Aroldis Chapman Says Brian Cashman Owes Him an Apology Before Any Yankees Reunion. The Drama Just Restarted
Aroldis Chapman is pitching the best baseball of his life at 38 years old and the Yankees might want him back at the trade deadline. He has a price beyond prospects: an apology from Brian Cashman.
Asked about the possibility of a return to the Bronx, Chapman didn’t dance around it. “If something like that were to happen, I believe someone from this organization should apologize first.” When the follow-up asked if Cashman was that “someone,” Chapman simply answered “yes.” That’s not subtle. That’s a flare gun.
What Started the Beef
Rewind to 2022. Chapman missed a mandatory team workout before the ALDS. Cashman went public and called the absence “surprising” and “unacceptable” and accused his closer of insubordination. Chapman has always insisted he had permission to fly to Miami. Either way, he ended up off the playoff roster after a rough season that included a 4.46 ERA, the loss of his closer job to Clay Holmes, and a left leg infection from a tattoo.
That was the end of the Yankees chapter on his career. Or so it seemed. Now Chapman is in Boston, converting saves, and looking like the version of himself the Yankees fell in love with in 2016.
He’s Earned Every Word
Chapman has 28 consecutive saves dating back to last year. He’s one short of his career record. He sits at the top of every contender’s reliever wish list as the August 3 deadline approaches. Translation: this isn’t a guy whining from the bench. He’s the best closer on the market and the Yankees know it.
Cashman publicly trashing him before the playoffs in 2022 was a bad look at the time. Looks worse now that Chapman is still pitching like a top-five closer at 38. The Yankees do owe him at least a private acknowledgment of how that ended.
Are the Yankees Actually Trading for Him?
Probably not. The Red Sox have no real reason to send Chapman to the team chasing them in the AL East. Cross-division deals between Boston and New York are basically extinct outside of unusual circumstances. The Red Sox would rather flip him to a National League contender than hand the Yankees their closer.
But the rumor is real. The Yankees lost Aaron Judge to a rib stress fracture, the bullpen has been streaky, and Brian Cashman is famously aggressive at the deadline. Stranger things have happened. If the Red Sox decide they’re sellers and the Yankees package the right players, you can’t rule it out.
The Pride Issue
Chapman isn’t refusing the trade. He’s drawing a line in the sand. “Apologize first, then we can talk.” That’s the move of a veteran who knows his leverage. The Yankees need pitching. He has options. If they want him, they’re going to have to swallow some pride.
Brian Cashman doesn’t apologize. Hal Steinbrenner doesn’t apologize. The Yankees as an organization don’t apologize. So the public path to an apology is basically zero. The private path? That depends on how desperate Cashman gets by August 3.
The Last Word
This is going to be one of the most entertaining subplots of the entire trade deadline. Chapman calling out the Yankees GM on the record. The Red Sox controlling his fate. The pressure of a sinking Bronx season hanging in the balance. Pop the popcorn now. The deadline is only seven weeks away and this story isn’t going anywhere.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
