’ll be able to get an extended look at him throughout the month of March during Grapefruit League Action, which is set to kick-off tomorrow afternoon at 1:00 pm as the Yankees take on the Detroit Tigers at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Florida.

Skipper Joe Girardi did name Chapman the 2016 closer earlier in Spring Training, but if his suspension holds up, the Yankees will likely use 2015 closer Andrew Miller to handle the ninth inning  with Dellin Betances setting-up the eight inning.

If Chapman does indeed end up serving the 30-game suspension, it’ll be interesting to see the trickle-down effect this has on the Yankees roster.

Will they end up carrying an extra reliever out of Spring Training or will they use a six-man rotation and rely on their starters to pitch deep into ballgames early on in the season during Chapman’s absence?

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I guess time will certainly tell, but for now be sure to follow use right here at Yanks Go Yard for more updates and breaking news throughout Spring Training!