Champan earned the save in Tuesday's 7-4 win over the Rays, striking out the only batter he faced.
Zack Kelly came in for the seventh inning of Tuesday's game, and after pitching two scoreless frames he was brought back out for the ninth. He proceeded to yield two runs to reduce the Red Sox's lead to three, which prompted Boston manager Alex Cora to bring in Chapman to record the final out. Chapman needed five pitches to record his fourth save of the season, tossing a 99 mph fastball past Curtis Mead for the punchout. Chapman has a 1.23 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 12:4 K:BB across 7.1 innings to start his Red Sox tenure.
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Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman: Slams door for save
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Chapman allowed a hit in a scoreless inning during Sunday's win over the White Sox. He earned a save and struck out two.
Chapman gave up his first run of the year and took a loss Saturday but quickly bounced back. He coughed up a two-out single to Andrew Vaughn but punched out Michael Taylor to close out the 3-1 win. Chapman owns an impressive 1.29 ERA with an 11:4 K:BB through seven innings.
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Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman: Experiences first hiccup
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Chapman (2-1) was tagged for his first loss Saturday as the Red Sox fell 3-2 to the White Sox. He allowed a run on a walk and a single while striking out one over a third of an inning.
Chapman had not allowed a run over his first six appearances. He gave up a leadoff walk to Luis Robert, who eventually stole second base and scored on a Brooks Baldwin walk-off single. Through six innings this season, Chapman has a 1.50 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 9:4 K:BB while converting both his save chances.
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Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman: Nabs second save
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Chapman recorded the final two outs to secure the save in Friday's 13-9 win over the Cardinals, issuing one walk without allowing a run.
Chapman entered with a four-run cushion and a runner on first after Cooper Criswell gave up three runs to start the ninth. He issued a walk to Luken Baker but quickly shut the door with a game-ending double play. The veteran has tossed 2.2 scoreless innings so far in 2025, collecting two saves and a win along the way.
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Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman: Notches first save of 2025
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Chapman picked up the save after throwing a scoreless ninth inning with one walk in Wednesday's 3-0 win over Baltimore. He struck out one.
Chapman wasn't overly dominant while tossing 18 pitches Wednesday, but he put out Ryan Mountcastle after Adley Rutschman drew a walk to prevent the potential tying run from coming to the plate. It was Chapman's first save of the campaign after he worked the eighth inning Opening Day against Texas, but his usage in that one was likely a matchup-based move to handle the top of the Rangers' order. The hard-throwing left-hander has a clear pathway to save chances as Boston's closer to begin the season, especially as long as Liam Hendriks (elbow) sits on the injured list.
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Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman: Works eighth inning Thursday
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Chapman (1-0) allowed one hit and struck out one over a scoreless inning to pick up the win over Texas on Thursday.
Chapman, who was named Boston's primary closer earlier this week, entered a 2-2 game in the eighth inning. It appears the decision to use the closer in the eighth was because the Rangers had the top of the order due up. Chapman worked around a one-out, broken-bat single, throwing seven strikes among his 11 pitches. After the Red Sox took a 5-2 lead in the top of the ninth, Justin Slaten shut the door for Boston.
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Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman: Opening season as closer
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Manager Alex Cora said Tuesday that Chapman will begin the season as the Red Sox's closer but could see occasional high-leverage work in an earlier inning if the matchup is right, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.
Browne used the example of Corey Seager leading off the eighth inning as a situation when Chapman may enter before the ninth, but the veteran left-hander should still see the bulk of the save chances early on for Boston. Liam Hendriks, Justin Slaten and Garrett Whitlock seem likely to begin the season as the next men up for saves in said situations, or when Chapman is unavailable.
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Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman: Part of unsettled closer battle
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Chapman's spring struggles along with those of Liam Hendriks leave Boston's closer role unsettled, Sean McAdam of MassLive.com reports.
Chapman has a 4.91 ERA with six walks through 3.2 spring innings, which is better than Hendriks, who has a 13.50 ERA and 11 hits allowed over four innings. Manager Alex Cora acknowledged both pitchers have been knocked around but is taking an optimistic view that both are "going to be OK." If neither Chapman nor Hendriks improve over the last two weeks of the Grapefruit League, then Justin Slaten, unaccustomed to the mental aspects of closing, might sneak in to take on the ninth-inning role.
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Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman: Walks two in spring debut
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Chapman hit 101 mph in his spring training debut Wednesday, but he also walked two batters and only threw 11 strikes among his 23 pitches, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports. Chapman has slimmed down from 250 pounds to 230 pounds this spring.
The early velocity is nice, and Chapman being wild is nothing new no matter what time of the season (39 walks in 61.2 innings last season). Chapman, Liam Hendriks and Justin Slaten are competing for the closer's job, with Garrett Whitlock available for multi-inning saves.
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Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman: Gets one-year deal with Boston
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Chapman agreed to a one-year, $10.75 million contract with the Red Sox on Tuesday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
Control continues to be a major issue for Chapman, who issued 39 free passes over 61.2 innings with the Pirates in 2024. However, he also struck out 98 batters and, even though he will turn 37 years old in February, he still ranked in the 98th percentile in fastball velocity this past season. With Kenley Jansen expected to depart in free agency, Chapman will be a candidate to close in Boston, along with Liam Hendriks and Justin Slaten.
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Pirates' Aroldis Chapman: Collects 14th save
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Chapman threw a scoreless two-thirds of an inning Saturday to record his 14th save of the season in a 9-4 win over the Yankees. He struck out one.
Jalen Beeks loaded the bases with one out in the ninth inning, forcing the Pirates to turn to their closer despite a big lead. Chapman needed only nine pitches (five strikes) to convert his eighth straight save chance, striking out Aaron Judge along the way with a 100.6 mph two-seamer. Even at 37 years old, Chapman can still pump heat over the plate, and his success during his late-season closing stint should re-assure prospective employers this winter as he heads back into free agency.
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Pirates' Aroldis Chapman: Locks down save
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Chapman struck out two batters in a perfect inning to earn a save against the Yankees on Friday.
Chapman needed only eight pitches to quickly plow through the Yankees' 7-8-9 hitters and finish off the 4-2 win. It was his 13th save of the season and eight have come in September. He's converted seven consecutive save chances while posting a 2.57 ERA over his last seven appearances. Chapman owns a 3.84 ERA and a 97:39 K:BB through 61 innings this year.
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Pirates' Aroldis Chapman: Earns 12th save
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Chapman earned the save against the Brewers on Wednesday, allowing one hit and striking out one in a scoreless ninth inning.
Chapman was called upon to protect a 2-1 lead in the ninth and secured his 12th save when Willy Adames was thrown out trying to stretch a single into a double. Since allowing four earned runs in a blown save Sept. 7, Chapman has locked down six consecutive chances with eight strikeouts. On the season, the southpaw owns a 3.90 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 95:39 K:BB across 60 innings.
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Pirates' Aroldis Chapman: Records 10th save
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Chapman earned a save against the Cardinals on Thursday, allowing one hit in one scoreless inning.
Chapman entered in the bottom of the ninth inning with a one-run lead and gave up a leadoff single to Brendan Donovan. However, Donovan didn't advance any further, as Chapman retired the next three batters on just four pitches. Chapman has converted each of his past four save chances, though this was just the second time in that span that he hasn't allowed a run.
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Pirates' Aroldis Chapman: Nabs another save
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Chapman picked up the save Sunday against Kansas City, striking out one during a perfect ninth inning.
Chapman has emerged as the Pirates' closer, and while he's gone five for six in save chances since Aug. 31, the 36-year-old has yielded six runs across 6.1 innings. Overall, Chapman has a 4.11 ERA with nine saves and a 5-5 record.
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Pirates' Aroldis Chapman: Hangs on for eighth save
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Chapman earned the save in Tuesday's 6-4 win over the Marlins despite allowing a run on three hits in the ninth inning. He struck out two.
Chapman got into some trouble in the ninth, allowing the Marlins to cut the lead to 6-4 with three singles. However, he'd manage to escape with the lead still intact, earning his eighth save this season. Chapman's converted back-to-back save chance though he's given up at least one run in three straight appearances, allowing six runs over 2.2 innings in that span. The left-hander sports a 4.18 ERA on the season with a 1.45 WHIP and 91:39 K:BB across 56 innings.
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Pirates' Aroldis Chapman: Picks up seventh save
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Chapman got the save Monday against the Marlins. He allowed one run on two hits and one walk with two strikeouts in one inning.
Chapman worked in and out of trouble in the ninth as he had the tying and go-ahead run on base before escaping the jam. The 36-year-old veteran was coming off one of his worst outings of the season when he gave up a season-high four runs Saturday. Chapman has now picked up three saves in his last five appearances since replacing David Bednar as the team's primary closer.
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Pirates' Aroldis Chapman: Blows save Saturday
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Chapman (5-5) took the loss and blew the save against the Nationals in Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader, allowing four runs on four hits and one walk while striking out two batters over two-thirds of an inning.
Chapman entered in the ninth frame after Pittsburgh scored twice to take a two-run lead in the bottom of the eighth. The veteran fireballer retired two of the first three batters he faced but then allowed back-to-back singles followed by back-to-back doubles as Washington plated four runs. Before Saturday, Chapman had converted both of his save opportunities since David Bednar was moved out of the closer role, but Saturday's blow-up may allow Dennis Santana -- who picked up a save Monday and has fired 12 straight scoreless outings -- to get additional ninth-inning looks.
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Pirates' Aroldis Chapman: Collects sixth save
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Chapman picked up the save Thursday, striking out one over 0.2 innings against the Nationals.
Chapman entered a five-run game in the ninth with the tying run on deck and needed just six pitches to close things out without allowing any further damage. It was the second save in as many opportunities for Chapman since replacing a struggling David Bednar in the closer role for the Pirates. Outside of a three-run blowup last week against the Cubs, Chapman has been unscored upon over his last 13 appearances, accumulating 21 strikeouts with a 2.08 ERA, 0.77 WHIP one win, two saves and seven holds over 13 innings.
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Pirates' Aroldis Chapman: Notches save Saturday
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Chapman struck out two in a perfect ninth inning Saturday to record his fifth save of the season in a 3-0 win over the Guardians.
The veteran lefty hit triple digits on the radar gun with six of his 16 pitches, topping out at 101.8 mph, as he carved up the heart of Cleveland's order. Chapman has taken over the closer role for the Pirates due to David Bednar's struggles, and he may not give it back -- over 17 innings since the All-Star break, he's delivered a 2.12 ERA, 0.76 WHIP and 28:4 K:BB. Saturday's save was Chapman's first since July 11, but it doesn't figure to be his last of the season.
