Author Topic: Aroldis Chapman  (Read 2931 times)

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Offline NatsDad14

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Aroldis Chapman
« Topic Start: August 05, 2010, 11:44:37 AM »
Quote
Aroldis Chapman  was clocked at 103 mph in the ninth inning the other night -- twice -- as he closed out Columbus on behalf of the Reds' Triple-A affiliate. And what should concern National League hitters is that Chapman is throwing that hard while throwing strikes.

His streak of scoreless outings out of the bullpen for the Louisville Bats has reached 10, and in that time he has allowed just six hits and four walks over 11 1/3 innings, with 16 strikeouts. Cincinnati general manager Walt Jocketty said Wednesday evening that he probably will have a discussion with Reds manager Dusty Baker this week about whether and when to promote Chapman -- but clearly, he has moved onto the Reds' radar. "I see him at some point, if we decide to pull him up, helping us late in ballgames," Jocketty said.

If Chapman -- who defected from Cuba last year, and was the target of a bidding war among the Reds, Toronto, Oakland and other clubs -- continues to throw strikes with his fastball and slider, he probably will overmatch hitters. Like Stephen Strasburg, he is almost without peer in his talent. Chapman opened the year as a starting pitcher, and after throwing well initially in Triple-A, he began to struggle with his command. But about a month and a half ago, Louisville pitching coach Ted Power and Reds special assistant Mario Soto met with Chapman about altering his delivery.

What the left-handed Chapman had done in the past, at the outset of his motion, was take a big step backward toward third base, with his weight shifting almost completely onto his right leg, and then he would stride forward, his weight swinging back toward his left leg. What Chapman began to do, at the behest of Power and Soto, was keep his head centered over his left leg as he took that stride back, so his weight shift wouldn't be so dramatic and he would have better balance. They also asked Chapman to keep his eyes locked onto the catcher's glove as long as possible.

And Chapman was switched from starter to reliever. "I think the relief role has been a lot less stressful," Power said Wednesday evening. "Maybe that's what has been needed to get him acclimated to pro ball."

Power has never worked with anyone who throws as hard as Chapman -- few, if any, have -- and he has been impressed with the left-hander's athleticism and his ability to make plays on the mound. "He just turned 22," Power said. "I would say this guy could be a superstar [eventually]."

Eventually, Chapman will transition back into a starter's role -- perhaps in the Arizona Fall League, as Jocketty mentioned, or next spring. But in the not-so-distant future, he probably will create problems for NL hitters. "He's throwing strikes with all of his pitches," said Jocketty, who, like Power, has never seen anyone with an arm like Chapman's.

"Never," the GM said. "Not with the consistency of velocity he has or the slider he has. He has the makings of being a really good pitcher. He was 96 to 102 mph the other night, and he did hit 103 mph a couple of times. The other thing about that is he is so free and easy. He's throwing hard, but he just looks free and easy."
http://espn.go.com/mlb/notebook/_/page/bbtn100805/baseball-tonight-clubhouse

Offline Lintyfresh85

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #1: August 05, 2010, 11:46:08 AM »
Would love if Maya somehow made a bigger state side impact than Chapman.

Still, sounds like Chapman has the chance to be filthy.

Offline JMW IV

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #2: August 05, 2010, 12:01:44 PM »
wait..Chapman is a reliever now?

Offline HalfSmokes

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #3: August 05, 2010, 12:10:57 PM »
nothing wrong with bringing up a guy as a reliever for the push (Hellickson is in the same position)

Offline DPMOmaha

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #4: August 05, 2010, 12:13:47 PM »
Are they going with the David Price plan for him?

Offline CJames0569

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #5: August 05, 2010, 12:29:43 PM »
Are they going with the David Price plan for him?

That's what I've been envisioning ever since they first started suggesting the idea of him going to a bullpen role. Interesting bit about his mechanics. The kids definitely has all the tools and I drool over any lefty who can throw that fast. I'm glad he is doing so well out of the pen, he could really help the Reds down the stretch. (Reds fanboy).

 :couch:

Offline shoeshineboy

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #6: August 08, 2010, 09:08:33 AM »
Would love if Maya somehow made a bigger state side impact than Chapman.

Still, sounds like Chapman has the chance to be filthy.

I have a feeling that the signing of Maya may be the single best move Rizzo made all year. He may have instantly become the second best pitcher in the organization. I still can't believe they didn't go out and get Chapman when they had the chance.

Offline PANatsFan

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #7: August 08, 2010, 10:29:13 AM »
I have a feeling that the signing of Maya may be the single best move Rizzo made all year. He may have instantly become the second best pitcher in the organization. I still can't believe they didn't go out and get Chapman when they had the chance.

Chapman profiled as a reliever to some. Big deal. The Reds blew so much money on him.

Offline houston-nat

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #8: August 08, 2010, 10:37:58 AM »
I guess I'd like to know what our offer on Chapman was to compare it to the Reds'. But if Maya and Chapman are at all comparable and if they're both really good, think of what we saved - no bidding war, still a great pitcher.

Oh wait now I am turning into the Lerners!

Offline blue911

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #9: August 08, 2010, 10:41:21 AM »
I guess I'd like to know what our offer on Chapman was to compare it to the Reds'. But if Maya and Chapman are at all comparable and if they're both really good, think of what we saved - no bidding war, still a great pitcher.

Oh wait now I am turning into the Lerners!

I read that it was in the $20-25M range. The Reds bid isn't anywhere near as bad as what the Mets are paying Oliver Perez or Frankie Rodriguez.

Offline shoeshineboy

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #10: August 08, 2010, 11:07:45 AM »
I read that it was in the $20-25M range. The Reds bid isn't anywhere near as bad as what the Mets are paying Oliver Perez or Frankie Rodriguez.

Yeah, I believe the Nats bid was in the low 20s compared to the 30 from the Reds. Over 6 years, that is a very reasonable investment for a guy with his talent. There are no guarantees for any player, but that is a reasonable risk for a team to take, especially ones trying to fill organizational pitching needs.

Offline NatsDad14

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #11: August 31, 2010, 09:07:38 AM »
He allegedly hit 105 MPH twice on the radar gun

Offline PANatsFan

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #12: August 31, 2010, 10:36:07 AM »
He allegedly hit 105 MPH twice on the radar gun

I guess we'll see if that's really the speed that turns a human arm into Jello pudding.

Offline Lintyfresh85

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #13: August 31, 2010, 10:47:29 AM »
It should be... I'm guessing he's really topping out at 103... but still, that's damn fast.

Offline HalfSmokes

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #14: August 31, 2010, 10:49:34 AM »
I guess I'd like to know what our offer on Chapman was to compare it to the Reds'. But if Maya and Chapman are at all comparable and if they're both really good, think of what we saved - no bidding war, still a great pitcher.

Oh wait now I am turning into the Lerners!

isn't maya a whole lot older?

Offline CJames0569

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #15: August 31, 2010, 10:51:53 AM »
isn't maya a whole lot older?

Chapman's reported age is 22 (disputed by some) and Maya's age is beleived to be around 29 (also somewhat disputed).

Offline JMUalumni

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #16: August 31, 2010, 11:37:52 AM »
I guess we'll see if that's really the speed that turns a human arm into Jello pudding.

Yeah I really doubt the 105 MPH rumor.  There is pretty good evidence out there that the arm is only able to handle speeds up to 103 before things start bursting and ripping off.  I'm guessing the radar gun needs to be tuned, minor league parks have notoriously bad speed guns.

Anyone that is interested in this type of science (biomechanical pitching), take a look at Dr. Glenn Fleisig's work.  Some really interesting stuff, although a bit heavy on the physics.

Offline spidernat

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #17: August 31, 2010, 11:48:45 AM »
They also showed the radar reading 104 on a subsequent pitch.

Offline Lintyfresh85

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #18: August 31, 2010, 11:51:33 AM »
Chapman's reported age is 22 (disputed by some) and Maya's age is beleived to be around 29 (also somewhat disputed).

What is disputable? Cuba has solid birth records if I'm not mistaken.

Offline Potomac Cannons

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #19: August 31, 2010, 12:41:34 PM »
Yeah I really doubt the 105 MPH rumor.  There is pretty good evidence out there that the arm is only able to handle speeds up to 103 before things start bursting and ripping off.  I'm guessing the radar gun needs to be tuned, minor league parks have notoriously bad speed guns.

Anyone that is interested in this type of science (biomechanical pitching), take a look at Dr. Glenn Fleisig's work.  Some really interesting stuff, although a bit heavy on the physics.

One of the scouts who had 105 on his gun took the batteries out and rebooted...and got 105 again.

Offline PANatsFan

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #20: August 31, 2010, 12:43:54 PM »
One of the scouts who had 105 on his gun took the batteries out and rebooted...and got 105 again.

If it's mis-calibrated, then that would have little effect, from my naive point of view.

Offline HalfSmokes

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #21: August 31, 2010, 12:53:25 PM »
If he's going to be throwing 105 as a starter, they might as well schedule a meeting with Dr Andrews.

Offline JMUalumni

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #22: August 31, 2010, 01:03:41 PM »
One of the scouts who had 105 on his gun took the batteries out and rebooted...and got 105 again.

I'm not saying its impossible, just that I have an incredibly hard time believing it.  The amount of force that is required for the arm to generate those types of speeds on a pitch is just too much for the body to handle (it would have to be in excess of 80 Newton-Meters which is the limit for the normal human arm).  Hell, I'm willing to admit he could be a freak of nature and he may somehow be an exception to the rule, but label me a skeptic at this point.

Offline Lintyfresh85

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #23: August 31, 2010, 01:16:40 PM »
I swear I saw a study that said arms start to rip apart on anything past 104.

Offline blue911

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Re: Aroldis Chapman
« Reply #24: August 31, 2010, 01:18:21 PM »
Legend has it that Steve Dalkowski threw that hard (he drank even harder)