Red Sox manager says Aroldis Chapman has quietly made mark on franchise

When the Red Sox signed Aroldis Chapman to a one-year deal this past winter they did so believing he could fortify the back of the bullpen and potentially compete for the closer job with Liam Hendriks He s done all of that and more Related Articles Red Sox lineup Lucas Giolito looking to help Sox avoid sweep Red Sox manager says injured outfielder progressing slower than expected MLB notes Where would Red Sox be if they d re-signed Kyle Schwarber Payton Tolle shines in debut but Red Sox lose to Pirates - Red Sox commentator Tom Caron celebrates years at NESN Chapman is in the midst of a career season at age turning back the clock to re-establish himself as one of baseball s the bulk dominant closers The left-hander in recent times earned his eighth All-Star nod his first since and entered Sunday with saves a ERA and strikeouts in innings He s also earned praise from top Red Sox representatives for his leadership in the clubhouse and late Saturday night news broke that the club would be rewarding him with a contract extension that will keep the closer in Boston through next season and possibly as well That deal hadn t been made official as of first pitch Sunday but Red Sox manager Alex Cora expressed excitement that Chapman will be sticking around I think the guy has been great for us Cora mentioned Not only on the field what he s done on the field has been amazing but as you guys see in the clubhouse and the way he prepares He s been great Prior to his arrival in Boston Chapman had bounced around the league pitching for three teams in two seasons between - While he s remained among the greater part overpowering pitchers in league history he s also consistently struggled with his command boasting a career walk rate of with four straight seasons over For context the MLB average is This year however Chapman has locked in his command to an unprecedented degree His walk rate is half his total from last year which has played a major role in his sustained dominance Cora pointed to a moment early in spring training where the switch seemed to flip I think he walked two or three and something clicked as far as command After the match he talked to Jason Varitek and the group where that s the first time a catcher has called a fastball in usually it was fastball and he just throws it right down the middle and lets it play and there was intent behind that pitch Cora mentioned I don t know if he got it in but it was in the zone and he kept pounding the zone in that outing and he s been doing that since that match Cora credited Chapman for a couple of other adjustments that have paid off this season He explained the closer lost weight in the offseason not because he was out of shape but to become more agile and flexible which has enabled him to repeat his delivery more easily He s also mixing in his splitter and slider more effectively and the squad has made a point to keep him fresh To this point Chapman has only pitched three straight days once and he s also only had one outing of four outs or more Behind the scenes Cora says Chapman has taken his fellow relievers under his wing and even made specific suggestions to the coaching staff that have helped improve the club s pre-game preparation All communicated he reported having Chapman has been a luxury and he s glad he ll be sticking around He s very quiet you see him in the clubhouse but he knows the encounter he s been through a lot and I know in that bullpen his voice it means something Cora mentioned Quietly and in his own way he s one of the leaders of this group