Aroldis Chapman throwing harder than ever for Pirates is a total Yankees sham

Remember Aroldis Chapman's final season with the Yankees? We know you'd rather not, but think hard. He'd developed an unhittable new toy in 2021, debuting some sort of 90+ MPH splitter that was going to take him to the next level and offset any lost velocity, as his trademark heater ticked down from 105 to 101 to 97-98.

It worked for a few weeks, but he then got wilder than ever, losing the crispness on the pitch, as well as any semblance of the plate. If a sinker starts at the shoetops, it's not fooling anybody. The saga all culminated with his worst season as a pro in 2022: a 4.46 ERA, 4.57 FIP, 97.5 MPH average velocity on his four-seamer, and one terrible tattoo-turned-tantrum that led to his exile from the playoff roster in a huff. He was the only one on earth who wanted to see himself in the October spotlight that fall, anyway. No big loss, considering nearly every outing that summer looked like the kind you can tell is about to leave you empty from the very first pitch. "97.2 way up and away? Yeah, we're screwed."

Was Chapman's career over? Physical marvels don't typically rediscover 6-8 MPH of average velocity as they turn 36, and without that eye-popping fastball, Chapman was really just a fringe closer with disastrous control.

And yet ... somehow ... he was back to topping 103 the next spring with the Kansas City Royals, who dealt him to the Texas Rangers in exchange for All-Star lefty Cole Ragans. He won the World Series in Texas, and somehow navigated four appearances in a seven-game ALCS, lasting 3.2 innings, surrendering a single run, and striking out ... one batter. How does Bruce Bochy do it?

Now he's in Pittsburgh, back in the playoff race, and hurtling 105 MPH sinkers at Manny Machado.

Mom? Can you come here? Yankees nightmare Aroldis Chapman is throwing 105 again.

Where the *F* did this youthful gas come from? This is the type of stuff that would leave Jose Altuve smirking, smoking and penniless. Where was this in 2019? Where was this literally any time we needed it? You think Mike Brosseau is handling this?

Luckily, the Pirates still lost this game in extras 9-8, through no fault of Chapman, but it remains reassuring when failure dogs the teams that choose to associate with him. It might not be just us (even though the club he joined immediately prior to his most recent Yankees tenure won the Fall Classic, and so did the club he finished 2023 as a member of).

Success is one thing. Flamethrowing to the level of his rookie season is quite another. This latest fireburst might be too much to take.