Aroldis Chapman

Aroldis Chapman is considered by many to be the best closing pitcher in baseball, despite being 37 years old. Chapman’s skill has helped the Boston Red Sox’s efforts to make the Sox a playoff contender for the first time since 2021.

As of September 8th, Chapman has a 0.98 ERA, and 29 saves, while making the all-star team and being the highest rated reliever. This is an improvement from last season, where he had a 3.79 ERA and 14 saves during his one-year tenure with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Chapman has played for multiple teams in the past few years before joining the Red Sox this past offseason, and signing an extension with them on August 31st. Aroldis played with the Cincinnati Reds before winning a World Series with the Chicago Cubs, until he played for the New York Yankees from 2017-22 before being released for missing a mandatory practice. He also won a World Series in 2023 with the Texas Rangers.

“I think he is [playing like] the Aroldis Chapman we’ve been seeing for the past years, he is a dominant reliever. As much as I don’t like the Red Sox, he is really good for his age and still is throwing over 102 [miles per hour],” NHS sophomore Bobby DeNicola said.

Chapman recently signed a contract extension for 13.3 million dollars to keep him in Boston through 2026, with a mutual/vesting option for 2027. This contract is about $2.55 million more than his $10.75 million dollar contract he signed with Boston for one year in December of 2024.

“I think when you can identify the players that you believe can be cornerstone pieces of a sustained run of success, you have to act aggressively to keep them around. And I think watching them mature and develop together is a pretty neat thing,” Chief Baseball Officer for the Red Sox Craig Breslow said.

With this extension, Chapman joins Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell, and Garrett Crochet as Red Sox players to sign extensions this season.

“We are incredibly excited, not only for what lies ahead in the rest of 2025, but certainly the future. And now as we approach the offseason and think about the bullpen, being able to write Aroldis’s name at the back end is a very, very comforting feeling,” Breslow said.

Chapman, even though he was already considered by many to be a quality reliever, surprised many fans with his play this season.

“He’s always solid but I definitely didn’t expect him to get back to an all-star level closer at this stage in his career,” NHS sophomore Blaise Mindenhall said.

An MLB insider thinks a moment during spring training may have been a factor in Chapman’s success this season.

“Connor Wong is using PitchCom and he pushes on his PitchCom ‘inside fastball.’ And the light bulb goes off over Chapman’s head. And he tells Connor Wong and [game-planning and run prevention coach Jason] Varitek like, ‘Wow. I’ve never thought about spotting my fastball. I just threw it to home plate.’ But this is the first time like, verbally, he hears ‘inside fastball’ or subsequently ‘outside fastball.’ And so it’s that whole thing of … ‘aim small, miss small.’ That’s what Chapman has done this year,” MLB insider Buster Onley said.

Although Chapman is 37, he has shown no intentions of retiring soon, citing how he wouldn’t want to regret the decision.

“I don’t want to retire, and then in two or three years, have that regret that I could have done it for more time, or I could potentially come back. So I want to keep throwing until I can’t anymore because this is what I love to do,” Chapman said through team interpreter Carlos Villoria.

Despite Chapman’s motivation to keep playing, some are speculating that it won’t be for much longer.

“Maybe one or two more years considering his age. I don’t think anyone can maintain his velocity for longer than he has,” Mindenhall said.

The Red Sox are projected to make the wild card and enter the playoffs. Some baseball fans believe Chapman’s success will continue into a playoff run if things go right.

“If the Red Sox can keep the wins up and losses down and keep him and all the other pitchers and players healthy, yes. He is a very impactful reliever,” DeNicola said.

This season for Aroldis Chapman has been a large statistical improvement, as he is now considered one of if not the best relievers in baseball by many. Time will tell if Chapman and the Red Sox can continue their success into a playoff run.