Is Aroldis Chapman Better Than You Think?

There doesn’t appear to be too much smoke when it comes to Aroldis Chapman returning to the Texas Rangers. Even with needs in the bullpen, it seems the World Series champions aren’t planning a reunion with the “Cuban Missile.”

Much of the relief focus during the offseason has been on the Josh Hader pursuit. The Rangers did add Kirby Yates to the bullpen in early December.

What does that leave Chapman? Sure, the flame-throwing lefty was shaky at times, especially in the playoffs. Six strikeouts to five walks in 8.0 postseason doesn’t inspire much confidence.

But mostly maneuvered his way out of trouble when it mattered. And he did strike out 50 in just 29 regular-season innings for Texas after a trade from the Kansas City Royals.

MLB.com published a list of six free agents who are better than you think. Chapman made the cut with the following breakdown:

For casual baseball fans who hadn’t checked in on Chapman since he was the dominant pitcher he was with the Yankees, it might have been a little jarring to see him with the Rangers in the playoffs. He looked physically different, he was missing the plate, he was barely escaping jams, and it looked like a blowup was imminent. But it’s worth noting: The blowups did not end up happening – Chapman walked out of that postseason with a World Series ring, don’t you know – and also, during the regular season, Chapman was actually pretty close to his old self. His strikeout rate with the Rangers and Royals was as high as it has been in a decade, he didn’t give up a single homer in 29 1/3 innings with the Royals, and his fastball velocity was in the top percentile of all pitchers. He’s not who he was a decade ago. But he’s closer than you think. And he won’t cost you Hader prices either.

Rangers manager Chris Young said early in the offseason that the club is keeping tabs on all its free agents. Several key contributors have signed elsewhere, including Mitch Garver, Martín Pérez and one-time closer Will Smith. The Rangers also lost reliever Chris Stratton.

Chapman could be another to go or perhaps a door opens for a return.