The Boston Red Sox have become the latest team to make a free agent signing as Major League Baseball’s offseason creeps along.
Constantly on the lookout for bullpen help like most MLB teams, Boston reached a one-year agreement with closing pitcher Aroldis Chapman.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan had the news first on Tuesday.
Left-handed reliever Aroldis Chapman and the Boston Red Sox are in agreement on a one-year, $10.75 million contract, pending physical, sources tell ESPN. Boston sought left-handed help for its bullpen and lands the 36-year-old Chapman. @ChrisCotillo said deal was progressing.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 3, 2024
Chapman made his major league debut with the Cincinnati Reds late in 2010. He remained with the Reds through the 2015 season. His time in Cincinnati saw the left-hander set the MLB record for most consecutive relief appearances with a strikeout (49) and the fastest-recorded pitch in MLB history (105.9 MPH).
Following the 2015 season, the Reds looked to trade Chapman to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The deal fell through when a domestic violence incident surfaced. Cincinnati wound up trading Chapman to the New York Yankees. The closer had to serve a 30-game suspension for the incident, the first suspension under MLB’s personal conduct policy, which no longer required a conviction to suspend a player.
The Yankees traded Chapman to the Chicago Cubs at the 2016 trade deadline. He was a member of the team’s first World Series championship in 108 years. After the season, he re-signed with the Yankees, where he remained through the 2022 season.
Chapman signed with the Kansas City Royals before the 2023 season. He was traded to the Texas Rangers at the deadline, where he won his second World Series. He spent 2024 with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Chapman’s 335 career saves places him third among active players and 16th in MLB history. He is seven saves away from passing Hall of Famer Rollie Fingers for 15th in league history.
[Jeff Passan]
