3 disappointing Yankees who have no hope to rebound in 2022

2. Aroldis Chapman

Even Aroldis Chapman’s biggest haters might be able to admit they saw him getting back on track at some point. Though he’s no longer hurling 102 MPH or more, he’s developed secondary offerings that showed promise and, at the time, seemed like they would’ve likely panned out eventually.

Except … nope! The left-hander has been varying versions of “bad” for three years now, whether it’s melting down in the postseason, blowing an egregious game after a rain delay, or making you believe he can once again handle high-leverage outings after succeeding in innings 6-8, only to absolutely come crashing back down to earth when put into those situations.

Before Aug. 17, Chapman’s last appearance in the ninth inning or later came on May 22, which was the last game before a lengthy IL stint. Then he returned as a regular bullpen yeoman, tasked with doing whatever was asked of him. That (eventually) resulted in nine straight scoreless appearances to ostensibly earn manager Aaron Boone’s trust.

He’s since been tasked with two (2) outings in the ninth and 10th, which have resulted in three earned runs on two hits, four walks and just one strikeout in a single inning of work. Chapman is not “back,” and he won’t be “back” in 2022 because he continues to get worse and worse with no signs of encouragement when the innings actually matter.

Only a few more weeks of this before he’s no longer the Yankees’ problem. Should’ve been gone after 2019, though, so big props to Cashman for extending this relationship far longer than it should’ve lasted.