Rumors hint Pirates circling controversial ex-Yankee after Aroldis Chapman move

The New York Yankees, after trading for, trading away, re-signing and maintaining closer Aroldis Chapman through his potential opt-out, finally rid themselves of the flamethrower after the 2022 season, when he ditched the roster just before the playoffs after the team refused to guarantee him a roster spot.

Naturally, that resulted in the left-hander winding up on the ... World Champion Texas Rangers, who managed to survive his repeated attempts at internal sabotage. Great.

Chapman has moved on to the Pittsburgh Pirates this offseason, who will become the next team to either harness his unique arsenal and attempt to compete for a title or deal him at the deadline to 2025's eventual World Series winners.

In case that signing didn't make the Pirates a target of Yankee fan scorn, Pittsburgh's front office seems dead set on adding all the players New York has been happiest to ditch in recent seasons.

According to Mike Rodriguez, the source of some earlier smoke this offseason, the Pirates (and the Angels) have met multiple times with ex-Yankees righty Domingo Germán. The rumors resurfaced on Monday night, indicating a deal could be drawing closer.

Former Yankees starter Domingo Germán has had multiple meetings with Pirates

Earlier in the offseason, Boston, Houston and Toronto were also tied to Germán. Any one of those outcomes would've induced a few more guffaws, so it's a shame those teams have shied away. Guess they learned all they needed to know before taking multiple meetings.

Germán's gruesome story has been well told. Suspended for a domestic violence incident prior to the 2019 playoffs -- which occurred in front of Joe Torre at a charitable event -- he returned to MLB in 2021, posting a 4.58 ERA in 22 games. In 2022, he maintained a 3.61 ERA, but his 4.44 FIP indicated regression was en route. Last season, his FIP was startlingly similar (4.65), as he sandwiched a literal perfect game in between multiple horrendous outings.

On his way out of New York, he was scratched with a mysterious "armpit" injury, pitched in relief later that night anyway, then showed up to the clubhouse drunk the next day. He was sent to rehab after getting violent and throwing a television, never to pitch for the Bombers again.

Best of luck to the Pirates if they've decided they'd like to give Germán a seventh chance after summarizing their multiple meetings with the right-hander. He will never be a Yankee again, but he'll encounter a familiar face in the bullpen if he chooses Pittsburgh (and if Pittsburgh chooses him).