Aroldis Chapman Off Yankees’ Division Series Roster After No-Show

The Yankees fined their struggling relief pitcher Aroldis Chapman for an unexcused absence from a mandatory team workout Friday at Yankee Stadium, and he will not be on the team’s roster for its American League division series against the Cleveland Guardians, which begins Tuesday.

After the regular season ended Wednesday in Arlington, Texas, Chapman flew home to Miami for the team’s day off Thursday. He chose not to return to New York for Friday’s practice, for which he had been scheduled to throw a live batting practice session, Manager Aaron Boone said.

“I was disappointed,” Boone said. He called Chapman’s excuse “not acceptable,” saying, “I think he questioned whether he’s going to be on the roster or not, but he needed to be here.” Boone talked to Chapman by phone after Friday’s workout and told him to stay away from the team for now.

Given his inconsistencies on the mound, Chapman’s status for the team’s first round of the playoffs had been in doubt. In a season in which he had two stints on the injured list, including one for an infection stemming from a leg tattoo, Chapman posted a 4.46 earned run average, had his highest walk rate in 11 years and lost the closer’s role to Clay Holmes.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/09/sports/baseball/aroldis-champman-yankees.html