Yankees: Aroldis Chapman and his velocity issues

Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman is part of a small group of unique pitchers that can easily throw over 100-mph. And although he boasts having slung one of the fastest pitches in MLB history, this season has been dramatically different.

In three innings of work, so far this season — and 48 pitches hurled toward home plate, Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman has yet to hit 100-mph. In fact, according to FanGraphs, the average velocity of his sinker and four-seam fastball are currently sitting at 98.9 and 96.4 MPH, respectively.

In 2017, Chapman threw 21 pitches faster than anyone else in all of Major League Baseball. From 102.6-mph up to a blazing 104.3-mph, Chapman’s heater was unmatched by anyone.

That was until last season when Jordan Hicks of the St. Louis Cardinals threw a sinker at over 105-mph, on two separate occasions.

Yes, he has only thrown 48 pitches thus far, but Chapman’s fiery attack of the strike zone has seemed to fizzle. This could be damaging for the Yankees, as evidenced during the second game of the series versus the Detroit Tigers.

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Unfortunately, without Chapman’s usual dominance, opposing batters were able to spot his weakness and exploit him for runs.

With the drop in velocity, Chappy has been so-so through three games appearances. His 6.00 ERA after Tuesday nights debacle in the ninth against Detroit is a cause for concern. Even more so, he’s faced 14 batters and sat down only four of them on strikes, for an average of 3.5 batters.

As a scout recently told the New York Post, he’s more concerned by the lack of strikeouts.

"“You can make the argument that as the weather gets warmer [it velocity will improve],’’ the scout said. “It’s definitely worth keeping an eye on. There was a drop in velocity, but I would be more concerned with the [lack of] swing and misses.’’"

Has Chapman’s arm finally begun showing signs of wear and tear, much like his knee has? After all, his high velocity wasn’t going to last forever. Even so, for the 10-year veteran, this drastic dropoff of power has been dramatic.